John Stone is a car salesman and big Packers fan. Webb Chevrolet in the Chicago suburb of Oak Lawn is an official sponsor of the Bears’ radio broadcasts. The dispute over Stone’s decision to wear a Packers tie to work at Webb Chevrolet on Monday led to Stone no longer working at Webb Chevrolet.
Stone recounted his conversation with his boss, Jerry Roberts, in an interview with the Chicago Sun-Times: “He said, ‘You have two options. Remove the tie, or you’re fired.’ When I didn’t, he said, ‘You can leave, you’re fired.’ Does that sound fair to you?”
It sounds fair to Roberts, who told the Sun-Times that wearing a Packers tie the day after the Packers beat the Bears in the NFC Championship Game could affect the dealership’s bottom line because it antagonizes Bears fans and “makes it harder to sell cars.”
Roberts said Webb Chevrolet spends a lot of money to be an official sponsor of Bears radio broadcasts and that employees aren’t allowed to undermine that. Roberts added, “If he loves the tie more than his job, he’s welcome to keep wearing it — elsewhere.”
Stone told the Dan Patrick Show that if he could do it all over again, “I wouldn’t have worn it all.”
But it all ended well for Stone, who told Patrick that he already has a new job, at a Chevy dealership.
