A 92-year-old supermarket worker says he has no plans to retire as another busy Christmas season is in full swing.
Great grandfather Eddie Swan has worked at the Sainsbury’s store in Ashford, Kent, since it opened 27 years ago.
That was when, aged 65, he ended 45 years in the printing trade – but says still working is what keeps him going.
Keeping busy: Great grandfather Eddie Swan (pictured) has worked at the Sainsbury’s store in Ashford, Kent, since it opened 27 years ago
Swan is the oldest member of Sainsbury’s nationwide workforce and one of a handful of workers of pensionable age among the 539 staff employed at the giant Ashford store. He works a 12-hour week, between 10am and 2pm on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.
Swan told the Mail he had no thoughts of retiring. ‘Everybody says to me they are going to carry me out in a box,’ he said.
‘It’s what keeps me going is coming back to work – seeing the people, not just the people I work with but the people who come in, the customers, we all have a bit of a giggle.’
Swan says his partner Ivy, 86, also enjoys having him out of the house.
He admitted that he cannot do as much as he used to but is still able to collect up cardboard boxes and help with lighter products such as crisps and confectionery.
Swan – a fan of the Daily Mail’s code word puzzle – has two daughters, a granddaughter and a great-grandson, Ethan, aged seven, who visits him in the shop.
Store deputy manager Kimberley Wallington said Swan is ‘absolutely fantastic with the customers’.
#fiveDealsWidget .dealItemTitle#mobile {display:none} #fiveDealsWidget {display:block; float:left; clear:both; max-width:636px; margin:0; padding:0; line-height:120%; font-size:12px} #fiveDealsWidget div, #fiveDealsWidget a {margin:0; padding:0; line-height:120%; text-decoration: none; font-family:Arial, Helvetica ,sans-serif} #fiveDealsWidget .widgetTitleBox {display:block; float:left; width:100%; background-color:#af1e1e; } #fiveDealsWidget .widgetTitle {color:#fff; text-transform: uppercase; font-size:18px; font-weight:bold; margin:6px 10px 4px 10px; } #fiveDealsWidget a.dealItem {float:left; display:block; width:124px; margin-right:4px; margin-top:5px; background-color: #e3e3e3; min-height:200px;} #fiveDealsWidget a.dealItem#last {margin-right:0} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemTitle {display:block; margin:10px 5px; color:#000; font-weight:bold} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemImage, #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemImage img {float:left; display:block; margin:0; padding:0} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemImage {border:1px solid #ccc} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemImage img {width:100%; height:auto} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemdesc {float:left; display:block; color:#004db3; font-weight:bold; margin:5px;} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemRate {float:left; display:block; color:#000; margin:5px} #fiveDealsWidget .dealFooter {display:block; float:left; width:100%; margin-top:5px; background-color:#e3e3e3 } #fiveDealsWidget .footerText {font-size:10px; margin:10px 10px 10px 10px;} @media (max-width: 635px) { #fiveDealsWidget a.dealItem {width:19%; margin-right:1%} #fiveDealsWidget a.dealItem#last {width:20%} } @media (max-width: 560px) { #fiveDealsWidget #desktop {display:none;} #fiveDealsWidget #mobile {display:block!important} #fiveDealsWidget a.dealItem {background-color: #fff; height:auto; min-height:auto} #fiveDealsWidget a.dealItem {border-bottom:1px solid #ececec; margin-bottom:5px; padding-bottom:10px} #fiveDealsWidget a.dealItem#last {border-bottom:0px solid #ececec; margin-bottom:5px; padding-bottom:0px} #fiveDealsWidget a.dealItem, #fiveDealsWidget a.dealItem#last {width:100%} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemContent, #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemImage {float:left; display:inline-block} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemImage {width:35%; margin-right:1%} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemContent {width:63%} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemTitle {margin: 0px 5px 5px; font-size:16px} #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemContent .dealItemdesc, #fiveDealsWidget .dealItemContent .dealItemRate {clear:both} }
