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Punks With Purpose responds to BrewDog CEO
Punks With Purpose, the group of former-BrewDog employees that last year made allegations about the company’s “toxic workplace culture”, has denied James Watt’s claims that one of their founding members is implicated in a legal case.
Earlier this week, Watt was the subject of a piece in The Guardian which claimed that he had hired private investigators to gather evidence against individuals who he believed had defamed and harassed him. Watt responded to the piece by stating that he was seeking to understand “the extent of the campaign against us”. He also referred to “a plot to bring James down”. A BrewDog spokesperson declared that the investigations have resulted in them pursing “a private criminal prosecution for fraud and malicious communications” in London and civil proceedings in Scotland. The spokesperson went on to say that the actions related to “individuals directly involved in the leadership of the Punks With Purpose movement.”
The response from Punks With Purpose stated that none of their “founding or current members have been contacted by BrewDog, James Watt, lawyers representing either party, or the police.” They went on to write that they “had hoped that the shadow of this culture of fear ended for staff members when they ceased working for the company, but this news suggests otherwise.”
Punks With Purpose came to prominence in June 2021 when an open letter from the group to BrewDog cited how a “cult of personality” had created a “culture of fear”. A section of the letter directed at Watt claimed that he was personally responsible for this culture, with the company’s success coming “at the expense of those who delivered [his] dreams.”
This latest response to Watt also referenced the intimidation of those who had contributed to a recent BBC Disclosure programme concerning the culture at BrewDog. In response to the documentary, questions were raised as to the ethics of working with BrewDog.
Watt is yet to respond to Punks With Purpose’s refutation of his claims.