I am making no fresh comment of my own, just bringing together your many comments in one place.
Anonymous said...Perhaps I can invite GSM to explain Ben's sudden departure?
...It was so bad this Sunday that even Ben was portering.
09 JUNE 2008 19:29
Greenwich Whistler said...
...Thursday and Friday markets, run perfectly well up to now by Ben alone. Not surprisingly Ben was less than pleased at having his market days screwed up and made as miserable as the weekends.
...I've been told how much better things were done by Ben.
10 JUNE 2008 18:52
Anonymous said...
Talking of things disappearing, where's our Assistant Manager Ben gone. The market misses him.
15 JUNE 2008 07:14
Anonymous said...
The Cry was heard through out the market.
Bring back Ben,we want Ben. Bring back Ben,we want Ben. Bring back Ben,we want Ben. Bring back Ben,we want Ben. Bring back Ben,we want Ben.
16 JUNE 2008 05:55
Anonymous said...
BRING BACK BEN AND ALEX!!!!!!!!
Ben is such a lovely, great guy who will allways help someone in need. The market without Ben is like Cake with no egg. You can try using a "substitute" but its just not as good! He will be missed dearly if he nay returns and market life wont be the same without him.
I sense a real struggle through the next month or so for the market 'Staff' as alot of the workload that would normally be covered by either Alex or Ben ( Like Beining in the market ALL the day. (now some are too quick too leave or hide away in the office with the door locked.) Things WILL be forgotten, problems WILL occur! The somewhat 'jolly' atmosphere of the market is flipside and general moral is down! Its having effect!!!
WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO THIS LOVELY PLACE!!!
21 JUNE 2008 11:28
Anonymous said...
We wholeheartedly agree with the above comment regarding Ben, he is a very lovely, helpful,compassionate guy who would help anyone if he could. We don't know the reason why we have not seen him for a few weeks but whatever it is I hope he realises that he has a lot of support in the Market due to his integrity over the years.
22 JUNE 2008 20:34
desperate stallholder said...
I didn't know where to leave this comment but just wanted to say.... this weekend has been horrible. Alex has been suspended. Ben is nowhere to be seen. A trader has been asked to leave the market by the management. I feel totally worn out and tired. The atmosphere is awful. I feel like we are working under a dictatorship in a different country. Yet nobody seems to be listening to us. WHAT MORE DO WE HAVE TO DO GREENWICH HOSPITAL BEFORE YOU HEAR US!!!!!!!!!!!!!It's quite unbelievable.
22 JUNE 2008 21:32
Anonymous said...
So does anyone know what's happened to Ben?
23 JUNE 2008 13:50
peacemaker said...
Options to explain Ben's disappearance.
Abducted by aliens
Joined a travelling circus
Gone on to bigger and better things
Let's hope it's option three, he deserves it.
Miss you Ben.
23 JUNE 2008 14:04
Anonymous said...
I'm sure if Ben and Alex had been running the market on Sunday, the car park would've been open before traders formed a queue out onto Church Street, the porters would've been able to get to the storage, the traders wouldn't have sat around waiting to stall out quite so long and John wouldn't have been sh*t on.
23 JUNE 2008 14:54
heyoka hannah said...
I quite agree with some of my fellow traders. Let us not give each other a hard time. One trader at the weekend noticed how a porter and stallholder lost their livelihoods and that the fantastic Ben is nowhere to be seen...
23 JUNE 2008 15:16
Anonymous said...
I still really want to know what has happened to Ben. If GSM have got rid of him then they really have gone mental. He is their most professional and hardworking member of staff. He should be the Manager. Have you noticed the chaos since he has been gone? No offence to the others - Ben is just better at the job than they are.
06 JULY 2008 07:05
Anonymous said...
I think his failing was people really liked him. He mucked in on all level's he was easy to approach and you got a straight answer in a couple of minutes . Not the most creative of people which I'm sure he would admit but a fantastic people person. Great for a market team I would of thought!I think there has been a major error of judgement if he has been sacked but what do I know I.m just a stall holder!!!
06 JULY 2008 07:24
50 comments:
Yeah come on GSM - explain yourselves...
Ben was actually competent- and, more importantly- human. I think he understood and appreciated we were there to run a business- not just there for a course on visual merchandising- and he genuinely wanted the market to run as smoothly as possible.
Ben would leave the office in an instant when there were problems. He never had the 'in a minute' (leaves you waiting an hour, sometimes the whole day) and 'step outside please' attitude of his 'superior'.
Ben was a much needed counter-balance to the volatility that could be found in the same office.
Ben's absence now gives Barny free reign to terrorise the market with absolutely no accountability.
