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Burger chain to pay $34,000 after not hiring disfigured worker
Chicago Sun-Times ^ | 9-13-2005

Posted on 09/13/2005 7:03:01 AM PDT by Cagey

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Hardee's has agreed to pay $34,000 to settle a lawsuit alleging that one of its restaurants repeatedly refused to hire an applicant because her face was disfigured.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the St. Louis-based fast-food chain, which is owned by CKE Restaurants Inc., submitted the proposed agreement Monday to U.S. District Court in Kansas City. Besides the money, the settlement also calls for the chain to apologize in writing and further train its managers and human resources employees.

The EEOC said the suit, also filed Monday, alleged that the job seeker applied more than once for entry-level work at the Hardee's in Oak Grove, near Independence, but was never hired. The suit said others with no better qualifications were given jobs while the applicant was not. The woman has Treacher Collins Syndrome, a birth defect that caused a malformed cranial bone structure, asymmetrical eye placement and the absence of ears.

CKE, based in Carpinteria, Calif., did not return calls for comment.


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; US: Missouri
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To: Protagoras
And the amount is small, it seems to have been the principle instead of the money in this case.

Since the amount is small, they may merely have decided it was cheaper to pay her off.

21 posted on 09/13/2005 7:13:57 AM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum (Islam Factoid:After forcing young girls to watch his men execute their fathers, Muhammad raped them.)
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To: Cagey

She was only as "well qualified" as the others if you assume that scaring away customers, or making them less likely to buy food, or as much food, has nothing to do with qualifications.

It may have been illegal to take that into account, and it may have been a wrong assumption that her appearance would effect sales. But certainly there are characteristics people have which would make them unqualified, or less qualified, to serve as a company's "face" to the customer.


22 posted on 09/13/2005 7:13:59 AM PDT by CharlesWayneCT
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To: Hildy
Well, I don't see any reason to not let a person work in a restaurant, not even if they look like this:


23 posted on 09/13/2005 7:14:02 AM PDT by Oberon (What does it take to make government shrink?)
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To: reagan_fanatic; E. Pluribus Unum
I found this at the Mercury News site:

"We found that Hardee's wouldn't hire this applicant because she looked different, not because she couldn't do the work," said Robert Johnson, regional attorney for the EEOC's St. Louis office. "Such conduct hurts us all. But we commend Hardee's for doing the right thing in settling this case and agreeing to appropriate training and any needed accommodations."

24 posted on 09/13/2005 7:14:07 AM PDT by Cagey (Scrapple is not for vegetarians, those who keep kosher, or those with weak stomachs)
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To: AD from SpringBay
Not to mention the multiple piercings .

Multiple piercings seem to be part of the uniform for K-mart staff.

25 posted on 09/13/2005 7:14:27 AM PDT by A Ruckus of Dogs
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To: Cagey
"And, if your bill comes to $2.96 and you should happen to give them $3.01 they'll look at you like you're the one messed up."

LOL. Isn't that the truth. They always try to return my penny. Finally I've learned to say, "Just punch the numbers into your machine and you'll understand".
26 posted on 09/13/2005 7:14:33 AM PDT by keats5
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To: E. Pluribus Unum
So does this mean that burger chains are supposed to automatically hire anyone who fills out an application?

I think that the ability to fill out an application is sufficient qualification to be a whopper-flopper. We're not talking brain surgery here.

27 posted on 09/13/2005 7:14:42 AM PDT by jalisco555 ("The right to bear weapons is the right to be free." A. E. Van Vogt)
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To: Oberon

Is this a relative of yours?


28 posted on 09/13/2005 7:16:21 AM PDT by FearlessFreep (It's a dog eat dog world. And I'm wearing milk bone underwear.)
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To: SlowBoat407

If I went to get an ear pierced and someone missed my ear and got my lip or eyebrow, I'd do my best to beat their lip or eyebrow OFF.


29 posted on 09/13/2005 7:16:25 AM PDT by azhenfud (He who always is looking up seldom finds others' lost change.)
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To: dead

She would make some customers nervous and many would not return. Looks is a legitimate criterion for hiring folks who deal directly with the public. I say this as one who does not have a pretty face and who has been turned down on looks.


30 posted on 09/13/2005 7:17:02 AM PDT by ThanhPhero (di hanh huong den La Vang)
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To: dead

Oh that was mean. Funny, but mean.


31 posted on 09/13/2005 7:18:03 AM PDT by murphE (These are days when the Christian is expected to praise every creed but his own. --G.K. Chesterton)
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To: E. Pluribus Unum
"So does this mean that burger chains are supposed to automatically hire anyone who fills out an application?"

Nope. It just means that people with certain "physical attributes" can bilk whichever company they choose. Probably learned it from Jessie Jackson and his shake-down operation.

32 posted on 09/13/2005 7:18:21 AM PDT by Designer (Just a nit-pick'n and chagrin'n)
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To: Hildy

I would imagine she had a hard time getting hired anywhere. People can't get past appearances sometimes.
Fast food worker is a low skill job so maybe that's all she could go for.
While her looks may be shocking to some, a simple explanation of birth defect would educate alot of folks and generate some understanding for people who don't look like everyone else.


33 posted on 09/13/2005 7:18:50 AM PDT by visualops (www.visualops.com)
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To: keats5

"Just punch the numbers into your machine and you'll understand".

LOL!!! you would too if they count out five ones back to you!

Crack babies and cash registers don't mix.


34 posted on 09/13/2005 7:18:55 AM PDT by azhenfud (He who always is looking up seldom finds others' lost change.)
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To: FearlessFreep
Is this a relative of yours?

No...I just typed "Treacher Collins Syndrome" into a Google image search, and her picture came up. From her website, she's a medical student...very capable, just somewhat funny-looking. Nothing wrong with that.

35 posted on 09/13/2005 7:19:07 AM PDT by Oberon (What does it take to make government shrink?)
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To: E. Pluribus Unum
Since the amount is small, they may merely have decided it was cheaper to pay her off.

One could certainly speculate about that. It may have been the case in our gutless society.

It doesn't however, change the facts.

36 posted on 09/13/2005 7:19:29 AM PDT by Protagoras (My liberal neighbor is more dangerous to my freedom than Osama Bin Laden.)
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To: Cagey

Right! I don't know whether to laugh or cry when something like that happens. Some of those folks at the register are totally, utterly lost when you do that.


37 posted on 09/13/2005 7:19:35 AM PDT by cvq3842
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To: Cagey
You know, I can just imagine the all-day-Saturday mandatory sensitivity training classes for managers. I could prepare the material and teach the classes.

'Jane doesn't have any ears and one of her eyes is on the side of her head. Susan is an unaffected symmetrical-American applicant. Both of them are appropriately dressed...'

'...that's correct Ron, the very fact that you noticed her deformity in the first place demonstrates the need for further expensive classes.'

38 posted on 09/13/2005 7:19:35 AM PDT by Sender (Team Infidel USA)
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To: Designer

Probably learned it from Jessie Jackson and his shake-down operation.

Yeah, ole Porkchop Jackson doesn't have much going for him in the looks department.


39 posted on 09/13/2005 7:20:09 AM PDT by FearlessFreep (It's a dog eat dog world. And I'm wearing milk bone underwear.)
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To: SittinYonder

If she is otherwise qualified to work there, then yes, it is discrimination not to hire her just because of her looks.


40 posted on 09/13/2005 7:20:26 AM PDT by conserv13
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