July 23, 2025 • 37 mins
The latest in the ongoing Market Basket drama between the grocer’s board and top executives comes in the form of firings. Executives Tom Gordon and Joe Schmidt, who were on NightSide just a little over a week ago, have now been fired by the company. Why? According to a public statement from the Market Basket Board of Directors, the two were fired for, “insubordination, making false and derogatory remarks about the company and people associated with it, and inappropriate communications with colleagues.” Tom and Joe joined us to discuss the fallout!
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
As Night's side with Dan Ray I'm wbzy Boston's me video.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
Sorry, welcome back everyone, and thank you very much Dan Watkins.
As we move into the ten o'clock halfway point of
the week, ten hours down, ten hours to go, and
we are honored, not necessarily delighted, but honored to have
two guests with us tonight who joined us. I guess
(00:29):
was just a few days ago last week. As a
matter of fact, they are two executives who combined have
worked for nearly ninety years. Nearly ninety years. It's actually
nine days ago. They were with us on Monday night,
July fourteenth, two longtime members, longtime members of market Basket
(00:53):
Joe Schmidt, former director of operations thirty nine years, Tom Gordon,
director of grocery operations at market Basket forty nine years.
And yesterday, if you listened to my show last night,
you learned that both Joe Schmidt and Tom Gordon were
terminated by market Basket by the new leadership of Market Basket.
(01:19):
UH And there were stories in the newspaper today and
there was a statement released by Market Basket this afternoon
on behalf of the new board of directors, the board
of directors that also told mister Demolis that his services
(01:41):
were no longer unneeded. The man who Arthur Demuls, Arthur T. Demols,
who built the company. So first of all, let me
let me talk to Joe and Tom. Spend an interesting
twenty four hours, gentlemen, not necessarily the way you would
hope that it would have come out. I raised this
(02:01):
issue with you on Monday. Was it the fourteenth I
think of June when you were on and I said,
you know, you're putting yourself in the cross heres of
these folks. I think the company made a huge mistake.
But let me get both of your reaction to what
had to be a difficult day for both of you yesterday. Joe,
let me start off with you, if I could judgment.
Speaker 3 (02:24):
Yeah, Dan, thank you for having us on your show
this evening. It's an honor for us to be here.
So you know, yes, there's been a difficult twenty four hours.
We found out that we got fired yesterday.
Speaker 4 (02:35):
You know.
Speaker 3 (02:35):
The way it was done was sub market basket standard.
You know, I had received a text message of a
correspondence that went out to the company yesterday afternoon that
basically said that it announced the new director of operations,
the new director of grocery operations, and another position. And
(02:55):
essentially that's how we found out about our jobs that
were on the line. About an hour later, I got
a call from Steve Collins, the one of the board members,
who informed me that I had been terminated.
Speaker 5 (03:07):
And you know, it was.
Speaker 3 (03:08):
Very disheartening to have a board member call me after
I already learned that our positions had been filled by
a document that was widely distributed. It's just against the
market basket culture. It's not something that would ever go
on while mister Demoles is running the show.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
Now, you must have realized last week when you were
on my show, you also did an interview that's been
quoted in some of the newspapers today from with the
Boston Globe. You must have known that you were putting
yourself up. Youre sticking your head up out of the
Foxhil too well.
Speaker 3 (03:41):
I think this is part of a predetermined coup, quite frankly,
and I think that plan was to get rid of
us to begin with. So there's really no surprise. So
you have a choice either stay silent or you speak
out for what's right, and speaking out with mister Demoles
is the right thing, because the company culture is in
his hands and it's best served in his hands, because
(04:03):
his track record has shown it, and he has helped,
with the support of a lot of people in the company,
to build a phenomenal business, an eight billion dollars a
year company, and it's with the work of a lot
of people. But mister de Moules is the one that
drives that ship.
Speaker 2 (04:18):
Let me let me just turn over to Tom Gordon
for second. Tom served as the director of grocery operations
at Demoulis. Tom, you served a mere forty nine years,
so between the two of you, it was about eighty
eight years of your collective lives that you gave to
this company. What was your reaction when you know, did
(04:39):
you also get notification after you had gotten a letter
or notification before? Which one? Which one was it?
Speaker 3 (04:47):
I had seen a copy of that letter prior to
my phone call from Stephen Collins, and I would echo
all of Joe Sentmonsill just one thing that you would
permit me a few seconds?
Speaker 2 (04:58):
Ye, sure, it's a ray.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
Uh yeah, I'm sorry. You know, when you talk about
truth and whatnot and what's being told out there, you know,
I'd like to all the people of market Basket who
are listening to this, So hope we listen to tomorrow.
You know, I've been told by some people that are
still on the inside, telling people that I walked out
on the twenty eighth. I want to make it clear
(05:22):
I was put on leave and I was completely clear
that I was fired yesterday in the matter of which
Joe spoke. You know, I've worked here from was fifty years.
It's the only job I've ever had. A lot of time,
a lot of hours, a lot of sacrifice, all of
my own choice, because I love this company. But respect
is something you run in life and no one hands
it to you. And I believe Joe and I have
(05:42):
earned our respect of the employees of this company. We
have always made every decision the best into this company,
associates and employees. Not everybody has to like those decisions,
but they're always made in a fair manner, and we
have made decisions about people's jobs. It's never reason to
let someone go, no matter what the circumstances, but it's
always been done fairly. You know, this job is not
(06:04):
a popularity contest, but I would will willing to wager
if you ask a lot of people in this company
to say, you know, Tom and Joe were fair people.
They looked you in the eye and they told you
the truth. You didn't have to like it, but it
was always the truth. I never walked out of a
store and has somebody say this, they think to themselves,
do I wonder what Tom was thinking because we looked
in the eye and told them the truth. And I
(06:26):
agree with Joe. I believe our fate was sealed long
before yesterday. And I wish somebody could have just said
that he listened. There's a balance of power, or the
assistants want you up. They said, this dog and pony
show has been going off for eight weeks. I wish
I would give them a lot more credit. They had
just told us the truth, something Joe and I did
every single day there.
Speaker 2 (06:46):
Well, my Tom, both of your statements speak pretty clearly
about what sort of individuals you are. And also to
work for a company, in your case Tom, for forty
nine years and in Show's case, for a mere thirty
nine years. He was like, he's like a rookie. I
just started. Now there's this serious stuff. You guys gave
(07:08):
your lives to this company. Now again, you you were employees,
and you enjoyed what you did. But there are people
out there who have been customers for decades, whose families
before them were customers, all because of people like you
and mister Demulis who built the company. Now there's a
(07:29):
change in leadership and art. The t Demulis has been
been taken out literally, uh, and there there there are
two uh individuals like yourself who were who were done
(07:50):
uh with the company. Do you see any way that
do either of you see any way that you could return?
Speaker 3 (07:57):
Hey, you know there's always a chance to come back,
and we plan on being back. You know, there may
be a temporary disruption here in terms of everything that's
gone on with this foolishness with the board members, the
current board members that have taken over the board. They've
taken over the company at the direction of the sisters
to get rid of Athaity Demulas. That's just not the
(08:18):
right thing to do. That hurts a company that's firing
on all still and is under mister Demul's leadership and
his management team working together. And you know, we're not
going to just walk away just because Tom and I
got a phone call as I told us we were
no longer with the company. We're not going to just
walk away that easy. You know, there's too much at stake.
We're here to protect the associates, the culture, and the
(08:39):
company and support mister Demola's until the very end.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
Okay, let's take a quick break. I'd love to hear
from Demula's customers. I'd love to hear from employees. There
was a really back in twenty fourteen. People gathered together
and basically forced a decision to be reversed. I'm not
sure that history can repeat itself. I can tell you that,
(09:06):
as an occasional customer at market Basket, I have gone
there many times in recent years because of the work
that guys like you. I have to think now long
and hard about whether I want to go back, and
I'd love to know what other people think as well.
