The Shoe Store Incident

HRM/546-Human Resource Law

The Shoe Store Incident

The first concern for any business is customer service and businesses toil to
meet the demands and needs of every customer. An issue regarding a
customer wanting to work with a female employee emerges at a shoe store.
The customer is unaware about the amount of stress induced on the

employees due to this incident. The question to be answered is: what are the
legal actions that can be taken in this context? This article analyzes the
consequences of the situation and the necessary steps that can be taken.
The Situation
The store follows a rotational working system in which employees work at
the stockroom and on the sales floor alternatively. In the above mentioned
situation, the female employee the customer wishes to work with is at the
stockroom. If her request is granted, she is expected to possibly send a large
amount in the store.
Legal Issues
The male employee on the sales floor might file a discrimination claim if the
female employee is swapped to his place upon the customers demand. The
male employee can state that the company makes him experience reverse
discrimination to attain its profit. Reverse discrimination is a bill or
accusation acquired by a plurality member who senses an antagonistic
ramification by the application of acquiescent action plan enhancing an
outnumbered group of female (Bennett-Alexander and Hartman, 2007, p.
203). In addition, if the female employee is not shifted to the sales room, she
may also file a discrimination claim. As postulated by Bennett-Alexander and
Hartman (2007), the company would act in breaching of Title VII for gender
bias, if the lady worker is permitted to assist the purchaser on the sales floor.
Ethical Issues
In accordance to the Dispatches from the Frozen North (2004), an
organization is ethically obliged to those personage and assemblage who are
accountable for its victory. The male employee will be deceived his money if
the female employee is allowed on the sales floor and this is one ethical
issue. The next ethical issue is the feeling of the male employee that he is of
less priority, if the female employee serves the customer. This may lead to

conflicts between employees. As Fassin (2005) states will forever be

challenged by hard selections with moral dilemmas. It is the duty of
managers to make decisions in accordance with the laws of human resources
and that the decision made pertains to the interests of the employees. This
will lead to changes in employee behavior and employees will feel
motivated. Though the company may remain short in its sales, the
employees will remain motivated and will work harder.
Personal Recommendation
The choice is to make the female employee serve the customer to both
achieve sales as well as to obtain customer satisfaction. But, what matters is
the commission obtained. One solution is to offer one of the sales of the
female employee to the male employee. However, there are possibilities of
the male employee receiving a lesser commission than that of the female
employee and vice versa. Hence, there is no easy solution to this
circumstance, as the happiness of both the employee as well as the
customer is vital for the company. The recommendation is to instruct the
employees about the importance of customer satisfaction and that the
company does not operate on the basis of gender.
Conclusion
Every passing day customers request to be dealt with employees of a
particular gender. The companys motto is to have happy customers and
therefore the company strives to meet their requirements, provided they are
admissible. Requests of this type can sue the company legally and may also
lead to conflicts. Even if the customer leaves unhappy, the relationship
between the employees and the management will last long and free from
unethical behaviors.
References

Bennett-Alexander, D. D. & Hartman, P. L. (2007).Employment law for

business (5th ed.). New York: McGrawHill. Retrieved July 4, 2011 from
University of Phoenix.
Dispatches from the Frozen North. (2004). To whom does an ethical business
owe

responsibility? Retrieved

July

4,

2011

from

http://www.frozennorth.org/C1848698620/E2013508927/index.html
Fassin, Y. (2005). The reasons behind non-ethical behaviour in business and
entrepreneurship. Journal of Business Ethics, 60(3). Retrieved July 4, 2011
from EBSCOHost