The son of Liverpool owner Tom Hicks and former Director at the Club Tom Hicks Junior seems unaware of how respond to criticism received by email.
In 2007, Liverpool FC were taken over in a deal which was led by Tom Hicks Junior’s father (Tom Hicks Senior) and George Gillett. It has been reported that the takeover left the Club with enormous debt. As a result fans not only protested at the football matches but some decided to email their thoughts to the Club’s Board.
When Tom Hicks Junior received such an email from supporter Stephen Horner criticising the way the Club’s finances had been handled, Tom Hicks Junior decided to respond in such a way that some have described as an “expletive-strewn tirade”. The details of the email, which were sent to the press, showed Tom Hicks Junior calling Mr Horner an “idiot” who should “go to hell”. As a result of his publicised outburst, Tom Hicks Junior was heavily criticised for his conduct, and resigned from the Club’s Board.
Employees should be wary of sending any emails which could be considered abusive or inappropriate from a work email account as, depending on the employer’s policy on email and internet use, this could warrant disciplinary action and possibly dismissal.