Six one, seven, two, five, four ten thirty, six one seven,
(09:28):
nine three one ten thirty and triple eight nine two nine,
ten thirty. We'll be back with my two guests, long time,
long time not only employees, but longtime employees in leadership
positions at market Basket, Joe Schmidt and Tom Gordon, the
Director of Operations and the director of Grocery Operations. We
will continue to talk about what happened to them yesterday
(09:50):
and where they go from here. I do think that
there are some options open, and if I were them,
I would realize that they, inadvert the leadership of Tumulis
may have just opened a door to them, a legal
door for which they they have. They will have an
opportunity to to to to not only make statements in
(10:15):
the future, but maybe to make an ultimate statement in
a court of ar We'll be back on the Night
Side right after this.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
It's Night Side with Dan Ray on Boston's news Radio.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
Have we're talking with the two longtime employees of market Basket,
Joe Smith and Tom Gordon uh combined a total of
eighty eight years in service of that country. There was
a statement released by the current on board of directors
of Market Basket today. Have you folks had a chance
(10:50):
to look at that that statement?
Speaker 3 (10:53):
We saw one that was released last night. So I'm
not sure exactly which one you're referring to, but is
there something in particular in it.
Speaker 6 (10:59):
That you like? Yeah?
Speaker 2 (11:00):
Well, yeah, I want you to address a couple of
things here. Okay, and again I'm going I'm not going
to believe these, but I think that we invited them
to join us, and they're invited. They're well going to
join us any any time, but they said in the
statement regarding you, Joe Smith. Despite warnings to stop pressuring
Market Basket associates to join his side, Schmidt continued to
(11:23):
divide his instructions to avoid communicating with employees while under suspension.
One of Schmid's direct reports told colleagues he remained in
contact with SMID following Smith's suspension. That same employee himself.
A supervisor told a subordinate, You've got a wife and kids.
I want to make sure you know to stay in
the right side of this. The subordinate understood that statement
(11:44):
to be a direct threat. SMI also reportedly told colleagues
falsely that if demulas were removed to CEO that lose
their bonuses and profit sharing. Smith has acknowledged to investigators
that he had no factual basis for that statement. The
implication is that that you're admitting having made those statements, Joe.
Speaker 3 (12:03):
Well, this is this is why Quinn Emmanuel, the most
feared law firm in the nation, was engaged to come
up with this investigation. So they talked to a few people,
you know, I never said to somebody that bonuses and
profit sharing were going away. At best, if somebody asked
me a question, what do you think would happen if
something changed in the board, you know, something along the
lines of, you know, you never know what's going to happen.
(12:25):
So they've taken some massive leaps here, including their whole
premise for their investigation, which was that somehow I and
Tom were involved in some type of work stoppage. You know,
there wasn't one ounce of credible evidence in that investigation
to prove that that they didn't meet the prime of
Phatia case or even putting us on suspension to begin with.
So you know, comments like that aggravate me because it
(12:50):
is slanderous to me and my character. And you know what,
they're just doing this investigation, which, by the way, I
have to add the investigation was done on Monday, and
by Monday night they had decided to get rid of us.
So they did such due diligence to review the results
of the investigation. They took about four hours to look
at it and decided that we needed to go. So
(13:11):
and they had eight weeks to conduct the investigation, so
it took them eight weeks to even talk to us.
Speaker 2 (13:16):
So the investigation that you're referring to here began this Monday.
Speaker 3 (13:22):
Well, that began, that began when we were put on
the bench. They began the investigation. They spoke with Tom
and I and Paul quickly on Monday for the first
time out of that whole eight week period, and have
taken them about four days to do the investigation. Quite frankly,
but they slacked it out eight weeks.
Speaker 2 (13:40):
So I know when you say Monday, when sure you
were put on You were suspended on May twenty eighth.
When did they initiate the.
Speaker 3 (13:49):
Investigation this past well, supposedly they initiated the investigation at
that time. They haven't spoken to us until this past Monday,
so it took took them just under eight weeks to
even have a conversation with it.
Speaker 2 (14:03):
So when you say this past Monday, you mean two
days ago, this Monday of this.
Speaker 6 (14:07):
That's correct, gotcha?
Speaker 2 (14:08):
Okayrect Then to be fair, Tom, this is what they
wrote about you. The investigators learned that in the weeks
leading up to his suspension, Gordon reportedly told associates to
spread the word throughout the company that the majority shareholders
to Mullis's sisters were going to remove to Mulis as CEO,
and that Gordon would quit if that happened. He reportedly
(14:30):
told those associates and summoned substance that those three sisters
are hell bent on getting the boss and his kids
out of here, and we got to stick together. The
associates told investigators they interpreted his remarks to suggest that
they should rally around to Mulis by planning a work disruption.
Just before Gordon's suspension, he went into multiple associates' offices
(14:50):
and said he would not work to keep this place
going without the boss. Give you a chance. That's what
they're saying about you, I guess was their basis for
the suspension. And now determination gets you a change.
Speaker 3 (15:05):
In that statement you said, you know their interpretation of that.
I'm not sure exactly what their interpretation of anything is.
Speaker 6 (15:11):
Uh.
Speaker 3 (15:11):
Listen, I've been loyal to the boss for a long time.
I did go to some offices in the before I
was suspended that day, and I did tell people that
he Listen, we uh this, any any change in the
leadership here is not a good thing. But the rest
of what they're talking about is nothing. I remember saying
(15:31):
to people, So I said, they were interpretations and none
of it was said to me to say, listen, this
is what so and so said. It's just people said
somebody said this, we heard this.
Speaker 5 (15:41):
Yeah, I don't believe any of them.
Speaker 3 (15:44):
Okay, you know, Dan, Dan, Dan, quite frankly some of
this information. There was talk out in the company about
you know, myself, Joe Schmidt being removed and I was
going to be fired before they even came up with
an investigation. So, I mean, this is just it is
what it is. We're collateral damage and a coup uh
to take mister Demol's out of his leadership position.
Speaker 2 (16:04):
You know.
Speaker 3 (16:05):
So they hire a law firm to do an investigation
under a false premise, they come back with a few things,
and then they take large liberties with it. That that's
the fact, you know. You know, Dan, I I I
was trying to again into about twenty stores a week
at the time, and you know, I was asked by
you know, a few associates along the way, what's going on.
(16:26):
I heard this might be happening. I heard this might
be happening, Terry Cole's taking off the board. And I
would answer their questions truthfully. But we didn't go out
soliciting information or news to anybody. Again, I believe in
telling people the truth. And I'm asked the question, I
look them in the eye and tell them the truth.
Speaker 2 (16:44):
Okay, have you folks retained I assume you have retained counsel.
Speaker 6 (16:49):
We have conselt Yes, okay, And.
Speaker 2 (16:55):
I have to assume that at some point you're going
to fight for your job in court.
Speaker 3 (17:03):
Well, you can make an assumption, Dan, and that's that's
what most people would would would assume. You know, we're
looking to get this ship righted and get things reinstated
the way they should be with with mister Damole's coming
back and and us being part of that team, so
we can continue to do what we love to do
every day, which is sell groceries and take care of
customers and communities and the associate team.
Speaker 2 (17:24):
Without a nasty question, how's that possible with the configuration
of the board at this point, Well.
Speaker 3 (17:32):
Right now, you know under Jay Hatchigan, who's the boarder,
you know, the the chair of the board that works
at Gunderson Deptmer and Boston. You know, it's clearly these
decisions that have been made and the way that they're operating.
You know, for instance, you know they've made a big
deal about succession, wanting to engage management and talk to them.
But yet they took three people that work in the
(17:53):
company that they've maybe spoken to on one or two
occasions and put them into these positions. And two of
them happen to be ones of the guys that you're
talking about today. So you know, their decision making right now,
from what I see, is a telltale for what the
future is going to hold. And hopefully the other shareholders,
the sisters understand that this isn't a sustainable model under
(18:13):
Jay Hatchigan, Steve Collins and Michael Keyes and the leadership
team that they've instilled, because you've just taken the heart
out of the business by removing mister Demoles. So we
feel like there's there's going to be an opportunity here
where people's come to reason quite frankly, and and you know,
as opposed to hurting this company and hurting his growth
(18:34):
and hurting the sales long term.
Speaker 2 (18:36):
All right, gentlemen, you expressed yourself again. I last week
felt that you were respectful to the company, that that
you were positive and supportive of the former well, Gen,
I'm going to call in general manage. I don't know
(18:56):
what author Demoles's title was, but he ran the contract company.
