Panera Employee Needs Sensitivity Training

I have worked at panera for a little over a year now. And have noticed
while sexual preference is not an issue,race unfortunetly is. In my
time at panera i have seen one african american employee be hired.
(she was fired within the month) i have also heard several stories
about managers both general and district refusing to hire african
americans. Im not just a venting employee these are problems that
concern me. Over the year ive been with the company i have noticed it
is very corrupt! There are several problems that need to be addressed.
#1 paneras food is anything but healthy. (loaded with salt) #2 panera
has a "no dirty table" policy which is enforced with germ infested
"towels". #3 if the GM like you you will move up quick,there are
people at my location who have been there 6-7 years and are still
associates,and who also work very hard. #4 panera hires and promotes
homosexuals quicker than a straight employee. (im not anti-gay btw)
and the way these people perform and interact with co-workers is
completely inappropriate. (speaking for my location only) lastly i
would like to say,if your an average looking male or below you will
never have the chance to work the registers. Why? Because Covelli ent.
Wants young,pretty females "up front". Panera bread was a great
company now it is extremely corrupt! And someone needs to pull back
the curtain on this "castro style" ran company.

That was an insensitive thing to say.

However,

Here's an idea!!!! Start within your own race to ban all
discrimination. It's clear that no matter what your race, or even
sexual preferance is, there is someone of that nature causing others
to always look at you in that manner.

I'm gay and can't stand the fact that there are other's out there
making those of us look like queens and fairies. One person whose
purse falls out of thier mouth when they speak is discriminating to
me. God gave you a third leg, act like it. So you what you do in
your bedroom is your business. Doesn't mean you act like a woman.

Black people the same way. There are those living in the old days
that believe the white man is out for them all the time. They push
the NAACP at every job and interaction in public more frequently than
anyone realizes. This is causing more hardship and is inevitbly going
to bring back racism if you cant look past that. Your equal in this
country, and if there is a discriminating case, you more than likely
brought it about. If you change your thought process with all you do
you can make a change in this world. I hear so many say "I got bad
service because I'm black, or gay, or a redneck" No you didn't! It's
because you want to "BELIEVE" you did.

I can only wonder what happened and was said prior to the employee
making her comment. How was your speach and demeanor? Did you give
the impression that you can be hard to deal with?

Whether we want to believe this or not, we all attract into our lives
the instances that happen to us.

We all live in a changing world and need to change with it. Not grasp
onto the past and let it hold us back.

How people would have responded if you were a very overweight white
woman, and you were complaining about a store employee making a crack
to you, comparing you to some comedic very overweight white woman,
such as Roseanne Barr/Arnold, etc.

I think overwhelmingly, people would have been horrified at someone
being so inappropriate and callous being joked about to an overweight
stranger.

I don't see how this instance is different. A store employee took the
only thing she knew about the customer -- physical appearance -- and
made a joke comparing her to some crazy black lady who's funny (I'd
never heard of her, but I don't have cable).

While I don't think the employee's intention was to be offensive (I
think she just thought she was being funny), she does need to be told
that comments LIKE that, with customers she doesn't even know, are
uncalled for. Perhaps she can lighten up with regulars who know her,
but otherwise, the employee-to-customer exchange should be a polite
and respectful one.

Age, weight, race, physical abilities, religious garb... All seem
strictly off-limits to me as to what to joke about when interacting
with a customer or client (or anyone you don't know well enough to
know how they'd react to that kind of joking).

If a cashier was helping an Asian customer and called said customer,
"Jackie Chan" or "Mr. Miagi", would that be okay? I don't think so.

i'm going to side with you on this. it's rude, insensitive and could
result in a lot of trouble if you choose to push it. case in point:
when i worked at Holiday Inn, my supervisor was helping serve the food
to customers because we were super busy. this is a very sweet woman
who wouldn't hurt anyone feelings or alienate anyone on purpose. she
served an african american family and she said to the woman and
daughter, "this is the girl's food" and to the man and son: "and this
is for the boys." well, the man took offense to the word "boy." she
meant nothing by it, is too young to really know that word is
offensive to an african american man, but the man decided to push it.
it ended up going all the way to corporate and my supervisor nearly
lost her job all because of something that she had no idea was
offensive. bottom line is that we live in a day and age when we have
to watch every word that comes out of our mouth. we have to be
thoughtful and think how another person would interpret our words.
the employee needs to be told this.