Ben, come back!
If Ben has been sacked I wonder what reason has been used - let me see ...
Ben you are fired because:
You are very good at your job.
You are very competent.
You are very popular.
You have an excellent relationship with the traders and the porters.
You care about the market.
Now I get it - to get the sack these days, you have to do your job properly.
So I wonder if someone has stuck the boot in because they felt threatened by Ben's abilities and popularity.
When all is said and done, it is GSM we are talking about here, and as John Burton and Co. are never in the market, would they know what the truth is? Either they are being blinded by lies or are they are turning a blind eye. Either way, it is not good.
Yeah, as soon as any of the staff get to a position where they know what they're doing on the market & challenging the big ego, they get moved on. It seems that GSM works on "old school tie" rules & lick ass management, instead of hanging on to those that have proved themselves to competent & likable.
Now, as Barmy Mugabe goes AWOL again,after a visit from the "very fine fellow " himself, we're left with his Barmy clone
Was he hired on his knowledge, ability & love of Greenwich or just because he was cut from the same mold - this is all very incestuous.
Bring back Ben,Alex,Mat, Dud , George & but an end to the shambles that is the current management team
Don't GSM legally have to advertise for the new position of Assistant Manager?
If so, they must've just done so on the aussie Gumtree...
On a positive note, I do like Patricia and I sincerly hope she doesn't morph into Bobby Barmy- as I fear she might do..
But do we really need Barny's brother at the top? Surely there needs to be an 'independent thinker' amongst all the other 'yes' people?
Under Barney's rule, he has no space for independent thinkers. This is why we are sadly now missing Ben.
There have been things on the market that have happened that have left me speechless. Through it all, Ben always stood by Barny and supported him- even defended him when it was obvious Barny had been completely out of order. Ben always stood by GSM too. And that is the thanks you get. Let that be a lesson to us all. That is the kind of management company GSM are and that's the kind of company Greenwich Hospital employ to run the market on their behalf. Disgusting.
I must agree with everything I've seen here. I've had issues with Ben in the past, but it soon became clear that he was uncomfortable being a sod, only doing what his manager dictated. Loyal to the end, Ben is a person I would employ in an instant.
The bottom line is this - when Ben is left to run the market it just works better in every way.
Why would Eric Reynolds and John Burton not want that?
Ben's people skills were amazing. I've seen him defuse a dispute between traders with a few well chosen words and his cheeky smile. Barny doesn't even look anyone in the eye, no matter how long he's talking at them.
Are Eric Reynolds and John Burton aware of the current situation? Or are they blissfully unaware of the unrest within the market, thinking that all is well and everyone is happy?
I think John Burton and Eric Reynolds must be aware. First there was the survey which showed very clearly the unrest. Then there were all the letters of complaint. Now this. They just seem to ignore it for some reason. In no other working environment anywhere would this be allowed to happen.
Isn't it against the law to just fire someone? Aren't people supposed to get verbal warnings, written warnings and things?
If you've been sacked Ben - sue 'em; and remember - you are too good to work for them anymore. They don't deserve you.
WE, the traders, are THE MARKET. Without traders there is NO market. We are self employed, our own bosses. Yet we are being pushed around like kids on work experience. We HAVE to remain anonymous for fear of reprisal by a zealous management, like John who apparently spoke out and was promplty kicked out... It's a joke.
And finally - if you employ monkeys you make yourself look good - BEN IS NOT A MONKEY...
Fellow traders, do you not sense that Barney's star is falling?
Like waves crashing onto the shore,
let us pull down his castle made of sand. We maybe the faceless, anonymous mass but we will win, justice must prevail, the time is at hand.
Very soon now a new dawn will come, free of bullying, humiliation, capriciousness and pomposity.
Thanks for all your comments so far. I recall the original Federico García Lorca had something to say to Eric Reynolds about Barny:
Siempre has sido lista. Has visto lo malo de las gentes a cien leguas... Pero los hijos son los hijos. Ahora estás ciega.
You have always been smart. You have always looked for the worst in people, and have been quick to notice when people are up to no good... But in the case of your children, you are blind.
It's your company Eric. Why not give Ben a hearing?
Best wishes to everybody at the market, I'm really sorry to hear things are ugly up there. I have really fond memories of my time working at the market and hope some of the good spirit is still alive in the face of all the chaos.
I loved working at the market best when Ben, Alex, and Bill were there. I'm properly glad I'm not there any more. I'd have been kicked off as well, at any rate.
Sod 'em.
Good words Whistler and very true.. but is Eric tuned into this channel?
