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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
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| M&S apologises after Muslim assistant refused to sell customer alcohol | M&S apologises after Muslim assistant refused to sell customer alcohol |
| (about 14 hours later) | |
| Marks & Spencer has apologised after a Muslim member of staff refused to sell a customer alcohol. The retailer said that where employees had religious beliefs that restricted what foods or drinks they could handle, it tried to place them in a "suitable role". An M&S spokeswoman said: "We regret that in the case highlighted we were not following our own internal policy." | |
| The issue arose after an unnamed customer at a London store told the Telegraph they were "taken aback" when an "extremely apologetic" Muslim checkout worker asked them to wait for another till to become available. | The issue arose after an unnamed customer at a London store told the Telegraph they were "taken aback" when an "extremely apologetic" Muslim checkout worker asked them to wait for another till to become available. |
| The customer told the newspaper: "I had one bottle of champagne, and the lady, who was wearing a headscarf, was very apologetic but said she could not serve me. She told me to wait until another member of staff was available. I was taken aback. I was a bit surprised. I've never come across that before." | The customer told the newspaper: "I had one bottle of champagne, and the lady, who was wearing a headscarf, was very apologetic but said she could not serve me. She told me to wait until another member of staff was available. I was taken aback. I was a bit surprised. I've never come across that before." |
| Drinking alcohol is forbidden in Islam, and some Muslims refuse to handle it. M&S said its policy applied to staff of all religions, not just Islam. | Drinking alcohol is forbidden in Islam, and some Muslims refuse to handle it. M&S said its policy applied to staff of all religions, not just Islam. |
| The spokeswoman said: "Where we have an employee whose religious beliefs restrict food or drink they can handle, we work closely with our members of staff to place them in suitable roles, such as in our clothing department or bakery in foods. | |
| "As a secular business we have an inclusive policy that welcomes all religious beliefs whether across our customer or employee base. This policy has been in place for many years, and when followed correctly, we do not believe that it should compromise our ability to offer the highest level of customer service. We apologise that this policy was not followed in the case reported." | "As a secular business we have an inclusive policy that welcomes all religious beliefs whether across our customer or employee base. This policy has been in place for many years, and when followed correctly, we do not believe that it should compromise our ability to offer the highest level of customer service. We apologise that this policy was not followed in the case reported." |
| The case highlighted differences among retailers on whether religious staff should have to carry out certain jobs, the Telegraph said. Sainsbury's guidelines say there is no reason why staff who do not drink alcohol or eat pork on religious grounds cannot handle them, the newspaper reported, while Tesco said it made "no sense" for staff who refused to touch items for religious reasons to work on a till. | The case highlighted differences among retailers on whether religious staff should have to carry out certain jobs, the Telegraph said. Sainsbury's guidelines say there is no reason why staff who do not drink alcohol or eat pork on religious grounds cannot handle them, the newspaper reported, while Tesco said it made "no sense" for staff who refused to touch items for religious reasons to work on a till. |
| Muslim employees at Asda do not have to work on tills if they object to handling alcohol, while Morrisons said it would "respect and work around anyone's wishes not to handle specific products for religious or cultural reasons", the Telegraph said. | Muslim employees at Asda do not have to work on tills if they object to handling alcohol, while Morrisons said it would "respect and work around anyone's wishes not to handle specific products for religious or cultural reasons", the Telegraph said. |
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