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1. Starbucks faces human rights case over nose stud:.................................................................................... 1

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Starbucks faces human rights case over nose stud:

Author: Ward, Doug Publication info: The Vancouver Sun [Vancouver, B.C] 27 June 2003: B1 Front. ProQuest document link Abstract: The lawyer said Starbucks has a "Diversity Statement" that says, "At Starbucks, diversity is a way of life." The coffee company also has a mission statement that declares more than 60 per cent of its total work force should be people from minorities and/or women and that Starbucks actively recruits from job fairs focused on minorities, women and people with disabilities. Starbucks has refused to comment on either of the firings, other than to release its dress code policy, which forbids its employees, referred to as "partners," to wear pierced jewelry or ornaments on their face. The stated goal of Starbucks' dress code is to provide the company with a consistent look. [Aisha Syed] alleged that a Starbucks manager advised her Nov. 19 to remove her stud. The next day the same manager advised Fong, Syed's lawyer, that the company was concerned that some customers might be offended by the stud and not purchase coffee. Full Text: Two women say stud is expression of Indian identity Starbucks could be facing a double shot of human rights complaints from two Indo-Canadian employees fired for refusing to remove a nose stud. Aisha Syed, who was fired last November after working at Starbucks for three years, has filed a complaint with the Human Rights Tribunal. "I'm very upset and I see my firing as racism," said Syed, 25, a graduate of the University of B.C. "The nose stud is an expression of my Indian identity." In her complaint filed last month, Syed alleges her dismissal amounts to discrimination on the grounds of race, ancestry and sex. A second employee of South Asian descent, Benita Singh, was fired last week for refusing to remove a stud. She is considering filing a complaint with the tribunal. The two firings clash with Starbucks' claim that it practises diversity in its human resources policy, said Syed's lawyer, Lisa Fong. The lawyer said Starbucks has a "Diversity Statement" that says, "At Starbucks, diversity is a way of life." The coffee company also has a mission statement that declares more than 60 per cent of its total work force should be people from minorities and/or women and that Starbucks actively recruits from job fairs focused on minorities, women and people with disabilities. "These statements clearly indicate that Starbucks values diversity as a corporate goal and in its staffing," Fong said. "Yet, their dismissing South Asian women for wearing nose rings or nose studs which are symbolic of their culture, is contradictory to this goal and detrimental to these women. Starbucks appears to be implementing a sanitized version of diversity." Fong said nose studs are an important aspect of the cultural, racial and ethnic identity of the two women. She said Syed and Singh have "a right to express this aspect of their identity without reprisal in the workplace." Starbucks has refused to comment on either of the firings, other than to release its dress code policy, which forbids its employees, referred to as "partners," to wear pierced jewelry or ornaments on their face. The stated goal of Starbucks' dress code is to provide the company with a consistent look. Syed worked at the Starbucks outlet in the Chapters Bookstore at Richport Town Centre in Richmond between August 1999 and November 2002. Syed said that, throughout her employment at Starbucks, she wore a stud in her nose as an expression of her identity as an Indian woman. She said wearing a nose ring has been common practice for many generations of women in her family, both in Canada and India. Syed alleged that a Starbucks manager advised her Nov. 19 to remove her stud. The next day the same manager advised Fong, Syed's lawyer, that the company was concerned that some customers might be offended by the stud and not purchase coffee. The manager added, according to Syed's complaint form, that "we can't control the colour of skin we're born with but we can control what we put in our noses." Syed was fired Dec. 2 after refusing to remove the stud. Lawyer Fong said she will probably ask the tribunal to hear both complaints together because they deal with the same legal issue. Illustration Color Photo: Steve Bosch, Vancouver Sun / Aisha Seyd was fired from Starbucks 07 March 2013 Page 1 of 2 ProQuest

last year over stud. Company/organization: Starbucks Corp; SBUX; 722211; 5499; 15-536-6107 Publication title: The Vancouver Sun Pages: B1 Front Number of pages: 0 Publication year: 2003 Publication date: Jun 27, 2003 Year: 2003 Section: News Publisher: Infomart, a division of Postmedia Network Inc. Place of publication: Vancouver, B.C. Country of publication: Canada Journal subject: General Interest Periodicals--Canada ISSN: 08321299 Source type: Newspapers Language of publication: English Document type: Business ProQuest document ID: 242416847 Document URL: http://search.proquest.com/docview/242416847?accountid=39958 Copyright: (Copyright Vancouver Sun 2003) Last updated: 2012-02-16 Database: ProQuest Central

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