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A former C1 Espresso manager says she felt guilty about her role in what she believes was the “cult” atmosphere of harassment and surveillance of the Christchurch café.
She claims the staff were afraid to voice their complaints due to the “spying on each other” culture created by owner Sam Crofskey.
Former cafe employees have accused their owner of bullying, not allowing required breaks, asking inappropriate questions in interviews and discouraging sick days.
Crofskey says most of the claims are unsubstantiated but is happy to address concerns through the “right channels.”
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ALDEN WILLIAMS / Stuff
Former C1 Espresso manager Raya Sharples says she felt like a “silent accomplice” to Crofskey’s harassment of staff.
Raya Sharples, 30, worked at the cafe for about six years. He was the manager of approximately five of them and resigned at the end of last year.
He claimed that Crofskey regularly called staff “retarded” and “a boy” and berated them in front of each other.
“You have to stay in the room while he does it, which makes you a silent accomplice with no agency to disagree.”
She said she had to tell Crofskey everything that happened at the cafe, including the regular occurrences of the staff members crying.
“I was stuck in the middle where I had to constantly be on the lookout for any behavior that didn’t fit the mold, which was most behaviors.”
He stated that there was “no pastoral care whatsoever” and that there was no way to complain as a culture was created where staff did not trust each other not to tell Crofskey.
Dean Kozanic / Stuff
Sam Crofskey has denied the harassment of staff.
Staff were required to greet Crofskey when they arrived, and he generally did not look up or respond, he said. Regardless, if the staff member did not salute, Crofskey would “reprimand” them, he claimed.
Sharples said he felt unable to learn anything about the personal lives of employees, because Crofskey would probably want to be informed.
“I didn’t want to learn about their life outside of work because if they said ‘oh, I played netball,’ Sam would say ‘why didn’t you tell me they played netball?’ Almost everything is a trap and my fault.
“I don’t think I had a single friend on staff. We were all basically spying on each other. “
He reiterated the claims of other former employees that Crofskey did not consider it acceptable to take sick leave. Sharples took only one weekend off in his six years there.
“No one took sick leave because of the amount of verbal abuse they would receive.”
Sharples left the job last year, but said his confidence and mental health were still affected.
Joseph Johnson / Stuff
Punters enjoy a drink at C1 Espresso on Friday.
She felt guilty the entire time she spent at the cafe for her role in the harassing atmosphere, but now she knew “logically” that she and other managers weren’t responsible, she said.
Since she left, she had heard from many former staff members who supported her and did not blame her, she said.
The wave of allegations came after student Levi Painter posted an account of her bad experience with Crofskey on an online student bulletin board Wednesday. The post attracted over 1,000 comments, many of which described negative interactions with Crofskey.
Things has been contacted by more than 60 people who were former employees or people interviewed for jobs there. Most described similar experiences: Crofskey’s insults, vigilance patterns, and attitude toward breaks and sick leave.
Painter said he posted on the bulletin board to “warn people.”
“I was amazed at the influx of comments that agreed with me.”
ALDEN WILLIAMS / Stuff
The cafe was one of the first to reopen in the central city after the Canterbury earthquakes.
Crofskey said the allegations were “extremely distressing” to him and his current and former staff members.
He had been a member of the hospitality industry for 25 years and took his responsibilities to his staff seriously, he said.
“I deeply value everyone who works for me and I am concerned to learn that some of our former colleagues feel they have not been treated fairly.”
He was working closely with the New Zealand Restaurant Association to ensure that all checks and balances were in place and “that no current or future staff member feels that way.”
The claims were “largely historical and to date unsubstantiated,” but he was more than happy to address the concerns through the proper channels, so they could “be dealt with correctly,” he said.
