“The customer is always right” might be an age-long business slogan, but time and time again, things happen which sometimes cause us to rethink the authenticity of that saying. Maybe there are times the customer is outrightly wrong. One of such occasions was when a customer at Red Robin restaurant in Mt. Juliet requested for another server because of the appearance of the waitress that was meant to serve her.
The waitress in question Ashley Chiarizzio was surprised when she was told by her manager that the customer she was meant to serve requested for another server because of her blue hair, tattoos, and piercings.
Explaining what her manager told her that Saturday night, Ashely said: “He told me, ‘She doesn’t like the way you look.’ He said, ‘She doesn’t like the way you represent — the tattoos, the piercings, hair — she wants a new server.’”
It was shocking to discover that there were people that will still react that way to someone’s appearance in a public place like a restaurant. “I’ve never had someone look at me and decide I wasn’t good enough to serve them,” she said.
Ashley decided to share the story of how she was discriminated against by a customer on Facebook. She had a few words for the unnamed customer. Here is what she wrote: “To the lady who refused to let me serve her tonight because you didn’t agree with ‘what I represented’ and ‘how I presented myself,’ I just wanted to let you know, while I cried on my drive home, I prayed for you. I pray God overlooks your judgment of me, I pray you to learn acceptance and tolerance to things you didn’t grow up with, and I pray that you learn someone’s appearance does not affect their ability to work ( especially to serve burgers and fries).”
She continued: “You did, however, light a fire under my butt so now I’m sitting at home with an even brighter blue in my hair, and planning out my next tattoo! All with you in mind. I hope you had a great dinner and enjoyed your night out with your husband. Also, you Might want to avoid restaurants that openly allow their employees to have tattoos, piercings, and ‘weird’ hair. I hear Olive Garden is nice!”
Many people who read her post share the same sentiments as her and a lot of those who commented expressed their support for her. Commenting about her well her post was received, Ashley said: “People were saying, ‘You’re awesome,’” adding, “It’s 100 percent overwhelming happiness and positivity from the community.”
Interestingly, Ashley was not only getting support from folks online, but even her co-workers at the restaurant stood with her in solidarity with some of them spraying their hair blue and wearing a temporary tattoo to clearly express their support for her. “It’s basically to say, ‘If you didn’t like it, you can’t sit with any of us because now we all have blue hair and tattoos.’” Ashley noted.
When contacted to comment about the issue, Authorities of the Red Robin states that there is no part of the dress policy of the company that prevents employees from having tattoos or dying their hairs. The spokesperson of the company also made it clear that they do not condone discrimination against their workers on any ground. What’s your thought on this issue, and Ashley’s message to the offended customer. Let us know in the comment below.
