I feel her pain, I too got fired from my Disney World job - I loved running those tea-cups...
Posted on 08/18/2010 6:59:42 PM PDT by markomalley
A Muslim woman who works as a hostess at a Disneyland restaurant alleged Wednesday the theme park would not allow her to appear in front of customers while wearing her head scarf.
Imane Boudlal, 26, appeared outside the resort's Grand Californian Hotel after filing a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
She said when she wore the hijab to work Sunday, her supervisors told her to remove it, work where customers couldn't see her, or go home.
Boudlal, who wore the scarf in observance of Ramadan, chose to go home but reported to work for the next two days and was told the same thing.
"Miss Boudlal has effectively understood that they're not interested in accommodating her request either in timing or good faith," said Ameena Qazi, an attorney from the Council on American-Islamic Relations who is consulting with Boudlal.
Disneyland spokeswoman Suzi Brown said Disney has a policy not to discriminate. The resort offered Boudlal a chance to work with the head covering away from customers while Disneyland tries to find a compromise that would allow Boudlal to cover her head in a way that fits with her hostess uniform, Brown said.
"Typically, somebody in an on-stage position like hers wouldn't wear something like that, that's not part of the costume," Brown said. "We were trying to accommodate her with a backstage position that would allow her to work. We gave her a couple of different options and she chose not to take those and to go home."
Boudlal, who is a native of Morocco, has worked at the Storyteller restaurant at the hotel for 2 1/2 years but only realized she could wear her hijab to work after studying for her U.S. citizenship exam in June, Qazi said.
She asked her supervisors if she could wear the scarf and was told they would consult with the corporate office, Qazi said. Boudlal didn't hear anything for two months and was then told she could wear a head scarf, but it had to be designed by Disneyland's costume department to comply with the Disney look, Qazi said.
She was fitted for a Disney-supplied head scarf but was not given a date when the garment would be finished and was told she couldn't wear her own hijab in the interim.
Boudlal wore her own hijab to work for the first time Sunday. "After these two months and this complicated process, she decided to come forward," Qazi said. "She really wanted to be able to wear it on Ramadan."
Boudlal has the support of her union, which has been in a bitter fight for months with Disneyland over an expired contract for hotel workers. Brown accused the union of distorting the facts in Boudlal's case to distract from the key issues in the contract fight.
Leigh Shelton, a spokeswoman for the union, said Boudlal's coming forward now had nothing to do with the negotiations.
"There's absolutely no correlation," said Shelton, who's with Unite Here Local 11.
It seems that it never is. Now, they're liable to be bending over forward.
Disney considers all of their employees who have customer contact as performers. They have to wear Disney-defined clothes in every detail. Individual variations are not allowed. Too bad for her.
Disney considers all of their employees who have customer contact as performers. They have to wear Disney-defined clothes in every detail. Individual variations are not allowed. Too bad for her.
We know what they are doing, and we know why the are doing it. They are converting America to subjugation one baby step at the time.
Good work on those stats. The stats match their history.
Their eye is on the prize. And, America is a great prize for Islam. If we don’t stop them now, well, we know the rest of the story, as told by the stats.
I feel her pain, I too got fired from my Disney World job - I loved running those tea-cups...
I find the presence of women in such scarves is chilling. Paying admission to Disneyland only to find such things around is very distressing ~ they should put up big signs about it so you could decide to not go there anymore.
WTF?
It's not been a problem for 2 1/2 years, but it's a problem now?
Disappointed nobody’s posted a pic of Goofy in a burqa yet.
Muzzies are trying to smuggle in Sharia law one piece at a time. Given the nature of their evil religion the MORE unwelcome we can make them, the better.
She picked the wrong company. The very first thing you learn at Disney is what you can’t wear and how you have to look if you work out in the public.
So true...living in Orlando we know the rules the Disney “cast members” (what all employees are called) have to follow...since everyone knows someone who works at Disney World
This gal is being egged on by some Islamic agitators. Disney is pretty firm on their dress policy
Easy fix, find another job.
LOL! Disney would not even let him work behind the scenes.
Mickey is a mouse, donald a duck and I thought pluto was the dog, what’s that make goofy....?
Short term solution. Mine is long term.
that is why there is on and off stage and they are not employees they are cast.
Actually now that I think about it . . . the company should have made it “Disney compliant” by putting Mickey Mouse on her hijab
Or maybe Goofy would’ve been better.
The “happiest place on earth” shouldn’t include people who hate and resent you and everything you believe in, and wear visible symbols of that hate.
It will only be fair when Obama demands that they tear down the Matterhorn and build a Mosque.
The “happiest place on earth” shouldn’t include people who hate and resent you and everything you believe in, and wear visible symbols of that hate.
Indeed.
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