Would you want a man serving you dinner when you’re out at a fancy restaurant?
The owners of a high-end group of steakhouses thought you wouldn’t, and they were barring men from such duties since 1938 in the name of tradition.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced yesterday that Lawry’s Restaurants Inc., which operates Lawry’s the Prime Rib, Five Crowns and Tam O’Shanter Inn, settled a sex discrimination class action lawsuit for $1,025,000 for failing to hire men as food servers. The Pasadena, CA-based company operates restaurants in Los Angeles, Chicago, Law Vegas, Dallas, among other cities.
Despite the enactment of a law that prohibited discrimination based on gender in the 1960s, Lawry’s went right on discriminating against men who wanted to be servers at their establishments.
Lawry’s, which has its female servers wear 1930s and 1940s style costumes, used the that’s-how-it’s-always-been-done defense. But the EEOC wasn’t buying it.
“The EEOC will never condone discrimination in the name of so-called tradition,” said EEOC Los Angeles District Director Olophius Perry. “Every individual deserves a fair chance to obtain a job based on their talent and qualifications, regardless of gender.”
According to the Los Angeles Times, the settlement stemmed from a complaint by a Lawry’s busboy six year ago claiming he was denied a better paying job as a server because he was a male.
An EEOC spokesman said the agency often gets claims by men based on gender, but it was rare for the agency to sue a company because they failed to hire men as waiters.
The settlement includes everything from paying damages to those men who feel they’ve been wronged, to training and an ad campaign to promote hiring of all genders.
Lawry’s desire to keep a certain cache at its restaurants is nothing new. Other companies have come under fire for trying to maintain a certain look among their workforces, but as a result discriminating against a group or groups.
Abercrombie & Fitch, the hip retailer, became the poster child for such cases, coming under fire for trying to maintain a white, good-looking sales force at its stores and in the process allegedly discriminating against African American, Hispanic and Asian job applicants.
There is nothing worse than denying an individual the opportunity to make a good living and hold a great job based on their gender, race, etc.; but many businesses I speak to are worried that they’re being restricted to the point that they can’t create the type of customer experience they believe will bring in the big bucks.
Should all workplaces be/look diverse?
What about all the fashion magazines that line the magazine racks across America? I mainly see women on the covers of those publications. Can a case be made to gender-diversify Vogue as well? And where’s the EEOC class action lawsuit against Corporate America which has few women board members and CEOs. And, when’s the last time you saw a woman flinging knives at Benihana?
What’s your take? (If you get a chance, also weigh in by taking the poll on the right.)
November 3rd, 2009 at 10:09 am
I believe, in most cases, the prominence of female servers is entirely a decision based on sex-appeal. Without knowing the specifics of this case, I believe it would be possible that some businesses could make a valid claim for specifying gender roles, but these would need to be very specific cases (e.g., establishments that aim to create a historical recreation of a specific period of history during which such gender roles were the culturally accepted norm). Beyond that, it typically is just an employer (or a company) expressing a preference. If any of you are familiar with Country Kitchen restaurants, how often do you see male waitstaff? [I still miss the blue floral print dresses, because that’s what my wife was wearing when I first laid eyes upon her
] When I went through a period of unemployment, I applied for waitstaff positions at numerous restaurants, but never landed a job (though I think I was offered dishwasher at one).
Businesses that do choose to discriminate on gender typically get away with it because those affected don’t complain. When I first moved to Wisconsin, I lived in a rural county seat. I had experience in retail, bookselling in particular, and was looking for work. The local bookstore seemed to have openings almost every other month. Each time, I applied. Each time, I never got as much as a call-back. Then, one day, some of the locals told me that the bookstore had never hired any men, and probably wouldn’t either. The next time I saw a job posting in the paper, I made a call and asked if the position was still open. “No,” I was told, “the position had been filled.”
A few minutes later, I asked my mother to call and make the same inquiry. “Yes,” was the reply she received, “just stop in and you can fill out an application.” Neither my mother nor I ever shopped there again. Looking back, I should have filed a complaint. But when you are living in a small town, Eve, you have to carefully consider the choices you make. Had I filed a complaint, I would have likely alienated myself from most of the town. It was already tough getting a job since I was “an outsider,” but such an action would have almost certainly guaranteed that I would have remained unemployed as long as I lived there.
Perhaps that’s something you might consider examining in the future, Eve–the dynamics of working in a small town. There, if something goes awry with your current employment situation, you might not have the option of jumping to some competitor across town. Your employer might be the only employer in your industry in that town, or within 50 miles.
November 3rd, 2009 at 11:24 am
Apparently, this law does not apply to casino cocktail waitresses in Vegas (or other casinos around the country)
November 3rd, 2009 at 12:34 pm
Good point ageekymom!! What’s up with that?!
November 3rd, 2009 at 12:37 pm
There is something about the small town dynamic HikingStick. The dynamic may be similar to what some workers find in certain industries, where everyone knows everyone. With social media sites, the fear of being alienated may be bigger today.
But that is a great suggestion, small towns and work. The stories you typically read about are how people have to leave their small towns to find work. But what about those that stay and work, and the dynamic that exists? An interesting question.