Sergeant Kenneth Horton walked into Cook Out, a barbecue restaurant in North Carolina, and went to the counter to make an order for a midnight snack. However, the cashier glanced at the police and exited the eatery, leading another employee to welcome Horton.
Puzzled, Horton inquired about the other cashier, to which the second employee said that they did not wish to serve a cop. Sgt. Horton elected to leave the restaurant without ordering because he felt disrespected.
Although the officer appears to have never spoken about the event, word of the cashier’s reluctance to serve Sgt. Horton immediately circulated on the internet, prompting a speedy inquiry from Cook Out’s corporate headquarters. The cashier was dismissed within days for discriminating against a client based on their occupation. Of course, the corporation wasn’t done cleaning.
When manager Taren Woods’s boss questioned why she didn’t interfere after finding that the cashier denied service to the police, she justified her co-worker’s behavior. She claimed that a staff member should not be obligated to serve a cop and stated that such a law would not be enforced.
After hearing Woods’ explanation, the district manager told her that if she felt the same way as her staff, she could share their destiny. Woods was dismissed from her job that day.
Sgt. Horton had no clue his bad encounter with the restaurant employee had been publicized. When he and his department learned of the conclusion, they wanted to make it clear that they had nothing to do with Woods’ or the cashier’s dismissal.
Woods has subsequently given multiple media appearances, claiming that she didn’t realize the police had been sent away since she was working at the rear of the restaurant. She went on to say that she wished the employee had come to her right away so that she could correct the problem. Nonetheless, she criticizes the district manager for not comprehending her situation.
Woods maintains that her support of the cashier has nothing to do with the officer’s occupation. In fact, she claims she would have accepted Sgt. Horton’s command if she had known the employee would reject.
Woods has 4 kids and had been employed at Cook Out for ten years before being let go. Despite the fact that some have defended her, the former manager has stated that she does not wish to be rehired at the restaurant.
The police department stated their disappointment that Sgt. Horton was denied service, noting that the incident may simply have been averted. The department, on the other hand, expressed satisfaction for the establishment’s adherence to its “fundamental principles.”