Race becomes a factor when a black female customer gets compared to a
black woman most famous for her role in "diary of a mad black woman".

you just told the OP not to be upset about an unprofessional employee
with her foot in her mouth by insulting her and using stereotypes?
Classy.

Chill out! Not worth getting all worked up about. And it's not a
racial thing. Why does the race card only get used when it's
covenient?

People say things all the time and they don't even know what they
mean...they hear it find it amusing and repeat it.
I doubt that she meant it racially either but instead of writing a
letter to corporate why not speak directly with the manager of this
place and tell him you found the the comment was insensative and
unnecessary.

I am sure had the employee known you were this upset about it she
would apologize on her own.

I'm going to go out on a limb here, and suggest that rather than
people getting "sensitivity training", perhaps society, as a whole,
should get desensitized. Nowadays people are so easily offended, I'm
afraid that eventually folks will stop speaking to one another all
together. This is why people of different races can seem uncomfortable
around one another; they are so afraid that something they say could
offend another person.

I'm glad this happened the other day, because it's the perfect
comparison. I was cleaning my downstairs hall closet. It's where I
keep my coats, and also put the dry cleaning when I get home. There
was a bunch of those annoying wire hangers from the cleaner left in
one corner of the closet, and I started tossing them into a pile to
throw away.
My husband walked by, scooped them up, and said "I suppose I should
throw these out before you go Joan Crawford on my hiney?"
Now, Joan Crawford was a white woman who drank to much. But I didn't
relate any part of the comment to my race, gender, or a suggestion
that I'm an alcoholic. It was a reference to the situation in
comparison to a movie.
I'm sure the cashier doesn't give a flying fig that you are black. If
the Madea character were a different race, would you be so offended?
Now the cashier is probably going to be afraid of everything she says
to a black person, for fear that she might offend them. Nice job.

nneka,

This exchange would have been a perfect scenario to "serve up" to the
Store Manager at the time it occurred, in addition to sending a letter
if satisfaction was not attained.

In speaking with the Store Manager and the Associate the you might
have gotten some insight into exactly where the Associate was coming
from ( good or bad ) when that statement was made.

Quick story here.
Several months ago next in line at a major drug store. Caucasian
behind the counter gets referred to as "dawg". I could see that he was
taken back. I mentioned that in his line he must see and hear alot.
His response.... "we are told to just grin".

BillR.

She was definitely wrong in taking a liberty assuming you knew what
she was joking about. You handled yourself well too.

I'm glad you wrote this letter and the commenters gave their opinions
because it has been interesting reading about this and everyone's
opinions. I've also enjoyed the youtube videos of this character, they
are hilarious.

Nice letter. You 'played the race card' as they like to say on this
site, and managed to avoid the scorn of most of the Planetfeedback
regulars, who are notorious for responding vehemently to those who do.
That says a lot about the quality of your letter.
People who behave like this employee should never be allowed where
the public can come in contact with them. It's not good for any
business. No amount of sensitivity training in my opinion, is going to
change the substance this person is made out of, because being like
this is a sign that individuals no longer have the capacity to learn.
Born like this, you usually die like this. Something to do with
dubious family values they learned when they were very young, two to
three, I think.

It sounds to me like she was trying to be friendly and make a joke,
but used very poor judgement and did not think of what she was saying.
Atleast you handled it in a civilized way through email instead of
solving it "outside in the parking lot" when she was done work. :D

I want to give the clerk the benefit of a doubt. We've all said stuff
that sounded fine/funny/appropriate in our heads and then regretted it
as soon as it left our mouths. Been there, done that. :(

On the other hand, I've had people make comment involving Jeff
Foxworthy's 'redneck' jokes and I've been less than amused, so I can
see why the OP took offense.

You know what they say 'fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice,
shame on me'. Let the first time go, assume it was a joke in bad
taste, but a forgivable sort of joke. If it happens again, speak to
the manager.

While I LOVE Madea and Tyler Perry and all his movies, I have to say
that I can completely see where this would be an offensive thing to
say to a complete stranger..especially one that is a paying customer.

I like your letter. Its professional and you kept the emotion aspect
to a minimum. I also like the suggestion of giving her a different job
within the company that doesnt have to deal with people. Its a lot
better than demanding they fire her. Doing something like that is what
it might take to show her that she needs to be careful what comes out
of her mouth.

I'M SORRY , THE CASHIER WAS NOT A AFRICAN AMERICAN , SHE WAS CAUCASIAN
WHICH MAKES HER COMMENTS ALL THE MORE INAPPROPRIATE

Wow! Thank you all for your replies. I guess at the end of the day
when I go to purchase lunch I would just like to purchase lunch. I
dont want to be compared to anyone. I just want my lunch.

