guardian

Fired For Not Smiling Enough? US Fast-Food Workers Fight Unfair Dismissals

New York bill that could apply in other states would give workers stronger protections if they’ve been fired unjustly.

It’s easy to get fired in fast food. According to a recent report, one fast-food worker said she was fired because her nails were too long; another because she said she didn’t smile enough. That might be about to change.

In a first-in-the-nation effort, a city council member in New York moved on Wednesday to make the city’s 60,000 fast-food jobs a lot less precarious – introducing legislation that would prohibit fast-food restaurants from terminating employees except for “just cause”.

“Workers have told me they’ve been fired for no reason at all,” said Brad Lander, a Brooklyn Democrat who introduced the measure. “Should employers have the right to fire people for any reason, including the most trivial reasons? Most people would say that’s not a right people should have.”

Read the full article at The Guardian.

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