A collective of former and current workers at the craft beer chain BrewDog have written an open letter to the company accusing them of ignoring allegations of “sexism” and harbouring a culture of “deceit”.
The open letter published yesterday by the group “Punks with Purpose” – alluding to the brands flagship beer Punk IPA – claims BrewDog are failing to acknowledge their role in what has been described as a toxic and sexist culture within the industry. It has so far been signed by sixty-one people (the group say a further forty-five current and former staff members expressed their agreement but wished to remain anonymous).
The letter states that BrewDog have been flagged in a “significant number of these allegations,” and says that its aim is to “make known the feelings of former staff regarding the atmosphere fostered at BrewDog, since its inception, in the hope that it might explain why so many allegations have come to light”.
The company was founded in 2007 by friends James Watt and Martin Dickie, and became Scotland’s largest independent brewery within a year. Much of their branding focuses on ethics and sustainability: in 2020 they launched BrewDog Tomorrow a pledge to tackle climate change, and they pay the living wage.
However, the letter accuses the chain of abandoning their values and creating a culture of silence around sexism and harassment, “Put bluntly, the single biggest shared experience of former staff is a residual feeling of fear. Fear to speak out about the atmosphere we’re immersed in, and fear of repercussions even after we have left.”
BrewDog CEO James Watt issued an apology saying: “As a fast-growing business, we have always tried to do the best by our team we do have thousands of employees with positive stories to tell as a result. But the tweet we saw last night proves that on many occasions we haven’t got it right. We are commited to doing better, not just as a reaction to this but always.”
But “Punks with Purpose” responded in a statement saying, “We are not going away. We want to see the evidence of the change you have publicly committed to. Many of us worked for you long enough to have heard you apologiese and promise change several times already, so you’ll have to forgive us if we seem skeptical.”
Their statement also accuses the CEO of being hypocritical: “Perhaps a useful first step would be to stop writing fiction on LinkedIn about sitting on the same orange Ikea chair for fourteen years.”
Co-founder James Watt has since said he will think about the company’s actions. In a recent interview with the BBC he said, “I’m going to take their feedback very much on board. This is an opportunity to reflect on how I can become a better CEO and a better leader for fantastic people going forward.”