The Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport team confirmed that they have sacked four workers of their Formula One team for racist abuse. All workers were sacked on August 2, following an investigation into a complaint.
Earlier this week, The Sun newspaper claimed that Mercedes had separated from these workers because of “racist abuse” against a Muslim worker. The Sun said that according to an internal source, the racist abuse lasted several years, before being revealed this year.
It was at the Brackley factory that the atmosphere would have become deleterious for one of the IT workers who allegedly suffered several racist abuse and hints about his religion. It was after a real racist abuse campaign that these workers were sacked after calling their colleague a ‘terrorist’.
“Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix Ltd confirms that four workers were sacked by the company on August 2, 2019. These layoffs are the result of an internal investigation that confirmed violations of our diversity and equality policy.” Mercedes said in a statement.
“We condemn this behaviour in the strongest terms and acted immediately upon the complaint. We value the diversity of our employees and it is a source of strength for our team. Our working environment is based upon appreciation and mutual respect.” Mercedes added.
Meanwhile, the same story comes after Lewis Hamilton criticised racist abuse in Montenegro football against British players last March and called for tougher penalties.
In July, Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff said it had been able to create an environment where you actually enjoy your job and that he had zero tolerance for internal politics.
The Austrian has also spoken about the need to spend time and develop empathy for the individual himself.
“It is truly about taking care of the human and their objectives. I think it is as simple as it is. We truly care about each other.” Wolff said.
“It is not some kind of tree-hugging sentence that we have read somewhere on a billboard. It is the mindset that works in this team and it translates into all areas of the organization.” he added.
