Worcester SSG / SPCK & Steve Jeynes
Today’s Worcester News features a front page story about Steve Jeynes’ death. I’m afraid I’ve been out all day so slow off the mark in linking to this story in which I and others are quoted paying tribute to Steve. (As always Dave Walker managed to be very quick off the mark.)
Both the front page of the paper edition, and the page as accessed today show this photo.
You might have thought that this was an old stock photo, from the SPCK name displayed prominently on the awning. Well, while I don’t know when the Worcester News took the photo, I can tell you that this could indeed be seen as recently as on a sunny day two weeks ago, after they’d made Steve, the last remaining original SPCK employee here, redundant. It’s also what, 9-10 months after all rights to use the SPCK name were withdrawn from the SSG. Somehow this adds insult to injury.
Steve’s action is a particularly tragic consequence of this whole sorry mess, but that it is a mess of SSG making seems underlined by this cavalier pretence still to be trading under a name they have no right to, and after having destroyed the business, while treating its loyal staff in ways which from Steve’s descriptions to me no business, never mind a so-called “Christian” business, should treat even the lowliest of casual labour. One of the things that increasingly distressed him was the inability to protect his staff from managerial whim, and dismissal by email. This is not a tragedy without a very specific context and a clear history of personal and personnel devastation.
July 3rd, 2008 at 9:38 pm
My wife was one of the SPCK staff that Steve Jeynes ‘protected’ from the so-called charitable brothers from St Stephen the Great for many months by ignoring emails calling for their new contracts. After their dismissal (now hopefully sub judice with the Industrial Tribunal) he managed to avoid answering their repeated emails asking when he was finishing - in order to serve the Christian community in Worcester and beyond. It feels like a slap in the face that Black Bond (a volunteer who dismissed Steve, the shop manager, at the behest of the Brewers) is opening the shop at all let alone with the SPCK name so prominent.
July 3rd, 2008 at 11:17 pm
On the SPCK/SSG Blog I’ve called for a boycott of the SPCK/SSG shops. Perhaps you can help spread the word, please? The time has surely come to do all we can to prevent the Brewers benefiting further from their betrayal of SPCK’s trust.
Time to Boycott SSG?
July 5th, 2008 at 12:19 pm
I notice that on the Third Space Bookshop webpage Steve worked at the “Worchester” shop. Shows how much the Brewers care. I’m wondering who the Black Bond is. Is he the person who oversees removals from one shop to the other. Like moving goods from Norwich to Chichester and Canterbury to Durham and firing people on the way. That person needs to be exposed. I’ll try to find his name.
July 5th, 2008 at 1:06 pm
Black Bond is a guy from Worcester who until recently could be found in Worcester City centre
stopping people and rapping to them at random - he seemed kind of troubled. However, I was
recently witness to his baptism at St Paul’s church (in Worcester) and got the impression that
a relatively new faith had signalled a lot of change in his life. From what I know of him I’d
suggest he’s fairly vulnerable himself and is in all likelihood being exploited by those above
him. I don’t know much about what’s gone on with SPCK but it seems likely from what i can glean
here. I hope that helps.
July 5th, 2008 at 1:14 pm
Can I ask you all to be careful about comments referring to individuals?
July 5th, 2008 at 4:58 pm
All right Doug. Just hope somebody will protect Black Bond from SSG.
July 7th, 2008 at 6:20 pm
[...] previous posts on the tragic death of Worcester bookshop manager Steve Jeynes have attracted a number of visitors. [...]
July 8th, 2008 at 4:20 pm
The death of Steve is a huge tragedy. Through my frequent visits to SPCK I became aware that all was not right but I, like many others, was not aware of how deeply it was affecting him. In one of the last conversations I had with him he was optimistically looking to the future. Then I heard of his death.
Steve is gone, there is nothing I or anybody can do about it and, having looked through the messages above, I suggest that direct action against the organisation who, directly or indirectly, helped to bring about his demise is fruitless. They do not care and they do not care that all of us care. Surely we should be directing our energies in the direction of Joy and the children who need our prayers and support more than ever?