Man C'mon.. That has to be one of the most panicked situations you can find yourself in. Life or death against an armed assailant. How many are going to be thinking "what would the company do?" in that type of situation? It was a hot moment and he reacted. The kid did what he thought was the right thing and considering the outcome it probably was.
This is what I hate about blanket policies - they never fit every situation.
So what if the kid broke the rules? He saved the store, and a criminal went down. Good for him. Better than 90% of the rest of us who would just tuck tail and run - or try to play nice. All things considered, maybe it's the policy that should be re-looked, not the kid who saved the day.
I glad the robber got put in his place by an armed citizen. He'll think twice before trying it again next time. Truth be told probably how the robber got so brazen in the first place because no one ever challenged him before. Just roll over and play nice for the guy with the gun.
This kid is a hero and should be commeneded for his bravery.. not shitcanned by his company.
I don't think the question is whether what he did was right or wrong - but whether or not what he did was against the store's policy for its workers (which it was).
Everyone takes responsibility in these types of situation. The worker now takes responsibility for HIS actions. If he felt that the guy needed to be chased off with a weapon, he should do it knowing he is risking his job. I don't see the problem here.
If some guy was coming at me with a gun and I was at work and I myself had a weapon, would I be ok with losing my job to defend myself? Heck yes.
At the same time allowing your workers to use a weapon puts responsibility on you as the company. This is just bad business.
There is no issue here, everything was done as it should be. That guy should have done it even if he knew for a fact he'd lose his job. And this is what he did, intentionally or not.