A bartender shared her Texas Roadhouse stories after other allegations about the popular steakhouse chain went viral on TikTok. The bartender, who has tattoos, says she was told that Texas Roadhouse was “not interested in your kind” after applying for a job there. She says she was then asked if she would be open to covering her tattoos while bartending.
Her claims come on the heels of another viral video that’s been shining a negative light on Texas Roadhouse. That original video is from popular TikToker Tara Rule (@pogsyy), who has over 340,000 followers. In it, Rule says she was sitting at an airport food court when she overheard a conversation between Texas Roadhouse corporate managers. Rule says they were plotting to fire an employee who was in the intensive care unit.
Rule says they said that they intended to terminate the person by baiting her husband into signing a fake benefits package that was actually a termination agreement.
Under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ACA), and various state laws, workers who end up in the hospital are largely protected from getting fired.
Rule’s video was viewed over 4.3 million times.
“All the best to this poor woman and her family. I sincerely hope that everything works out,” Liz (@littlebarspoon) says in her own video.
Another person joins the Texas Roadhouse hate train
Liz says that Rule’s video inspired her to share her own bad encounters with the chain.
“They’re really dumb. And they’re small, but I have two,” Liz says of her Texas Roadhouse stories.
Liz says she’s from a small town, and the food scene there is primarily chain restaurants. “It’s nothing fantastic,” she says. At the time, she says Texas Roadhouse was preparing to open there. Liz says she and her then-partner both worked at Lone Star. Lone Star is a local steakhouse that was already established in the area.
One day, she says they were at a convenience store when they noticed a corporate Texas Roadhouse employee. She says they could tell he was corporate by the fact he was wearing a branded polo shirt.
Liz says her partner welcomed the man to the area and told him they worked for the other steakhouse. Liz says the man turned around, scoffed, and said, “‘You’ll be closed soon.’”
@littlebarspoon ♬ original sound – liz
‘We’re not interested in your kind’
Liz then shares incident No. 2.
She says she had to move back home for personal reasons and was looking for a job. Given her extensive experience as a server and bartender, she says she applied for a bartending gig at the Texas Roadhouse.
The manager, she says, took her resume, didn’t read it, and proceeded to look Liz up and down.
“We’re not interested in your kind,” she recalls him telling her as he allegedly eyeballed her tattoos. “Would you keep those covered up?”
“No. I’m not wearing long sleeves to bartend at Texas Roadhouse,” she says she thought to herself.
After walking out, Liz says she got a call from the same manager. He read her impressive resume and asked if she wanted to come in for an interview, according to Liz. She notes he seemingly forgot about their in-person encounter.
“Dodged a bullet,” Liz says.
Is it illegal to discriminate against people with tattoos?
Despite the growing popularity of people having tattoos, there are no federal laws that protect them from workplace or hiring discrimination.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects employees and job applicants from discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin. Body art is not a protected federal class.
On top of that, federal law allows employers to set their own dress and grooming policie. But the rules must be applied equally across the board. That means a rule can’t only apply to one gender or race, the Princeton Legal Journal states.
No states have passed laws protecting tattooed workers. But two years ago, New York City Councilman Shaun Abreu introduced a bill that would prohibit employment, housing, and public accommodations discrimination based on tattoos, ABC7 reported.
Commenters react
People in the comments section had plenty of their own Texas Roadhouse horror stories and complaints.
“The Texas Roadhouse I worked at had a foot of water at all times by the dishwasher. This was a few years ago,” a top comment read.
“Texas Roadhouse’s rules on hair color/tattoos are so wild to me. I had a streak of teal in my hair so they told me I’d have to take it out at the interview, like who cares,” another person said.
“I had a manager at Texas Roadhouse who tried to fire me for using my insulin pump during a double shift because she thought I was texting on my phone,” a third alleged.
The Daily Dot reached out to Liz for comment via Instagram and TikTok direct message and to Texas Roadhouse via email.
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