Federico Garcia Lorca - your words are poetic and truely brilliant. :-)
Whistler - you are so wise.
So fellow traders - how can we make sure Eric Reynolds and John Burton see our comments? How can we turn their heads to start seeing the truth? How can assist them to stop being so blind? Any ideas anyone?
We have to get our message through somehow and united we must stand.
Yes, Eric and John are acting ridiculously, but it's because they're convinced they're doing the right thing. Apparently, Greenwich Market needs to be run by someone who doesn't get too involved with the traders, and manages to maintain a dignified silence when problems occur.
Yes, it's a little bit reminiscent of dictatorship and fascism, but when it's your own company, I think you're allowed to dictate who works where. I don't for one moment think they're right, and I would gladly string them all up for what has happened to Ben, and I am positive that suspending Alex was nothing short of censorship.
Vote with your feet, folks.
Eric's and John's tactics are not working though are they? It all seems to be about control or their fear of losing control. Do they not realise that some traders feel humiliated and bullied? And as someone said above, this would not be allowed in any other workplace. The difference with Ben - we felt respected and business needs were honoured which at the end of the day is what it is all about - we are their customers and we pay their wages. Without us small businesses, there would be no Greenwich Market and the biggest attraction to Greenwich would be gone. Perhaps the Hospital should think of this in terms of loss of revenue - as more and more traders leave this will surely affect the income that supports their charity? So John and Eric - maybe it's time for you to rethink your strategies. Or who knows, someone else might be given the contract in 2012 - a company who deserves it and a company who does not endorse dictatorship style management. Over to you.
Do we know for sure that Ben has been sacked. It was my understanding that he was working at the Elephant and Castle market
whilst Johno is on holiday.
No-one knows for sure that Ben has been sacked but Patricia is calling herself Assistant Manager. How many Assistant Managers do they need at Greenwich? It also seems that the porters have had a "gagging order" placed on them. Other than hello or goodbye, they seem too frightened to say anything else. As for Alex, I'm not so sure. I think we can conclude from everything that it is extremely unlikely that Ben is returning to Greenwich.
Ben is supposed to be finishing his cover for Johnno this week - apparently. Let's see what happens. My guess is we won't see him. We miss you Ben.
Ben was sacked to make way for Barney's brother.
Is "Ben was sacked" speculation or fact?
has anyone actualy seen him at Elephant and Castle ??
I think we will all know more after this weekend my friends.
whats hapening this weekend then?
Armageddon out of here
Ben has been seen at the Elephant and he looks terrible. He's been knocked sideways by his treatment. That's what loyalty gets you.
I feel so sorry for Ben. I really hope he's read all these comments to know that he's very well respected and much missed.
Another Saturday. Still no Ben.
Poor old Ben. I think it's unfair to say he 'looks terrible'. Anyway, who would you rather work with - Jon or Barny?? Personally, neither, but I think it'll be much better for Ben in the long run...and we ARE talking about what's good for Ben, aren't we?
The message came straight from the horses mouth on Saturday (the horse being John Burton when he visited the Market)
"Ben will not be returning to Greenwich Market"
so that ends any speculation.
So that is it then - Ben has been booted out and the brother has been employed. What superb timing! Wonder how long that had been planned. Hey Patricia; for your sake, I hope Barney has not got a sister.
Hi Ben.
Losing you is like having your right hand cut off. Greenwich will never be the same again. Don,t despair, what goes around comes around. You may not think so now, but everything happens for a reason, and you will go on to bigger and better things. The bastard has done you a favour.
Greenwich Space Management.
For the way you have treated Ben I now rename you:
Waste of Space Management.
Wow! John Burton was at the market? A very rare sighting indeed.
Did John Burton buy anything on his visit?
Or is it like when royalty visit anywhere - it's all grace and favour..?
How about renaming GSM - Greenwich Space Mismanagement
Or maybe GSM should be renamed:
'Give Siblings Management'...
Jack Black
Is Ben yesterday's news now?
I don't think so. I do think the Whistler should repost his case at the top again.
Yes good idea, we don't want the mystery of his relocation forgotten about and GSM getting away with it...again.
Yes, let us put Ben at the top again... no one has given us an explanation yet. It's like they are making out he never existed.
yes alex is back, but didn't you think he has lost his spark?
i think that alex and bens silence is proof that they are the true professionals and also that they have their 'official warnings' as a constant reminder that they could loose their jobs at the drop of a hat.
Well, Alex can always plug into one of our badly wired electrical sockets-that will get his spark back!
Whistler - how about we put Ben back up at the top but with all these comments too. Just to show the rest of them that he's not forgotten.
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