Thursday, August 01, 2024
Jewish man speaks out on feeling 'vilified' after Officeworks staffer refuses service on the grounds of being pro-Palestinian
A Jewish man has spoken out after being refused service by an Officeworks employee, describing the tremendous shock and embarrassment of the incident as he seeks to take legal action.
Footage emerged on Thursday showing the customer attempting to get a page from the Australian Jewish News laminated at an Officeworks store in Elsternwick, Melbourne when the manager of the department refused on the grounds that she was "pro-Palestine".
In an exclusive interview with Sky News Australia, the man who chose to remain anonymous, said he felt "vilified", "discriminated" and embarrassed by the exchange.
He even revealed he was considering moving his family to Israel as a result of the rising antisemitism felt by Jews across the country.
"I'm still vilified and a target for antisemitism," he told Sky News host Sharri Markson.
"I find myself asking my family, is it a matter of when we are not moving to Israel, but not if.
Officeworks is understood to have offered the Jewish customer a $100 voucher and said it would investigate the incident.
Officeworks' managing director Sarah Hunter confirmed in a statement the matter had been taken "extremely seriously" and the stationery chain has "investigated internally and taken the appropriate action to ensure this doesn't take place again".
"We learned of the incident in March 2024. We were deeply disappointed that it occurred and confirm that the customer's job should have been performed by the team member," she said.
"We confirm that we have taken this matter extremely seriously, investigated the matter at the time and took appropriate disciplinary action.
"The views expressed by the team member are not Officeworks' views.
"At Officeworks, we do not discriminate against our customers on the basis of political views, religious beliefs, gender, sexuality or race."
However, the man vehemently refuted the company's claim and said Officeworks had not properly engaged with his complaint.
"Even though they said they're taking this issue seriously, it's clear that they haven't," he said.
"The antisemitic employee is still currently employed, which would make it seem that Officeworks condones her behaviour.
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