A new employee with a physical deformity applied to work at a restaurant chain as a hostess. She had considerable experience as a hostess, and was hired. Although she worked as a hostess for a few weeks, she was soon assigned to work as a cook. The manager told her she would never be able to work as a hostess again because customers had complained about her appearance. Which of the following is true of this situation?
A) This is a case of appearance discrimination related to a disability, and thus is illegal under the ADA.
B) This is the manager's prerogative; customers are always right.
C) Although this is an unfortunate situation, the manager had no choice.
D) The manager did the right thing but the wrong way. The manager needed to find a more acceptable excuse.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

This situation involves appearance discrimination related to a physical deformity, which is illegal under the ADA. The manager cannot use customer complaints about the employee's appearance as a reason to reassign her to a different role, and they cannot prohibit her from working as a hostess in the future solely because of her appearance. The manager should have made efforts to accommodate the employee's disability and prevent discrimination.

A New Employee with a Physical Deformity Applied to Work