I think people on here are missing the Main Line Philadelphia
Attitude. I know exactly what location you are talking about. I've
been to stores in that area and sensitivity and professionalism are
definitely lacking. I agree with you. It was totally inappropriate.
Character reference or not.

I understand your concern, but I don't believe that the cashier meant
it in a racially hateful manner. I think she was just trying to be
funny, and did not understand what she said. Lots of people say
things from movies, and don't have a clue what they mean. I don't
think sensitivity training is relevant in this issue. Now, if she
pointed at you and called you an epithet then yea.

Would you still be complaining if she had said, "We don't need any
Weeza's up in here!" Y'know, the crazy old bat from Steel Magnolia's,
as played by Shirley Maclaine.

Perhaps she was just trying to use an character she thought you, as a
black woman, would understand about. So she thought wrong.

I don't think this was a race issue, or insensitive. She was just
making a comment in a joking way about not wanting to piss you off.

NEWSBREAK:

you will someday be an older black woman.

Can someone please enlighten me, because I am not familiar with this
particular movie. (I expect Jeffrey knows the answer to this... :P)

Is this Madea character in this movie based on the Greco-Roman
mythological character of Medea? I know her anger is legendary - she
got so mad at Jason that she killed her own children out of spite.

nt

For the most part, I agree with your letter. It's like a recent letter
about Sephora: although the employee may not have had any ill intent,
the remark was uncalled for just the same.

I am, however, not sure about the sensitivity training. Let's face it;
we've all had an open-mouth-insert-foot moment in our lives which
doesn't necessarily equate to us needing additional classes. I know
I've said some things I'm not proud of, but that doesn't mean I'm not
in general good with people. I do think, though, that Panera needs the
feedback and that this employee needs to be reminded of what is
considered professional and what isn't.

The last sentence of your leter wasn't needed though. It doesn't
matter if you're "civilized" or not; the comment was still
inappropriate no matter who it was said to.

to you, but if you knew who Tyler Perry was, you'd know that there was
no insult intended.

At the core of every Madea film is that she is a strong,
family-oriented woman who takes care of herself.

I have to ask though (not that I want to open a whole heated debate!)
but was the cashier also African American?

You should really watch the whole series of plays that are now being
turned into feature movies. They are touching and thought provoking
and hilarious all at the same time!

I had a lady two weeks ago, that came up to me at work, I work retail
grocery. I was on the front end, she comes up to me and says, "Are
you scared"? I was like "What" She says, "your hair looks like mine
does on a bad hair day" I was like "uhhhhh thanks for the compliment"
True story, No excuse for the old lady hassling me or what the cashier
said to you.

The young lady was probably trying to be funny, even though it is not
wise to joke about race. Older people tend to speak their mind and
dont seem to care who they offend. This last line is my personal
opinion, it may not apply to your grandparents.

Good Day

For those who don't know Madea, she's a hilarious creation of Tyler
Perry. Tyler Perry writes plays/movies that have Christian undertones
and there's always a message to them. Madea is a character that he
created and is performed by him. She's a grandma type who doesn't take
any mess from no one. She carries guns, smokes weed and will put a
hurtin on you if you act a fool. You can see what I'm talking about
here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I938abIM40c



Based on the comment, it sounds like she was saying she didn't want
you to flip out if there weren't any pastries left. That's based on
one of Tyler Perry's plays, "Class Reunion", where a restaurant takes
too long with the food and Madea goes buck wild by flipping tables and
chasing after the waiter. Either way, unless the cashier knew you, she
wasn't too smart to say the comment to you as if you don't know
anything about Madea, you wouldn't have understood it and if you don't
like Madea, you would've found it offensive.

I think this employee was way out of line. Even if the employee were
black (I assume she is white), her comment would have been wholly
inappropriate. To comment on someone's race like that is just tacky
and rude.

Here's a great idea, one doesn't need to know what a term needs, if it
offends, the tone alone and attitude are enough to let one know it's
offensive. Someone else may not have been as civilized as you and
handled it by email, but they were civilized enough to speak to a
manager at the store and get the satisfaction of an apology and
possible reason to go back in the future.

It sounds as though Bev is an educated woman, with a interest in the
arts. I think I'd like to meet her. She sounds like a hoot.

I think you should take your sensitivity down a few notches. Madea is
a fictional character, so she doesn't even exist.