Speaker 4 (19:00):
Uh.
Speaker 2 (19:00):
And what I want to do is We're going to
take a news break and then I will invite callers
to join us. If you are an employee and you
have the courage and you want to call up, great,
If you're a customer and you have the you need
less courage, tell us what you think of this. This
is going to be I think, very disruptive to a
great supermarket chain here in New England. They were in
(19:22):
New England. They are in ninety stores that are impacted here.
They're an eight billion dollar business that that is a
massive number for a grocery chain. Six one, seven, two, five,
four ten thirty six one seven, nine, three one ten thirty.
We will go to phone calls right after the break.
I hope to hear from you as many as possible.
(19:44):
You've you've listened to the allegations, you've listened to the responses,
Feel free to join the conversation. We'll be right back
on night Side.
Speaker 1 (19:55):
Night Side with Dan Ray on WBZ Boston's News.
Speaker 2 (20:01):
All right, we're going to go to phone calls. I
got a couple of open lines at six one, seven
thirty and we had one drop off at six one, seven, two, five,
four ten thirty. Uh. This is I think an important
issue because the implications of what Joe Schmidt and Tom
Gordon have talked about. The implications are for the future
(20:23):
of market Basket, and the the suggestion is that there
may be other changes afoot. And I think that from
a consumer's point of view, you want to make sure
that the the company stays to the philosophy that built
the company into what it is. And Arthur T. Demoulis
(20:48):
has led this company for you know, decades. He's gone.
What replaces him are amongst the questions. Let me go next.
First off, this hour to al In Millis, Alex, you're
gonna get us going here on night Side. You're on
with Joe Schmid and Tom Gordon, the fired longtime employees
(21:09):
of market Basket.
Speaker 7 (21:10):
Go right ahead, Hello missus Schmid, mister Gordon, Hey Dan.
I'm a loyal market Basket customer. You know, I passed
like six supermarkets and I go to the Bellingham store.
So when when this came to light, I heard about it.
I actually called the store and I says, uh, do
(21:30):
I do you guys foresee any changes? So they assured
me that nothing, nothing different is going to change. Uh,
business as usual. And you know I love market Basket,
you know, because they have so many registers, you're gonna
have to deal with a self checkout.
Speaker 4 (21:47):
Uh.
Speaker 7 (21:47):
They have happened to be Greek, so you know they
have international products Greek products, which other supermarket stone. So
hopefully nothing will change. And you know I'm wondering, you know,
uh what the future holds? Uh this is this is like.
Speaker 2 (22:05):
Well you're talking to people who know the company very well, Alex,
so let's see what uh uh what either or both
Joe and Tom have to say?
Speaker 3 (22:15):
Okay, again, I think that the company has been uh
been marriaged very well for a long time, and there's
a lot of good systems in place, and I think
you can keep a lot of things going on the
short term and keeping running the way they're supposed to
the long term. I think with the removal of the
front office Seema and other people and the changing of
the board, uh, I think there's in my opinion, uh,
(22:37):
things will not run the same as we get on
the road. Yeah, and Alex, thank you for the call.
You know, I also want to say when people say
nothing's changed, I mean they they just took out the
upper level of management. They took mister Demos out of
the company. That that that itself is a huge change.
And you know, Jay Hatchigan wants to say that the
(22:57):
culture continues to be vibrant and everything's one. But the
fact of the matter is is that they were going
to be major implications by not having missed the Mulas
as the head of this company.
Speaker 2 (23:08):
All right, Alex, good questions. I hope they keep the
Greek food. Okay, let's keep rolling here. Tom, this is
your daughter calling in from Pennsylvania. Chloe in Pennsylvania. You
should be pretty very proud that your daughter would take
the time to stick up for her dad, as I'm
(23:28):
sure she will. Chloe, you were next on next time.
Speaker 8 (23:31):
My dad, Thank you.
Speaker 6 (23:39):
It's been a while.
Speaker 9 (23:41):
I know, I just wanted to call in and tell
my dad that I'm so proud of him. You know,
my dad, if you really know him, he started with nothing,
worked harder than anybody that I've known, anyone that really
anyone's ever known, not only to give his kids a
(24:01):
good life, but because that's what he believe is right.
He's missed a lot of things as me growing up,
but he dedicated his wife to that company. He's dedicated
his wife to mister de Mulis as well as Joe Schmidt.
And it's just insane that we have to go through
this again. But six hours away, I'm supporting you. You
(24:23):
need me to drive home again in the car right now.
Speaker 2 (24:27):
It's a loyal daughter, it is.
Speaker 9 (24:32):
He's you know, my dad is kind of the epitome
of the American dream. He's a guy who work comes first,
always has, always will, and he does a good job
because he's his leader.
Speaker 10 (24:46):
Is good you.
Speaker 9 (24:48):
You perform well and the person you look up to
performs well. Ye, your dog isn't doing the best and
the rest of your army is gonna.
Speaker 2 (24:57):
Fall all right, Thanks Chloe, appreciate you. I love you.
Speaker 6 (25:04):
I'll be doing it.
Speaker 2 (25:06):
That's a good daughter. You should be proud of her.
Let's keep rolling if we can. Gonna go next to
Chuck Is in Shirley, Massachusetts. Sure, Chuck, welcome, you're next
to my side.
Speaker 11 (25:19):
Hi. How are you doing?
Speaker 2 (25:21):
D You're wrong with Joe?
Speaker 11 (25:25):
Hi, guys, Olijah, I probably feeling better before this happened.
But you know what, I gotta tell you that I
was one of the people that stayed away from from
market Basket, uh the last time, and I could tell
(25:48):
you right now it can be done again. I think
Dan you you may have said something about can it
can you do it twice? Absolutely? What these people don't
understand were a couple of things. It's everybody that goes to.
Speaker 4 (26:13):
The Basket, as we call right.
Speaker 11 (26:18):
We are like a family of people that support this
place like unbelievable, and we supported author and we could
do it again because he's the hot and soul of
this company and he's done it, done it by right
(26:40):
before and they can do it again.
Speaker 2 (26:43):
Gentlemen want to come in to what Jack had to say.
Speaker 3 (26:46):
Hey, Chuck, you know, we thank you for expressing your opinion,
you know, and I think it's important that the board
of directors and quite frankly that Karen Francis and Gloria
in all here this message as well, because you said
it well, is great concern out there for the company
in the future. And you know, uh, you know, everybody
should do what they think is the right thing to do.
(27:08):
At the end of the day, everybody has decisions to
make and that's that's the way it is.
Speaker 11 (27:14):
Check appreciate you know what's going to happen.
Speaker 2 (27:18):
Check out to keep rolling. I appreciate you taking the time.
Speaker 4 (27:22):
Thanks.
Speaker 6 (27:23):
Thanks.
Speaker 2 (27:23):
We get a little bit of telephone interferences Dennis is
and Lowell. Dennis, you're next on night Side with Joe
Schmidt and Tom Gordon eighty eight years between them, with
market Basket terminated yesterday.
Speaker 6 (27:37):
Jeez, they're almost as old as I am many years.
But anyway, I'm just kidding. I'm close though. I'm almost
staighty again now. I've been a customer of market Basket
and Lowell for all the sixty years, especially the Bridge
Street to Mullis, which I think was the second one
they started. And also as a teacher at Lowell High
(27:58):
School twelve or forty years, I've had hundreds of students
work at the Bullets for their first job experience, and
it's just wonderful experience for the young students, you know,
to go through and like I said, unknown Oddy t
a little bit and his father. I know all the
charities that they have given millions of dollars to without
(28:22):
wanting any public you know, recognition stuff. I am just
taken aback and like right now, I will not be
shopping at market baskets until you gentlemen and odd e
t I restore it to your jobs. So I'm waiting
a call to action because I'll go out and pick
at the place.
Speaker 3 (28:41):
So that's my comments. Appreciate And it's been a you know,
it's been a place where a lot of people. He
talks about how long he shop there, and how many
students he had that that worked there. It's a place.
As a former store manager, I remember getting you know,
families of than that worked there. You'd get one of
(29:01):
the kids and then the mother would be and so and
so is going to be ready next month, and then
two years there's another one. You get to see three
or four kids in the same family. It's it's nice
to know that people trust this company with, you know,
having their children work for them. And then that's a
big it's a big trust to take on. And we
enjoyed it, and it's sad. I think it says a
lot about the company and the way we run things
(29:22):
that people are willing to lead the children and I trust.
