A viral video over the weekend yielded fruit once corporate bosses took notice. Smoothie King and the franchise owners in Michigan fired the two employees who refused to serve someone because he wore a MAGA sweatshirt.
There was a lack of understanding on both sides when it came to discrimination. The employees thought they could serve or not serve someone based on their beliefs while the customers thought they could call the police over discrimination.
Neither is accurate (though the couple did file a police report and hired an attorney), but in the end the now-former employees are the ones who took a hit (until they get paid for their GoFundMe which is certain to drop any moment).
Here’s how Smoothie King corporate responded:
As a brand, Smoothie King is committed to ensuring our stores are a place free of discrimination of any kind, where every guest and team member is treated with care and respect.
Following an investigation into an incident involving a guest who was refused service at a franchised location in Michigan yesterday, the franchise owner has taken immediate action and the two employees involved are no longer with the business. Both the franchise owner and Smoothie King corporate have reached out to the guest several times to apologize and will continue to follow up. The local owner is also taking further action and enforcing mandatory retraining for all employees that outlines our guest experience standards.
As commenters to their post noted, this is a problem of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion making hiring decisions for them.
