Viral
Restaurant Manager Hits Back At Wealthy Customers Who Make Fun Of His Staff Member’s ‘Low Wages’
“He used humiliating tactics to degrade me.”
Having served a table of wealthy men from a top legal firm, Lily O’Connor was left in tears as she got heavily disrespected for being a low-wage earner and urged to work seven nights a week if she wanted to make a living salary. Notably, Lily, 22, had served the men for nearly three hours, and one of them used humiliating tactics to try and degrade her.
The six businessmen downed seven bottles of wind during the sitting and ran up a £1,000 bill, the largest since the restaurant opened this January.
“He was saying: ‘How do you make a living at this and ‘Why don’t you work seven nights a week. It was upsetting – I had put with that demeaning attitude while I served them seven courses,” Lily said of the incident.
She added: “I was even told to stick my schnoz in that after they complained about one of the wines I served them over the seven-course tasting menu.” Lee Skeet, the chef and restaurant boss [pictured], was angered to know Lily had been talked down to and touched at his Cora restaurant in Pontcanna, Cardiff.
Taking action, Lee contacted the company who made the booking, told them he would repay their £1K bill and would take off a £100 tip for Lily.
Both Lee and Lily blame just one of the six men at the table for picking on her because she was a young woman working hard in a struggling industry. “We don’t want to call out the individual; it’s not about naming or shaming anyone. But there’s a point to be made about hospitality workers and the way they are treated,” Lily, with 5years of experience in hospitality, said.
The firm is yet to respond, but Lee, 25, has allegedly given Lily the total amount to compensate for her three hours of being disrespected.
Lily claimed she hoped she dealt with it professionally at the time, but at the end of service, Lee could tell she had had enough of being mistreated.
At the time of incidence, Lee was busy in the kitchen but said he noticed a change in Lily’s demeanor while serving the table. However, he describes Lily as a brilliant front-of-house manager and the best he has worked with. And so far, Lee has been flooded with praise on social media after tweeting, “We should start calling out rich people who think they can treat people like c**p.”
Lee has also made a new rule that staff should make him aware of bad behavior while customers are still in the restaurant.