Speaker 2 (29:25):
No question. Hey, Dennis, I appreciate your fighting.
Speaker 6 (29:28):
Spirit all the time. Dan, you know, we played ball. Hey,
good luck, gentlemen.
Speaker 2 (29:35):
Thanks. Denis Dennis was an old opponent of mine more
than a few years ago. We'll take a quick break here.
We only have one line, which is at six, one, seven,
nine thirty. The calls have been fast and furious once
we open up these lines, and I always like to
(29:55):
see that, But I also like to see people responding
to a situation that I think is not fair. When
you have two gentlemen of the quality of Joe Schmitt
and Tom Gordon eighty eight years working for a company,
and this is how it ends not supposed to be
the way. We'll be back on Nightside with more phone
(30:17):
calls right after this.
Speaker 1 (30:19):
You're on night Side with Dan Ray on w b Z,
Boston's news radio.
Speaker 2 (30:24):
Our guest the Joe Schmitt and Tom Gordon, two men
who spent their careers working at Market Basket. Joe was
the director of operations, Tom Gordon was the director of
grocery ops and operations. And is you can tell a
lot of people are concerned about what's happened to them
and what might what that might augur for the the
(30:45):
story itself and it's ninety grocery stores. Let's go to
Joe and Revere. Joe gonna get you in about three
more in here, go right ahead, Joe.
Speaker 4 (30:55):
Dan.
Speaker 5 (30:55):
First of all, if you go in there market basket,
you don't grab the upcourn on the right, you've made
a mistake.
Speaker 2 (31:02):
Oh, thank you for that, Joe. I appreciate that. I'm
not a big popcorn guy, the chips guy.
Speaker 5 (31:08):
Go ahead, Okay, five ten years ago, I'm sorry, I
don't remember they got rid of mister Demolis before fourteen
was okay, you're better at me than that. Okay, I
don't remember. I don't remember if they negotiated or what.
(31:28):
But he got put back in his position, and I
don't know if they went on strike. And I don't
like strikes. I'm open nobody goes on strike. But I'm
just saying I forget all the details and how we
got back into that spot.
Speaker 2 (31:44):
Well, either Joe, Joe or Tom will have a better
recollection of it than I will. I remember it as
almost a customer strike, Gorett ahead, Joe or Tom.
Speaker 3 (31:55):
Yeah. On twenty fourteen, what had happened is there was
a dispute in the company. Mister Demules got fired. Actually
Tom and I got fired at the same time along
with some of our other colleagues. And basically, mister Demols
and his sisters purchased the other side of the family
offor estimuals the shares of the company, and the customers
are the ones that took the movement into their own hands.
(32:17):
They made the decision at the time to not shop
at the stores and did all types of things of
taping receipts on windows and whatnot. And that's the that's
the history of the twenty fourteen situation, all right.
Speaker 2 (32:28):
Joe, So there's a quick summary of what happened. Maybe
it'll happen again, who knows.
Speaker 5 (32:35):
Yeah, let's hope it doesn't come to strikes and stuff
with people aren't showing up.
Speaker 2 (32:38):
But well, well, people not shopping in the store is
not a strike, Joe. Normally a strike relates to people
who work at the store. This was a situation where
people who shopped at the store chose to stay not
the shop.
Speaker 5 (32:51):
No, we're not going to do it because miss right,
I'll get it.
Speaker 2 (32:55):
Okay, appreciate it, Joe. Thank you very much for your
calling me. Go to Joe and Chelmster. Joe, you were
next one nights. I go ahead, Joe.
Speaker 8 (33:01):
Yes, Hi Dan, I just wanted to chime in. Been
shopping there for fifty years. I thoroughly support the gentlemen
on the show. Support Arthur T who I met once,
and I noticed that on a shopper level, bake goods
are up a dollar at the store, and the outside
suppliers of meat and poultry have changed, as have the
egg suppliers. I'm not happy, and I'm willing to act.
Speaker 2 (33:24):
That's interesting. I haven't been in the store for well
a month, but it's interesting that you could you could
pin that those those changes having taken place already quick
reaction to to those changes.
Speaker 6 (33:39):
Joe or Tom, I am not there a lot of it.
Speaker 3 (33:44):
Yeah, we haven't been the stores in a little bit.
But again I think it kind of goes back to
things can be held together for a little while, but
long term, without the Boston leadership and the management team there,
there's that could very well be some problems, all.
Speaker 2 (33:58):
Right, Joe from Chelm's, appreciate you taking the time to
call and keep listening to Night Side. We'll keep up
on this story, I promise.
Speaker 8 (34:08):
Thanks Daran, Thanks Joe, Thanks gentlemen, thank you.
Speaker 2 (34:12):
Gotta go to Gene and Averagingia. Next night's I gotta
get you and a couple more in go.
Speaker 10 (34:16):
Ahead, Gene, Okay, Hi Dan, thank you, and Hi guys, listen.
I take care of three elderly family members only volunteering, Okay,
that I do this. It's not easy, Okay. I go
to demores because I can find the stuff they need. Now,
if these two sisters want to be the evil twins
(34:41):
and mess it up, they're going to break the hats
of three elderly people if I can't find the things
they need. And if they hear about how they're treating
these people who work for them for years, they'll probably
tell me don't go to demuls anymore. Because that's how
the seniors are. They care about people. And if you
(35:01):
don't care about people, you're no one, okay now. And
I'm sure that their mother brought them up to care
about people, and she, wherever she is, God bless her,
is probably not happy if she knows how these sisters
are treating their brother.
Speaker 2 (35:18):
Yep, that's a little speculative, Jeane, and I think it's
an interesting point for taking care of your your older relatives.
I just got to keep cask and I.
Speaker 10 (35:31):
Want them to keep in mind. They're affecting people's lives.
Speaker 2 (35:35):
Yep, that's all we talked about tonight. Thank you for
echoing those comments. Let me go next to Nick and Lowell. Nick,
you gotta be quick for me, please. I got another Nick.
He's from Malden. You go ahead, Nick and Lowell.
Speaker 4 (35:46):
Hi, guys, sir. I've been a member of market Basket,
I worked in some under mister Gammon, and I'm just
totally disgruntled the way things are being handled with these
these people on the board. It's totally not right. And
(36:06):
as of today I am now shopping someone else. It's
totally not right. What's going on. You guys shouldn't suffer
to this already, shouldn't suffer to this as a work
of being there for five years in summrble, I know
what you guys done through and it's just really sad.
Speaker 2 (36:24):
All right, Nick Well said, I'm gonna give a few
seconds to Nick and Malden. Let me go to Nick
and Malden next. Go right ahead, Nick, you gotta be
quick for me. We're running out of time.
Speaker 3 (36:33):
Yeah, yep, very nice, and talk to you.
Speaker 4 (36:34):
Thanks, Joe.
Speaker 12 (36:35):
It's just be real quick on one hundred percent side,
just I've been in a position just like you with
a company that from bought out and the first thing
they do clean house.
Speaker 4 (36:45):
Do you think that you.
Speaker 12 (36:46):
Might have kind to have Doug a little bit of
great for yourself by out speaking in these offices. I
know that's happened to a lot of people that I've known.
Sometimes you get caught up in the moment you say
things you probably might regret later, almost publicly your thoughts.
Speaker 2 (37:00):
I'll hang up a quick comment, gentlemen, then we got
to go.
Speaker 3 (37:04):
Thanks, Thanks Tom, And I lost that Tom and I
lost that jobs. So there we are.
Speaker 2 (37:11):
And you told me that you told me ten days ago,
nine days ago. You did it because you wanted to
maintain your integrity. I suspect your integrity is intact, and
I suspect that you'll have your day in court, There's no.
Speaker 3 (37:24):
Question, and we're not going to back down for something
we believe in.
Speaker 6 (37:26):
You know, what we believe in is the culture.
Speaker 3 (37:28):
Of the Market Basket Organization under the leadership of mister Demorris.
