Sainsbury's job advert asks for an artist to refurbish a Camden store canteen - for no pay

Sainsbury's made a profit of £587 million in the year to March 12

A spokesperson for Sainsbury's said that the advert had been posted independently by the Camden store without the knowledge of head office (Reuters)

A Sainsbury's store in Camden has attracted anger and disgust on Twitter after it advertised a job in the local paper for no pay.

The advert was posted on Twitter by a reader.

It asked for a "creative and ambitious artist to voluntarily refurbish our canteen".

It promised that the successful candidate would get "experience in the creative industry while making our community a comfortable are for employees to escape to" and that "your work will contribute to our success".

Customers were quick to react.

"Hi Sainsbury's, I now take food from you without paying because it is a great opportunity for you to impress me," wrote Adam Hess, who posted the original advert.

"But don't you know Adam that artists don't need to buy food or pay bills? The live on air and smiles," one tweeter replied.

Others pointed out that Sainsbury's made a profit of £587 million in the year to March 12.

A spokesperson for Sainsbury's said that the advert had been posted independently by the Camden store without the knowledge of head office.

“We’re discussing this with our store in Camden," a spokesperson said.

"The advert was placed in the local paper following a colleague discussion around ways to improve the canteen and offer an opportunity to the local community.

It is not our policy to hire volunteers and we are sorry for this error of judgement.”