Tesco worker was sacked for chasing thief ... weeks later he killed himself
A DEDICATED supermarket worker killed himself after he was sacked for chasing a shoplifter, an inquest was told.
Shaun Winstanley, 49, had worked at Tesco for 17 years before he was fired for what his employer said was ‘unreasonable behaviour’ in leaving his till to go after the thief.
He was said to have been devastated to lose his job as a customer assistant at the Tesco Express in Poulton-le-Fylde, Lancashire, on January 2.
And days after losing an appeal against the sacking, he ‘sorted out his affairs’ before suffocating himself some time between February 11 and February 13, the inquest heard.
The father of three, who had previously won an award for his long service to the company, had a history of mental health problems which worsened after a separate incident in May 2018 where he was held at gunpoint during a robbery at a Tesco Express in Blackpool.
He was offered five counselling sessions by his employer following the robbery and was transferred to work at other Tesco branches in Poulton and also Bispham, the hearing was told. But his family claim he was not initially offered time off work and was disciplined for missing three shifts after the robbery.
His stepdaughter Siobhan Winstanley, 28, said: ‘Seventeen years he gave them and when he needed them most they let him down.’
The family of Mr Winstanley, who was from Blackpool, say he was told he was fired for ‘putting yourself and a customer in danger and unreasonable behaviour of chasing the shoplifter’.
They also claim a letter, signed by the store manager, said: ‘I do not feel you can be trusted to not make the same decision in the future so therefore you have breached the company’s trust’. Mr Winstanley was last seen by a neighbour on February 11.
Two days earlier, he had con
‘Devastated to lose his job’
fided in a friend that he was having suicidal thoughts after losing his job, the inquest at Blackpool Town Hall heard. His appeal against being fired was thrown out on February 6.
Mr Winstanley’s body was found on February 13 after one of his friends became worried. The friend called 999 and police forced entry into his home. Detective Constable Carl Harris said it appeared Mr Winstanley had ‘put his affairs in order’ before taking his own life.
Recording a conclusion of suicide, coroner Clare Doherty said: ‘It was apparent that [Mr Winstanley’s] employment was not going to be restored and he was devastated by that. He was an employee for 17 years and had won an award in the past for being a good employee... Mr Winstanley had suffered a marked mental deterioration last summer, while at work he had witnessed an armed robbery... It does appear he had fragile mental health and these events have caused a deterioration.’
A Tesco spokesman said: “The welfare and safety of our colleagues is of utmost importance to us and we were extremely sad to hear about the death of Mr Winstanley ...
‘We are unable to comment on individual circumstances relating to our colleagues.
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