Speaker 2 (37:31):
Gentlemen, thanks very much for the coverage tonight. Please keep
in touch with us on this and hopefully we will
have uh, you know, more positive news as the days
and weeks go by. Thank you both very much for
your integrity. I admire both of you. Thank you again,
You're very welcome. Here comes the news at eleven. Be
(37:52):
back right after that.
As Night's side with Dan Ray I'm wbzy Boston's me video.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
Sorry, welcome back everyone, and thank you very much Dan Watkins.
As we move into the ten o'clock halfway point of
the week, ten hours down, ten hours to go, and
we are honored, not necessarily delighted, but honored to have
two guests with us tonight who joined us. I guess
(00:29):
was just a few days ago last week. As a
matter of fact, they are two executives who combined have
worked for nearly ninety years. Nearly ninety years. It's actually
nine days ago. They were with us on Monday night,
July fourteenth, two longtime members, longtime members of market Basket
(00:53):
Joe Schmidt, former director of operations thirty nine years, Tom Gordon,
director of grocery operations at market Basket forty nine years.
And yesterday, if you listened to my show last night,
you learned that both Joe Schmidt and Tom Gordon were
terminated by market Basket by the new leadership of Market Basket.
(01:19):
UH And there were stories in the newspaper today and
there was a statement released by Market Basket this afternoon
on behalf of the new board of directors, the board
of directors that also told mister Demolis that his services
(01:41):
were no longer unneeded. The man who Arthur Demuls, Arthur T. Demols,
who built the company. So first of all, let me
let me talk to Joe and Tom. Spend an interesting
twenty four hours, gentlemen, not necessarily the way you would
hope that it would have come out. I raised this
(02:01):
issue with you on Monday. Was it the fourteenth I
think of June when you were on and I said,
you know, you're putting yourself in the cross heres of
these folks. I think the company made a huge mistake.
But let me get both of your reaction to what
had to be a difficult day for both of you yesterday. Joe,
let me start off with you, if I could judgment.
Speaker 3 (02:24):
Yeah, Dan, thank you for having us on your show
this evening. It's an honor for us to be here.
So you know, yes, there's been a difficult twenty four hours.
We found out that we got fired yesterday.
Speaker 4 (02:35):
You know.
Speaker 3 (02:35):
The way it was done was sub market basket standard.
You know, I had received a text message of a
correspondence that went out to the company yesterday afternoon that
basically said that it announced the new director of operations,
the new director of grocery operations, and another position. And
(02:55):
essentially that's how we found out about our jobs that
were on the line. About an hour later, I got
a call from Steve Collins, the one of the board members,
who informed me that I had been terminated.
Speaker 5 (03:07):
And you know, it was.
Speaker 3 (03:08):
Very disheartening to have a board member call me after
I already learned that our positions had been filled by
a document that was widely distributed. It's just against the
market basket culture. It's not something that would ever go
on while mister Demoles is running the show.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
Now, you must have realized last week when you were
on my show, you also did an interview that's been
quoted in some of the newspapers today from with the
Boston Globe. You must have known that you were putting
yourself up. Youre sticking your head up out of the
Foxhil too well.
Speaker 3 (03:41):
I think this is part of a predetermined coup, quite frankly,
and I think that plan was to get rid of
us to begin with. So there's really no surprise. So
you have a choice either stay silent or you speak
out for what's right, and speaking out with mister Demoles
is the right thing, because the company culture is in
his hands and it's best served in his hands, because
(04:03):
his track record has shown it, and he has helped,
with the support of a lot of people in the company,
to build a phenomenal business, an eight billion dollars a
year company, and it's with the work of a lot
of people. But mister de Moules is the one that
drives that ship.
Speaker 2 (04:18):
Let me let me just turn over to Tom Gordon
for second. Tom served as the director of grocery operations
at Demoulis. Tom, you served a mere forty nine years,
so between the two of you, it was about eighty
eight years of your collective lives that you gave to
this company. What was your reaction when you know, did
(04:39):
you also get notification after you had gotten a letter
or notification before? Which one? Which one was it?
Speaker 3 (04:47):
I had seen a copy of that letter prior to
my phone call from Stephen Collins, and I would echo
all of Joe Sentmonsill just one thing that you would
permit me a few seconds?
Speaker 2 (04:58):
Ye, sure, it's a ray.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
Uh yeah, I'm sorry. You know, when you talk about
truth and whatnot and what's being told out there, you know,
I'd like to all the people of market Basket who
are listening to this, So hope we listen to tomorrow.
You know, I've been told by some people that are
still on the inside, telling people that I walked out
on the twenty eighth. I want to make it clear
(05:22):
I was put on leave and I was completely clear
that I was fired yesterday in the matter of which
Joe spoke. You know, I've worked here from was fifty years.
It's the only job I've ever had. A lot of time,
a lot of hours, a lot of sacrifice, all of
my own choice, because I love this company. But respect
is something you run in life and no one hands
it to you. And I believe Joe and I have
(05:42):
earned our respect of the employees of this company. We
have always made every decision the best into this company,
associates and employees. Not everybody has to like those decisions,
but they're always made in a fair manner, and we
have made decisions about people's jobs. It's never reason to
let someone go, no matter what the circumstances, but it's
always been done fairly. You know, this job is not
(06:04):
a popularity contest, but I would will willing to wager
if you ask a lot of people in this company
to say, you know, Tom and Joe were fair people.
They looked you in the eye and they told you
the truth. You didn't have to like it, but it
was always the truth. I never walked out of a
store and has somebody say this, they think to themselves,
do I wonder what Tom was thinking because we looked
in the eye and told them the truth. And I
(06:26):
agree with Joe. I believe our fate was sealed long
before yesterday. And I wish somebody could have just said
that he listened. There's a balance of power, or the
assistants want you up. They said, this dog and pony
show has been going off for eight weeks. I wish
I would give them a lot more credit. They had
just told us the truth, something Joe and I did
every single day there.
Speaker 2 (06:46):
Well, my Tom, both of your statements speak pretty clearly
about what sort of individuals you are. And also to
work for a company, in your case Tom, for forty
nine years and in Show's case, for a mere thirty
nine years. He was like, he's like a rookie. I
just started. Now there's this serious stuff. You guys gave
(07:08):
your lives to this company. Now again, you you were employees,
and you enjoyed what you did. But there are people
out there who have been customers for decades, whose families
before them were customers, all because of people like you
and mister Demulis who built the company. Now there's a
(07:29):
change in leadership and art. The t Demulis has been
been taken out literally, uh, and there there there are
two uh individuals like yourself who were who were done
(07:50):
uh with the company. Do you see any way that
do either of you see any way that you could return?
Speaker 3 (07:57):
Hey, you know there's always a chance to come back,
and we plan on being back. You know, there may
be a temporary disruption here in terms of everything that's
gone on with this foolishness with the board members, the
current board members that have taken over the board. They've
taken over the company at the direction of the sisters
to get rid of Athaity Demulas. That's just not the
(08:18):
right thing to do. That hurts a company that's firing
on all still and is under mister Demul's leadership and
his management team working together. And you know, we're not
going to just walk away just because Tom and I
got a phone call as I told us we were
no longer with the company. We're not going to just
walk away that easy. You know, there's too much at stake.
We're here to protect the associates, the culture, and the
(08:39):
company and support mister Demola's until the very end.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
Okay, let's take a quick break. I'd love to hear
from Demula's customers. I'd love to hear from employees. There
was a really back in twenty fourteen. People gathered together
and basically forced a decision to be reversed. I'm not
sure that history can repeat itself. I can tell you that,
(09:06):
as an occasional customer at market Basket, I have gone
there many times in recent years because of the work
that guys like you. I have to think now long
and hard about whether I want to go back, and
I'd love to know what other people think as well.
Six one, seven, two, five, four ten thirty, six one seven,
(09:28):
nine three one ten thirty and triple eight nine two nine,
ten thirty. We'll be back with my two guests, long time,
long time not only employees, but longtime employees in leadership
positions at market Basket, Joe Schmidt and Tom Gordon, the
Director of Operations and the director of Grocery Operations. We
will continue to talk about what happened to them yesterday
(09:50):
and where they go from here. I do think that
there are some options open, and if I were them,
I would realize that they, inadvert the leadership of Tumulis
may have just opened a door to them, a legal
door for which they they have. They will have an
opportunity to to to to not only make statements in
(10:15):
the future, but maybe to make an ultimate statement in
a court of ar We'll be back on the Night
Side right after this.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
It's Night Side with Dan Ray on Boston's news Radio.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
Have we're talking with the two longtime employees of market Basket,
Joe Smith and Tom Gordon uh combined a total of
eighty eight years in service of that country. There was
a statement released by the current on board of directors
of Market Basket today. Have you folks had a chance
(10:50):
to look at that that statement?
