A German woman who worked at the same company for more than three decades recently got fired for pilfering a small burger from her boss' buffet. Her supervisors say she abused the trust they had in her. The case will soon be heard by a labor court. Magdalene H.* is fighting for her job -- and her reputation. The secretary had worked at a building association in Dortmund for 34 years when she was given her notice over a burger she took from the boss' buffet. The case, which dates from last July, is now being considered by a labor court in the western German city. And the media are not letting it pass quietly: "How heartless can a boss be?" raged the Bild tabloid on Wednesday. And the case adds to public outrage over a recent string of German firings over minutiae. First, a 50-year-old supermarket cashier lost her job after taking bottle deposit slips worth a handful of pocket change. Then came the case of a bakery worker in Friedrichshafen who was fired after €1.36 ($1.99) was found to be missing from the till. A trash collector in Mannheim who recently got fired after salvaging a child's bed out of the garbage.
A German woman who worked at the same company for more than three decades recently got fired for pilfering a small burger from her boss' buffet. Her supervisors say she abused the trust they had in her. The case will soon be heard by a labor court.
Magdalene H.* is fighting for her job -- and her reputation. The secretary had worked at a building association in Dortmund for 34 years when she was given her notice over a burger she took from the boss' buffet.
The case, which dates from last July, is now being considered by a labor court in the western German city. And the media are not letting it pass quietly: "How heartless can a boss be?" raged the Bild tabloid on Wednesday.
And the case adds to public outrage over a recent string of German firings over minutiae. First, a 50-year-old supermarket cashier lost her job after taking bottle deposit slips worth a handful of pocket change. Then came the case of a bakery worker in Friedrichshafen who was fired after €1.36 ($1.99) was found to be missing from the till. A trash collector in Mannheim who recently got fired after salvaging a child's bed out of the garbage.
