Starbucks Employee Fired for Discriminatory Language
The Claim
A Christian barista was fired by Starbucks for declining to wear a LGBT pride uniform.
News posted on
Emerging story
Betsy Fresse, a former Starbucks barista who worked in New Jersey, filed a lawsuit for wrongful termination. She claimed that she was fired for refusing to wear an LGBT Pride t-shirt due to her religious beliefs. Starbucks has denied her claims. At the time of writing, the lawsuit is ongoing.
Social media users and news sites posted about the alleged incident and lawsuit.
Misbar’s Analysis
Misbar’s investigation found that this lawsuit is far from over, and there are several suspicious elements of her alleged firing. Fresse’s story begins during a staff meeting with other Starbucks workers. After eyeing a box of pride shirts, she asked her manager if she was forced to wear one. Her manager told her that she didn’t have to if she didn’t want to. Later, she was contacted by Starbucks’ ethics department, who asked her why she requested not to wear the shirt. She stated that she didn’t for religious reasons. She was fired shortly thereafter, with Starbucks saying that she didn’t align with company values.
This may lead one to believe that she was in fact fired for her refusal to wear the shirt, but her actual firing came after telling her coworkers that they “need Jesus” for wearing the shirt, which is far different than politely declining. Saying that to other coworkers is itself discriminatory, so it seems that Starbucks had a valid reason to terminate her.