Speaker 3 (10:53):
We saw one that was released last night. So I'm
not sure exactly which one you're referring to, but is
there something in particular in it.
Speaker 6 (10:59):
That you like? Yeah?
Speaker 2 (11:00):
Well, yeah, I want you to address a couple of
things here. Okay, and again I'm going I'm not going
to believe these, but I think that we invited them
to join us, and they're invited. They're well going to
join us any any time, but they said in the
statement regarding you, Joe Smith. Despite warnings to stop pressuring
Market Basket associates to join his side, Schmidt continued to
(11:23):
divide his instructions to avoid communicating with employees while under suspension.
One of Schmid's direct reports told colleagues he remained in
contact with SMID following Smith's suspension. That same employee himself.
A supervisor told a subordinate, You've got a wife and kids.
I want to make sure you know to stay in
the right side of this. The subordinate understood that statement
(11:44):
to be a direct threat. SMI also reportedly told colleagues
falsely that if demulas were removed to CEO that lose
their bonuses and profit sharing. Smith has acknowledged to investigators
that he had no factual basis for that statement. The
implication is that that you're admitting having made those statements, Joe.
Speaker 3 (12:03):
Well, this is this is why Quinn Emmanuel, the most
feared law firm in the nation, was engaged to come
up with this investigation. So they talked to a few people,
you know, I never said to somebody that bonuses and
profit sharing were going away. At best, if somebody asked
me a question, what do you think would happen if
something changed in the board, you know, something along the
lines of, you know, you never know what's going to happen.
(12:25):
So they've taken some massive leaps here, including their whole
premise for their investigation, which was that somehow I and
Tom were involved in some type of work stoppage. You know,
there wasn't one ounce of credible evidence in that investigation
to prove that that they didn't meet the prime of
Phatia case or even putting us on suspension to begin with.
So you know, comments like that aggravate me because it
(12:50):
is slanderous to me and my character. And you know what,
they're just doing this investigation, which, by the way, I
have to add the investigation was done on Monday, and
by Monday night they had decided to get rid of us.
So they did such due diligence to review the results
of the investigation. They took about four hours to look
at it and decided that we needed to go. So
(13:11):
and they had eight weeks to conduct the investigation, so
it took them eight weeks to even talk to us.
Speaker 2 (13:16):
So the investigation that you're referring to here began this Monday.
Speaker 3 (13:22):
Well, that began, that began when we were put on
the bench. They began the investigation. They spoke with Tom
and I and Paul quickly on Monday for the first
time out of that whole eight week period, and have
taken them about four days to do the investigation. Quite frankly,
but they slacked it out eight weeks.
Speaker 2 (13:40):
So I know when you say Monday, when sure you
were put on You were suspended on May twenty eighth.
When did they initiate the.
Speaker 3 (13:49):
Investigation this past well, supposedly they initiated the investigation at
that time. They haven't spoken to us until this past Monday,
so it took took them just under eight weeks to
even have a conversation with it.
Speaker 2 (14:03):
So when you say this past Monday, you mean two
days ago, this Monday of this.
Speaker 6 (14:07):
That's correct, gotcha?
Speaker 2 (14:08):
Okayrect Then to be fair, Tom, this is what they
wrote about you. The investigators learned that in the weeks
leading up to his suspension, Gordon reportedly told associates to
spread the word throughout the company that the majority shareholders
to Mullis's sisters were going to remove to Mulis as CEO,
and that Gordon would quit if that happened. He reportedly
(14:30):
told those associates and summoned substance that those three sisters
are hell bent on getting the boss and his kids
out of here, and we got to stick together. The
associates told investigators they interpreted his remarks to suggest that
they should rally around to Mulis by planning a work disruption.
Just before Gordon's suspension, he went into multiple associates' offices
(14:50):
and said he would not work to keep this place
going without the boss. Give you a chance. That's what
they're saying about you, I guess was their basis for
the suspension. And now determination gets you a change.
Speaker 3 (15:05):
In that statement you said, you know their interpretation of that.
I'm not sure exactly what their interpretation of anything is.
Speaker 6 (15:11):
Uh.
Speaker 3 (15:11):
Listen, I've been loyal to the boss for a long time.
I did go to some offices in the before I
was suspended that day, and I did tell people that
he Listen, we uh this, any any change in the
leadership here is not a good thing. But the rest
of what they're talking about is nothing. I remember saying
(15:31):
to people, So I said, they were interpretations and none
of it was said to me to say, listen, this
is what so and so said. It's just people said
somebody said this, we heard this.
Speaker 5 (15:41):
Yeah, I don't believe any of them.
Speaker 3 (15:44):
Okay, you know, Dan, Dan, Dan, quite frankly some of
this information. There was talk out in the company about
you know, myself, Joe Schmidt being removed and I was
going to be fired before they even came up with
an investigation. So, I mean, this is just it is
what it is. We're collateral damage and a coup uh
to take mister Demol's out of his leadership position.
Speaker 2 (16:04):
You know.
Speaker 3 (16:05):
So they hire a law firm to do an investigation
under a false premise, they come back with a few things,
and then they take large liberties with it. That that's
the fact, you know. You know, Dan, I I I
was trying to again into about twenty stores a week
at the time, and you know, I was asked by
you know, a few associates along the way, what's going on.
(16:26):
I heard this might be happening. I heard this might
be happening, Terry Cole's taking off the board. And I
would answer their questions truthfully. But we didn't go out
soliciting information or news to anybody. Again, I believe in
telling people the truth. And I'm asked the question, I
look them in the eye and tell them the truth.
Speaker 2 (16:44):
Okay, have you folks retained I assume you have retained counsel.
Speaker 6 (16:49):
We have conselt Yes, okay, And.
Speaker 2 (16:55):
I have to assume that at some point you're going
to fight for your job in court.
Speaker 3 (17:03):
Well, you can make an assumption, Dan, and that's that's
what most people would would would assume. You know, we're
looking to get this ship righted and get things reinstated
the way they should be with with mister Damole's coming
back and and us being part of that team, so
we can continue to do what we love to do
every day, which is sell groceries and take care of
customers and communities and the associate team.
Speaker 2 (17:24):
Without a nasty question, how's that possible with the configuration
of the board at this point, Well.
Speaker 3 (17:32):
Right now, you know under Jay Hatchigan, who's the boarder,
you know, the the chair of the board that works
at Gunderson Deptmer and Boston. You know, it's clearly these
decisions that have been made and the way that they're operating.
You know, for instance, you know they've made a big
deal about succession, wanting to engage management and talk to them.
But yet they took three people that work in the
(17:53):
company that they've maybe spoken to on one or two
occasions and put them into these positions. And two of
them happen to be ones of the guys that you're
talking about today. So you know, their decision making right now,
from what I see, is a telltale for what the
future is going to hold. And hopefully the other shareholders,
the sisters understand that this isn't a sustainable model under
(18:13):
Jay Hatchigan, Steve Collins and Michael Keyes and the leadership
team that they've instilled, because you've just taken the heart
out of the business by removing mister Demoles. So we
feel like there's there's going to be an opportunity here
where people's come to reason quite frankly, and and you know,
as opposed to hurting this company and hurting his growth
(18:34):
and hurting the sales long term.
Speaker 2 (18:36):
All right, gentlemen, you expressed yourself again. I last week
felt that you were respectful to the company, that that
you were positive and supportive of the former well, Gen,
I'm going to call in general manage. I don't know
(18:56):
what author Demoles's title was, but he ran the contract company.
Speaker 4 (19:00):
Uh.
Speaker 2 (19:00):
And what I want to do is We're going to
take a news break and then I will invite callers
to join us. If you are an employee and you
have the courage and you want to call up, great,
If you're a customer and you have the you need
less courage, tell us what you think of this. This
is going to be I think, very disruptive to a
great supermarket chain here in New England. They were in
(19:22):
New England. They are in ninety stores that are impacted here.
