Beloved avenue cleaner denied journey of a lifetime wins ‘competitors’

A beloved street cleaner who was denied the trip of a lifetime by his waste firm employer’s strict rules, has today won a ‘competition’ to jet off to Portugal.

It comes after residents in Beckenham cobbled together to raise thousands to send Paul Spiers, 63, on a holiday of a lifetime as he has been cleaning the streets of the south-east London town since 2017.

But in a cruel twist, his employer — waste firm Veolia — banned the ‘adored’ cleaner from accepting the gift claiming its strict rules prohibit staff from taking monetary gifts or incentives beyond their regular salary.

Now MailOnline can reveal that Paul has just won a free trip with package holiday company OnTheBeach, just 24 hours after the debacle.

The holiday company said the terms and conditions for the ‘competition’ were ‘extremely specific’.

To win, they said, ‘you must love Elvis, be between the ages of 62 and 64, have a surname of Spiers, be a street cleaner in Beckenham and be loved by your local community.’

The competition win now means Paul has secured a £3,000 On the Beach holiday voucher.

And because it’s a competition there are no employee rules around ‘not being able to accept it’, they said. 

Zoe Harris, chief customer officer at On the Beach said: ‘Congratulations Paul. Who would have thought that just a day after he was denied a holiday, he would win one in a competition! What are the odds?

‘We’re all for the fundraised money going to charity, but everyone deserves a holiday, it’s one of those moments that we dream of all year round. 

‘We know how much Paul dreamed of going to Portugal again and so for him to win the competition is fantastic.’

Mr Spiers’, who often cleans the roads playing music as he goes, has only been abroad once to Portugal and dreamed of visiting again, leading to his neighbours to set up the fundraiser.

But instead the waste firm said the cash would go to a charity of Mr Spiers’ choice, sparking outrage from members of the public who called the decision ‘absolutely senseless’ and ‘vile’.  

Residents also said he appeared to be wearing a new company cap.  

Zoe Harris, continued: ‘Our holidays to Portugal start from as little as £199pp so we can’t wait to see how far the voucher will take Paul, we hope that he has the holiday of a lifetime, a well-deserved one too!’

Paul is encouraged to contact On the Beach directly to claim his holiday voucher, where colleagues will help book him his dream jolly. 

The GoFundMe page had been created by Mr Spiers’ friend Lisa Knight who hailed the cleaner for ‘lifting everyone’s spirits’ with his ‘positive presence’.  

She wrote on the donation site; ‘As an integral part of our Beckenham village, Paul is adored by all. 

‘Giving him this incredible gift would be a heartfelt way to show our appreciation for everything he does. Let’s come together to make this dream happen for someone who truly deserves it.’

The pair became friends over their shared love of Elvis Presley.

This week she wrote: ‘Unfortunately, we have received news that Paul is unable to accept the donations due to restrictions set by his employer, Veolia, in accordance with their contract with Bromley Council. These rules prohibit staff from accepting any monetary gifts or incentives beyond their regular salary.

‘We’re deeply disappointed that this decision prevents Paul from enjoying this well-deserved holiday as a recognition for all of his hard work for the Beckenham community.

‘We have expressed our disappointment to both the council and Veolia and intend to continue to push on this, but please be rest assured, if we are unsuccessful in doing so you will all be refunded.

‘Once again, thank you for your incredible support and for being part of this fundraiser.’

A Veolia spokesperson said yesterday: ‘We are truly grateful for the support and recognition shown by the community to Paul, who alongside a hardworking street cleansing team, does a fantastic job keeping Bromley’s streets clean. 

‘We are always happy to hear from members of the public who want to recognise our teams. Unfortunately on this occasion, we were not made aware of the fundraising and were therefore unable to work together to find the most appropriate way to recognise Paul.

‘Our contract with Bromley Council does not permit our staff to accept any monies or incentives outside of agreed pay structures. We have agreed with Paul that we will match the amount raised as of Friday 9th August to be donated to a charity of his choice.

‘Veolia has a number of recognition schemes across the UK that reward our colleagues for exceptional services to the community and Paul will be the recipient of Bromley’s Employee of the Quarter – an internal financial reward to recognise his hard work and dedication.’ 

Liam Conlon, MP for Beckenham and Penge wrote a letter to the leader of Bromley Council yesterday to ask what action can be taken to support Paul.

 He wrote: Paul has worked for Bromley Council through a contractor for years, keeping our streets clean and ensuring Beckenham is a great place to live. It is a sign of how highly Paul’s hard work is valued by residents and local businesses that so many people have generously contributed to the fundraising effort. 

‘Like many, however, I am very disappointed to learn that the contractor, Veolia, has told Paul he cannot accept this gift due to conditions in its contract with Bromley Council.

He added: ‘I hope you will be able to take a common-sense approach: to find a solution which maintains the council’s high ethical standards, whilst allowing Paul to enjoy the holiday we all want him to have.’ 

Social media users had also been left outraged by the news. They wrote on the Beckenham Appreciation Facebook group to express their anger.

One person wrote: ‘Gift it to him, you purchase it and add his name. The world has bloody gone mad!!!’

Another said: ‘How on earth can his employer stop him from receiving a gift from the community? The donated money isn’t a ‘bonus’ or a ‘tip’ it’s a gift totally separate from him work. What the hell am I reading? 

‘This also implies you couldn’t even give him a pat on the back at Christmas and give him a fiver for a pint? God I hate these vile corporations.’

‘There is NO WAY the money can be given to a charity when it was meant for Paul, he HAS to get that holiday. It would just be the worst thing if he didn’t go now. Veolia needs to review their utterly senseless decision,’ said another.

Another person added: ‘If he’s retiring soon can the gift be given to him after he retires? Then he has no obligations to Veolia.’

Bromley Council have been contacted by MailOnline for comment.

It was reported by Unite the Union that nearly 100 refuse workers employed by Veolia in Sheffield were taking strike action last month. 

Workers were reportedly furious that their employer was ‘refusing to allow collective bargaining agreements’ with Unite despite the membership of the union representing around 80% of the depot’s workforce. 

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said at the time: ‘It is absurd that a union representing 80 per cent of a workforce is blocked from making collective bargaining arrangements by an employer, especially one it has national agreements with up and down the country.

‘Our members are rightly angry at such game-playing and having exhausted all negotiations are taking to the picket line to state their case. Unite will be backing them one hundred per cent of the way.’ 

Ms Graham said at the time: ‘The spirit of Scrooge is alive and kicking this Christmas. Veolia is an incredibly wealthy company. Its workers are already poorly paid but somehow it thinks it is acceptable to offer them just a few pence extra, during the worst cost of living crisis in a generation.

‘Unite is entirely committed to defending and enhancing the jobs, pay and conditions of its members and the workers at Veolia will receive the union’s complete support.’