Ex-employee humiliates Choppies Store

Business at a Choppies outlet in Francistown’s Loja Mall nearly ground to a halt when Deputy Sheriffs disconnected teller machines demanding monies owed to an unfairly dismissed employee of the store, Grace Thole. An inside source at the store said the fiasco started last Monday only for the store management to refuse to relent to the demands of the sheriffs as they claimed ignorance of the unfair dismissal case.

“When the sheriffs returned on Tuesday, they came prepared with property attachment directive from the small claims court and proceeded to disconnect four teller machines before management intervened and saved the store from embarrassment. “After a long argument and discussions, the store eventually parted ways with roughly P7000 on the spot as payment for Thole’s dues,” the source said.

Contacted for comment, Thole refused to divulge the amount of money she was given by the store as she said that it is her secret but admitted that she engaged deputy sheriffs to assist her to collect her dues. “What I can happily say is that I was handsomely paid after taking the store to court. This will be a lesson to other employers who normally take their employees for granted by firing them anytime they want to do so without a blink of an eye,” she said. One of the shop managers, Tawana Khuwa, who was approached by this publication refused to comment on the matter but referred us to the branch manager, who was said to be out of the store and promised to call back but to no avail until press time.