They're an eight billion dollar business that that is a
massive number for a grocery chain. Six one, seven, two, five,
four ten thirty six one seven, nine, three one ten thirty.
We will go to phone calls right after the break.
I hope to hear from you as many as possible.
(19:44):
You've you've listened to the allegations, you've listened to the responses,
Feel free to join the conversation. We'll be right back
on night Side.
Speaker 1 (19:55):
Night Side with Dan Ray on WBZ Boston's News.
Speaker 2 (20:01):
All right, we're going to go to phone calls. I
got a couple of open lines at six one, seven
thirty and we had one drop off at six one, seven, two, five,
four ten thirty. Uh. This is I think an important
issue because the implications of what Joe Schmidt and Tom
Gordon have talked about. The implications are for the future
(20:23):
of market Basket, and the the suggestion is that there
may be other changes afoot. And I think that from
a consumer's point of view, you want to make sure
that the the company stays to the philosophy that built
the company into what it is. And Arthur T. Demoulis
(20:48):
has led this company for you know, decades. He's gone.
What replaces him are amongst the questions. Let me go next.
First off, this hour to al In Millis, Alex, you're
gonna get us going here on night Side. You're on
with Joe Schmid and Tom Gordon, the fired longtime employees
(21:09):
of market Basket.
Speaker 7 (21:10):
Go right ahead, Hello missus Schmid, mister Gordon, Hey Dan.
I'm a loyal market Basket customer. You know, I passed
like six supermarkets and I go to the Bellingham store.
So when when this came to light, I heard about it.
I actually called the store and I says, uh, do
(21:30):
I do you guys foresee any changes? So they assured
me that nothing, nothing different is going to change. Uh,
business as usual. And you know I love market Basket,
you know, because they have so many registers, you're gonna
have to deal with a self checkout.
Speaker 4 (21:47):
Uh.
Speaker 7 (21:47):
They have happened to be Greek, so you know they
have international products Greek products, which other supermarket stone. So
hopefully nothing will change. And you know I'm wondering, you know,
uh what the future holds? Uh this is this is like.
Speaker 2 (22:05):
Well you're talking to people who know the company very well, Alex,
so let's see what uh uh what either or both
Joe and Tom have to say?
Speaker 3 (22:15):
Okay, again, I think that the company has been uh
been marriaged very well for a long time, and there's
a lot of good systems in place, and I think
you can keep a lot of things going on the
short term and keeping running the way they're supposed to
the long term. I think with the removal of the
front office Seema and other people and the changing of
the board, uh, I think there's in my opinion, uh,
(22:37):
things will not run the same as we get on
the road. Yeah, and Alex, thank you for the call.
You know, I also want to say when people say
nothing's changed, I mean they they just took out the
upper level of management. They took mister Demos out of
the company. That that that itself is a huge change.
And you know, Jay Hatchigan wants to say that the
(22:57):
culture continues to be vibrant and everything's one. But the
fact of the matter is is that they were going
to be major implications by not having missed the Mulas
as the head of this company.
Speaker 2 (23:08):
All right, Alex, good questions. I hope they keep the
Greek food. Okay, let's keep rolling here. Tom, this is
your daughter calling in from Pennsylvania. Chloe in Pennsylvania. You
should be pretty very proud that your daughter would take
the time to stick up for her dad, as I'm
(23:28):
sure she will. Chloe, you were next on next time.
Speaker 8 (23:31):
My dad, Thank you.
Speaker 6 (23:39):
It's been a while.
Speaker 9 (23:41):
I know, I just wanted to call in and tell
my dad that I'm so proud of him. You know,
my dad, if you really know him, he started with nothing,
worked harder than anybody that I've known, anyone that really
anyone's ever known, not only to give his kids a
(24:01):
good life, but because that's what he believe is right.
He's missed a lot of things as me growing up,
but he dedicated his wife to that company. He's dedicated
his wife to mister de Mulis as well as Joe Schmidt.
And it's just insane that we have to go through
this again. But six hours away, I'm supporting you. You
(24:23):
need me to drive home again in the car right now.
Speaker 2 (24:27):
It's a loyal daughter, it is.
Speaker 9 (24:32):
He's you know, my dad is kind of the epitome
of the American dream. He's a guy who work comes first,
always has, always will, and he does a good job
because he's his leader.
Speaker 10 (24:46):
Is good you.
Speaker 9 (24:48):
You perform well and the person you look up to
performs well. Ye, your dog isn't doing the best and
the rest of your army is gonna.
Speaker 2 (24:57):
Fall all right, Thanks Chloe, appreciate you. I love you.
Speaker 6 (25:04):
I'll be doing it.
Speaker 2 (25:06):
That's a good daughter. You should be proud of her.
Let's keep rolling if we can. Gonna go next to
Chuck Is in Shirley, Massachusetts. Sure, Chuck, welcome, you're next
to my side.
Speaker 11 (25:19):
Hi. How are you doing?
Speaker 2 (25:21):
D You're wrong with Joe?
Speaker 11 (25:25):
Hi, guys, Olijah, I probably feeling better before this happened.
But you know what, I gotta tell you that I
was one of the people that stayed away from from
market Basket, uh the last time, and I could tell
(25:48):
you right now it can be done again. I think
Dan you you may have said something about can it
can you do it twice? Absolutely? What these people don't
understand were a couple of things. It's everybody that goes to.
Speaker 4 (26:13):
The Basket, as we call right.
Speaker 11 (26:18):
We are like a family of people that support this
place like unbelievable, and we supported author and we could
do it again because he's the hot and soul of
this company and he's done it, done it by right
(26:40):
before and they can do it again.
Speaker 2 (26:43):
Gentlemen want to come in to what Jack had to say.
Speaker 3 (26:46):
Hey, Chuck, you know, we thank you for expressing your opinion,
you know, and I think it's important that the board
of directors and quite frankly that Karen Francis and Gloria
in all here this message as well, because you said
it well, is great concern out there for the company
in the future. And you know, uh, you know, everybody
should do what they think is the right thing to do.
(27:08):
At the end of the day, everybody has decisions to
make and that's that's the way it is.
Speaker 11 (27:14):
Check appreciate you know what's going to happen.
Speaker 2 (27:18):
Check out to keep rolling. I appreciate you taking the time.
Speaker 4 (27:22):
Thanks.
Speaker 6 (27:23):
Thanks.
Speaker 2 (27:23):
We get a little bit of telephone interferences Dennis is
and Lowell. Dennis, you're next on night Side with Joe
Schmidt and Tom Gordon eighty eight years between them, with
market Basket terminated yesterday.
Speaker 6 (27:37):
Jeez, they're almost as old as I am many years.
But anyway, I'm just kidding. I'm close though. I'm almost
staighty again now. I've been a customer of market Basket
and Lowell for all the sixty years, especially the Bridge
Street to Mullis, which I think was the second one
they started. And also as a teacher at Lowell High
(27:58):
School twelve or forty years, I've had hundreds of students
work at the Bullets for their first job experience, and
it's just wonderful experience for the young students, you know,
to go through and like I said, unknown Oddy t
a little bit and his father. I know all the
charities that they have given millions of dollars to without
(28:22):
wanting any public you know, recognition stuff. I am just
taken aback and like right now, I will not be
shopping at market baskets until you gentlemen and odd e
t I restore it to your jobs. So I'm waiting
a call to action because I'll go out and pick
at the place.
Speaker 3 (28:41):
So that's my comments. Appreciate And it's been a you know,
it's been a place where a lot of people. He
talks about how long he shop there, and how many
students he had that that worked there. It's a place.
As a former store manager, I remember getting you know,
families of than that worked there. You'd get one of
(29:01):
the kids and then the mother would be and so and
so is going to be ready next month, and then
two years there's another one. You get to see three
or four kids in the same family. It's it's nice
to know that people trust this company with, you know,
having their children work for them. And then that's a
big it's a big trust to take on. And we
enjoyed it, and it's sad. I think it says a
lot about the company and the way we run things
(29:22):
that people are willing to lead the children and I trust.
