to refuse to serve a man with a weird skin condition?

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Now, before I get jumped on, I am putting myself into the shoes of this shop assistant who refused to serve my sisters FIL. Here's the scenario:

FIL has a badly disfigured face. He also has a flakey skin rash thing on his hand. He was buying something in a well known chain store and just about to hand over his money when the woman at the till said, "Sorry, I can't serve you". He's a bit deaf, thought she had said something else, asked her to repeat it. Again she refused to handle money from him. It was because of his hand.

FIL, starting to feel a bit anxious about this now, noticed the big queue behind him and felt really embarrassed. They all started to back away from him.

He asked to see the supervisor. She came along, saw what the situation was and responded. She said the woman on the till had every right to refuse to serve him.

FIL left the store, wobbly with embarrassment and rage, but frozen in stiff-upper-lipness.

Was she right to refuse him? Can you believe she did this, and her supervisor backed her up?

Message withdrawn

bloody hell that is disgusting your poor FIL

Name, shame, contact their head office.

Poor man.I hope he sends a letter of complaint regarding this appalling treatment.

which shop?

Ignorance is alive and well!!

Poor man. Strongly worded letter to store manager is in order, me thinks.

That's awful! I'm shocked and angry on his behalf! I would definately complain to head office and probably the local press. Your poor FIL!

The pair of them ought to be sacked, disgusting behaviour.

It's illegal and he needs to take this much much further. Please encourage him to do so. I would seek legal advive and contact the local paper- that's how seriously I would take this particularly as it's a chain store.

Yes, he should complain to their head office and suggest that they at least train their supervisors to know the difference between a skin condition and a dangerous infectious diseases (their grounds for the behaviour would be they didn't want to risk catching it but ignorance like that is not an excuse for rudeness).

Shame on them

Bloody hell. Get straight on that.

FFS! Bad enough the woman at the till was so ignorant but for the supervisor to join in?

Definitely complain, in writing. Look on the company's website and get the name of the chief exec and the head office address. Suggest they discipline the assistant and the supervisor.

You may want to point out to them that apart from being extraordinarily rude and insulting, they are potentially breaching the Disability Discrimination Act (am sure there are skin conditions that would count as disabilities).

tell us what shop so we can all boycott!
tell him to write to HQ and say NONE of us will shop there

IF they claim it was fear of infection, they are fuckwits. Unless the shop assistant has a medical degree...

With you Edam. I think there is a real possibility of a breach of the DDA - yes, a serious disfigurement is a disability and a skin condition could well be. I would take this further, it is utterly appaling treatment. Both the till woman and the supervisor should be hauled over the coals over this seriously and the whole lot of them should be given disability awareness training.

that's fucking bullshit

name and shame please

I don't think I would have been able to stop myself calling her something very rude My ds has molloscum spots [http://scienceblogs.com/aardvarchaeology/upload/2007/07/molluscum.jpg like this for anyone who doesn't know]] all along one arm and his trunk and they arespreading. They are not a big deal, not contagious, but I am dreading what will happen if they spread to his face, or even just in the summer, because I know that ignorant fuckwits like that woman will make comments about them. Thankfully he is too young to be aware of them. But god, what ignorance

try again

I'd be fuming. Do complain and let us know the result.

I would love to name them, but I heard this from my mum, and she couldn't remember the name - or rather remembered it wrong - so it would be bad form to name who I think she meant, only to find out it wasn't them, iyswim.

I am encouraged by your responses though. I think they should be exposed. The local paper would be good! But he's such an old fashioned, don't-cause-a-fuss type of man that he won't complain any further. Arrgghh

that is unbefuckinglievable and incredible sad....
I am really sorry that your FIL had such a crap experience....and do name and shame...they don't deserve any better..and I think newspapaer involvement, as herbie suggests, is a brill idea....

If he had been rude or violent, than they would have had the right to refuse to serve him, but because he suffers from a skin condition and facial disfigurement....no fucking way....

They should both be sacked.

Please name and shame.