BrewDog has responded to an open letter from former employees, accusing the company of poor working practices, and treating staff badly.
James Watt and Martin Dickie leading a recent environment and sustability campaign. Photograph: BrewDog
At a time when brewery workers around the world are telling of their experiences of bad treatment and harrassment, the letter is highly critical of the world famous brewer.
Founders James Watt are Martin Dickie are accused of creating a cult of personality, and using lies, hypocrisy, and deceit in order to further the company’s goals.
The former workers — dubbed Punks With Purpose — also cite safety concerns within the company’s operation, but add: “Put bluntly, the biggest shared experience of former staff is a residual feeling of fear.”
This lunchtime, a BrewDog spokesperson responded. They said: “At BrewDog, our people are our main priority, which is why the open letter we saw on Twitter was so upsetting, but so important. Our focus now is not on contradicting or contesting the details of that letter, but to listen, learn and act.
“As a fast-growing business, we have always tried to do the best by our team — we do have many thousands of employees with positive stories to tell as a result. But the tweet we saw last night proves that on many occasions we haven’t got it right. We are committed to doing better, not just as a reaction to this, but always; and we are going to reach out to our entire team past and present to learn more. But most of all, right now, we are sorry.
“It’s hard to hear those comments, but it must have been harder to say them. We appreciate that and we will endeavour to honour that effort and courage with the real change it deserves. We aren’t going to make excuses, we’re going to take action. From our commitment to sustainability to our passion for beer, BrewDog has always been defined by taking responsibility and continually improving. This is no exception.”