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The family of a murder victim stabbed by a fellow worker at Sainsbury’s has been given the go-ahead to sue the supermarket.
Roman Romasov was killed in a racist attack by Robert McCulloch in an aisle of the Sainsbury’s store in Aberdeen where they both worked, McCulloch using a knife from the supermarket’s kitchenware section.
Romasov had complained in writing to his line manager about racist abuse from McCulloch, but the family claims that no action was taken to warn or sack him or to keep the two workers apart.
Now, Romasov’s family is suing Sainsbury’s for £500,000 for failures under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, arguing that the retailer is “vicariously liable” for McCulloch’s actions.
Sainsbury’s contends that McCulloch’s actions were unrelated to its business or to his job, but a judge rejected the supermarket’s bid to have the case thrown out, saying the claims made by the family were “capable of being construed as entirely connected with McCulloch’s work”.
McCulloch was jailed for life in 2009.
