Burger King backs down over banTwo Christchurch mothers are fighting for their sons' rights to eat burgers, and the Human Rights Commission has been called in.
Fiona, who did not want her surname printed, phoned the commission for advice when the Burger King outlet in Shirley banned students wearing school uniforms from dining there.
"What if they turned around and said, `We're finding only the Maori walking in here are causing trouble; we're banning all Maori'," she said.
The ban was reversed yesterday after only one day by Burger King's national office.
Fiona said the ban came to light when her friend's son was turned away on Wednesday afternoon.
"I rang them up today thinking that can't be right, and they said they're not serving any secondary school children in school uniform," she said yesterday.
The manager told her they were able to enforce the ban.
"I rang the Human Rights Commission and they said that it is against the law it's unlawful discrimination against age," Fiona said.
"They said to me: `Do you want to lay a formal complaint? We'll take it further because they are breaking the law'."
She did not want to take it that far. "I just think they should look at other alternatives."
A commission spokeswoman said that if Fiona had asked it to make a complaint, she would have been passed it on to a mediator.
"The mediator will either proceed with the complaint or assist the caller in identifying a more appropriate course of action," the spokeswoman said.
Burger King spokeswoman Rachael Allison said that when the Shirley outlet asked to impose the ban, it was told by head office it could not.
The policy was prompted by the persistent misbehaviour of up to 60 youths.
"Some of them obviously not all of them are throwing drinks and standing on furniture and lots of shouting. There have been some instances of verbal abuse of staff, including racial abuse," Allison said.
Shirley Boys' High School principal John Laurenson said he was "totally comfortable" with the ban.
"We're on at them all the time and there are other fast-food chains that are up there as well, including KFC, and I wish they'd do the same thing," Laurenson said.
"We have to monitor the type of food that they eat and it's particularly difficult when the incentive of very cheap fast food with lots of Coke and all of the other things with it is being dangled probably 200 metres up the road."
Shirley Boys' High students at Burger King said yesterday they disagreed with the ban.
Andrew Treleaven, 14, said he went to Burger King every day while he waited for the bus.
"I was going to buy a meal and they turned me down," he said.
Some students had caused trouble.
"They jump up and down and chuck Coke and stuff," Andrew said.
Students from other schools abused staff, he said.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/thepress/4833169a6530.htmlA Cafe owner is allowed to prevent Israelis from eating in their establishment but it is called discrimination when a BK manager prevents those in school uniforms from entering his establishment due to the mess they create. A bit hypocritical if you ask me.
