Misconduct | Dodgy employee behaviour results in hefty fine for firm

The guitar manufacturer Fender Europe have been faced with a £25,000 fine after an employee hid numerous notebooks that stalled an ongoing investigation – the BBC reports.

Reports stated that the firm was being investigated by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) over speculated competition law breaches, so the notebooks were a necessary component of the investigation.

When the investigation was launched back in April 2018, a senior employee said that the work notebooks had been destroyed, however, it later came to light that the employee at the firm’s East Grinstead base had deliberately hidden them and interfered with the investigation.

A Fender Europe Spokesperson said that they didn’t condone the employee’s behaviour. The statement read: "We are disappointed to be fined for the actions of a single former UK-based employee who acted without Fender's knowledge. We do not condone such behaviour."