Speaker 2 (29:25):
No question. Hey, Dennis, I appreciate your fighting.
Speaker 6 (29:28):
Spirit all the time. Dan, you know, we played ball. Hey,
good luck, gentlemen.
Speaker 2 (29:35):
Thanks. Denis Dennis was an old opponent of mine more
than a few years ago. We'll take a quick break here.
We only have one line, which is at six, one, seven,
nine thirty. The calls have been fast and furious once
we open up these lines, and I always like to
(29:55):
see that, But I also like to see people responding
to a situation that I think is not fair. When
you have two gentlemen of the quality of Joe Schmitt
and Tom Gordon eighty eight years working for a company,
and this is how it ends not supposed to be
the way. We'll be back on Nightside with more phone
(30:17):
calls right after this.
Speaker 1 (30:19):
You're on night Side with Dan Ray on w b Z,
Boston's news radio.
Speaker 2 (30:24):
Our guest the Joe Schmitt and Tom Gordon, two men
who spent their careers working at Market Basket. Joe was
the director of operations, Tom Gordon was the director of
grocery ops and operations. And is you can tell a
lot of people are concerned about what's happened to them
and what might what that might augur for the the
(30:45):
story itself and it's ninety grocery stores. Let's go to
Joe and Revere. Joe gonna get you in about three
more in here, go right ahead, Joe.
Speaker 4 (30:55):
Dan.
Speaker 5 (30:55):
First of all, if you go in there market basket,
you don't grab the upcourn on the right, you've made
a mistake.
Speaker 2 (31:02):
Oh, thank you for that, Joe. I appreciate that. I'm
not a big popcorn guy, the chips guy.
Speaker 5 (31:08):
Go ahead, Okay, five ten years ago, I'm sorry, I
don't remember they got rid of mister Demolis before fourteen
was okay, you're better at me than that. Okay, I
don't remember. I don't remember if they negotiated or what.
(31:28):
But he got put back in his position, and I
don't know if they went on strike. And I don't
like strikes. I'm open nobody goes on strike. But I'm
just saying I forget all the details and how we
got back into that spot.
Speaker 2 (31:44):
Well, either Joe, Joe or Tom will have a better
recollection of it than I will. I remember it as
almost a customer strike, Gorett ahead, Joe or Tom.
Speaker 3 (31:55):
Yeah. On twenty fourteen, what had happened is there was
a dispute in the company. Mister Demules got fired. Actually
Tom and I got fired at the same time along
with some of our other colleagues. And basically, mister Demols
and his sisters purchased the other side of the family
offor estimuals the shares of the company, and the customers
are the ones that took the movement into their own hands.
(32:17):
They made the decision at the time to not shop
at the stores and did all types of things of
taping receipts on windows and whatnot. And that's the that's
the history of the twenty fourteen situation, all right.
Speaker 2 (32:28):
Joe, So there's a quick summary of what happened. Maybe
it'll happen again, who knows.
Speaker 5 (32:35):
Yeah, let's hope it doesn't come to strikes and stuff
with people aren't showing up.
Speaker 2 (32:38):
But well, well, people not shopping in the store is
not a strike, Joe. Normally a strike relates to people
who work at the store. This was a situation where
people who shopped at the store chose to stay not
the shop.
Speaker 5 (32:51):
No, we're not going to do it because miss right,
I'll get it.
Speaker 2 (32:55):
Okay, appreciate it, Joe. Thank you very much for your
calling me. Go to Joe and Chelmster. Joe, you were
next one nights. I go ahead, Joe.
Speaker 8 (33:01):
Yes, Hi Dan, I just wanted to chime in. Been
shopping there for fifty years. I thoroughly support the gentlemen
on the show. Support Arthur T who I met once,
and I noticed that on a shopper level, bake goods
are up a dollar at the store, and the outside
suppliers of meat and poultry have changed, as have the
egg suppliers. I'm not happy, and I'm willing to act.
Speaker 2 (33:24):
That's interesting. I haven't been in the store for well
a month, but it's interesting that you could you could
pin that those those changes having taken place already quick
reaction to to those changes.
Speaker 6 (33:39):
Joe or Tom, I am not there a lot of it.
Speaker 3 (33:44):
Yeah, we haven't been the stores in a little bit.
But again I think it kind of goes back to
things can be held together for a little while, but
long term, without the Boston leadership and the management team there,
there's that could very well be some problems, all.
Speaker 2 (33:58):
Right, Joe from Chelm's, appreciate you taking the time to
call and keep listening to Night Side. We'll keep up
on this story, I promise.
Speaker 8 (34:08):
Thanks Daran, Thanks Joe, Thanks gentlemen, thank you.
Speaker 2 (34:12):
Gotta go to Gene and Averagingia. Next night's I gotta
get you and a couple more in go.
Speaker 10 (34:16):
Ahead, Gene, Okay, Hi Dan, thank you, and Hi guys, listen.
I take care of three elderly family members only volunteering, Okay,
that I do this. It's not easy, Okay. I go
to demores because I can find the stuff they need. Now,
if these two sisters want to be the evil twins
(34:41):
and mess it up, they're going to break the hats
of three elderly people if I can't find the things
they need. And if they hear about how they're treating
these people who work for them for years, they'll probably
tell me don't go to demuls anymore. Because that's how
the seniors are. They care about people. And if you
(35:01):
don't care about people, you're no one, okay now. And
I'm sure that their mother brought them up to care
about people, and she, wherever she is, God bless her,
is probably not happy if she knows how these sisters
are treating their brother.
Speaker 2 (35:18):
Yep, that's a little speculative, Jeane, and I think it's
an interesting point for taking care of your your older relatives.
I just got to keep cask and I.
Speaker 10 (35:31):
Want them to keep in mind. They're affecting people's lives.
Speaker 2 (35:35):
Yep, that's all we talked about tonight. Thank you for
echoing those comments. Let me go next to Nick and Lowell. Nick,
you gotta be quick for me, please. I got another Nick.
He's from Malden. You go ahead, Nick and Lowell.
Speaker 4 (35:46):
Hi, guys, sir. I've been a member of market Basket,
I worked in some under mister Gammon, and I'm just
totally disgruntled the way things are being handled with these
these people on the board. It's totally not right. And
(36:06):
as of today I am now shopping someone else. It's
totally not right. What's going on. You guys shouldn't suffer
to this already, shouldn't suffer to this as a work
of being there for five years in summrble, I know
what you guys done through and it's just really sad.
Speaker 2 (36:24):
All right, Nick Well said, I'm gonna give a few
seconds to Nick and Malden. Let me go to Nick
and Malden next. Go right ahead, Nick, you gotta be
quick for me. We're running out of time.
Speaker 3 (36:33):
Yeah, yep, very nice, and talk to you.
Speaker 4 (36:34):
Thanks, Joe.
Speaker 12 (36:35):
It's just be real quick on one hundred percent side,
just I've been in a position just like you with
a company that from bought out and the first thing
they do clean house.
Speaker 4 (36:45):
Do you think that you.
Speaker 12 (36:46):
Might have kind to have Doug a little bit of
great for yourself by out speaking in these offices. I
know that's happened to a lot of people that I've known.
Sometimes you get caught up in the moment you say
things you probably might regret later, almost publicly your thoughts.
Speaker 2 (37:00):
I'll hang up a quick comment, gentlemen, then we got
to go.
Speaker 3 (37:04):
Thanks, Thanks Tom, And I lost that Tom and I
lost that jobs. So there we are.
Speaker 2 (37:11):
And you told me that you told me ten days ago,
nine days ago. You did it because you wanted to
maintain your integrity. I suspect your integrity is intact, and
I suspect that you'll have your day in court, There's no.
Speaker 3 (37:24):
Question, and we're not going to back down for something
we believe in.
Speaker 6 (37:26):
You know, what we believe in is the culture.
Speaker 3 (37:28):
Of the Market Basket Organization under the leadership of mister Demorris.
Speaker 2 (37:31):
Gentlemen, thanks very much for the coverage tonight. Please keep
in touch with us on this and hopefully we will
have uh, you know, more positive news as the days
and weeks go by. Thank you both very much for
your integrity. I admire both of you. Thank you again,
You're very welcome. Here comes the news at eleven. Be
(37:52):
back right after that.
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