Marks & Spencer under fire after Muslim staffer refuses to sell alcohol

Customer service is our number one priority. We regret that in the highlighted case this was not delivered to our usual standards. - M&S PHOTO: MARKS & SPENCER FACEBOOK PAGE

LONDON: Marks & Spencer (M&S) has found itself embroiled in a major controversy after a Muslim staffer on Saturday refused to serve a customer who was buying champagne, reported BBC News.

An unnamed customer told the local newspaper they had tried to buy a bottle of champagne from an M&S store in London, but the member of staff “was very apologetic but said she could not serve me” and asked the customer to use another till.

M&S has a policy that tries to accommodate employees with different religious beliefs.

“Where we have an employee whose religious beliefs restrict food or drink they can handle, we work closely with our member of staff to place them in suitable role, such as in our clothing department or bakery in foods,” said a spokesperson for M&S.

The policy applies throughout its 700-plus stores.

This incident caused quite an uproar when the news surfaced on British websites and social media.

The BBC quoted Khola Hasan, an Islamic law consultant, who said that she thought the M&S employee’s refusal to serve the customer was “ridiculous”.

“I don’t think the Islamic ruling is being so difficult that Muslims cannot cope in society,” she said.

In comparison, other retailers said they would work with their employees on a case-by-case basis to let Muslims avoid handling alcohol or pork, and would allow similar exceptions for other religions.

The episode has caused many loyal customers to take it up to social media sites to express their frustration.

Angela Phillips, a loyal customer posted on the official Marks & Spencer page saying “If M&S go ahead with this they are going to lose so many loyal customers… if they do not want to serve people with pork or alcohol they shouldn’t work in the food hall… simple!”

A Facebook page by the name of “Boycott Marks & Spencer” has surfaced the social networking site with over 7,844 likes in just a little less than 24 hours.

Following the uproar on Facebook, Marks & Spencer issued a press release that stated “Customer service is our number one priority. We regret that in the highlighted case this was not delivered to our usual standards.”

Stressing on their implemented policy, the statement added “This policy has been successfully implemented over many years and does not compromise our ability to offer the highest level of customer service.”