A HAMPSHIRE shop worker says she was told to take her poppy off at work because it wasn't part of her uniform.

Harriet Phipps said she initially refused to remove the poppy from her clothes, but eventually did because she was made to feel so uncomfortable by bosses at the Hollister store in Southampton's WestQuay shopping centre.

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The 18-year-old, who was wearing it in honour of a friend currently stationed on duty in Afghanistan and her grandfather, who fought in the Second World War, said she was told by the shop's assistant manager that the poppy wasn't part of company policy.

She told the Daily Echo: "I think it's disgusting.

"It's for two weeks, it's not like it's a permanent thing, and we're showing respect for people who fight for our country."

Hollister, which is part of the US clothing firm Abercrombie and Fitch, said it is looking into the matter.