Megyn Kelly — host of NBC’s Megyn Kelly Today — took aim at Starbucks’ new bathroom policy on Tuesday, allowing anyone to use the coffee shop’s facilities regardless of whether they made a purchase.
“It’s not so much the afternoon of training, it’s Starbucks making a statement about how they want to treat their customers moving forward.” @realamyholmes on the new #Starbucks open door policy. pic.twitter.com/x6RuynQPxj
— Megyn Kelly TODAY (@MegynTODAY) May 29, 2018
While discussing Starbucks’ race bias training initiative taking place at more than 8,000 locations today, Kelly lamented customers of the coffee giant who spend hours at its shops.
“That’s annoying already,” Kelly complained in response to guest Amy Holmes suggesting Starbucks already has people hanging around for long periods of time.
Panelist Jenna Bush responded by saying that she thinks the policy is “compassionate” and shows “kindness to people.”
Kelly wasn’t buying it.
“In New York City, they’re pretty good about providing churches for homeless to go and get meals and so on,” she said. “There’s a question about whether a commercial establishment is that place. Do you really want to deal with a mass of homeless people or whoever is in there — they could be drug addicted, you don’t know.”
“One of the key pieces within the policy is the respectful request of customers to behave in a way that maintains a warm and welcoming environment,” Starbucks said in a statement Tuesday.
The coffee chain closed more than 8,000 stores nationwide on Tuesday to conduct anti-bias training, the next of many steps the company is taking to try to restore its tarnished image as a hangout where all are welcome.
After the arrests of two black men in Philadelphia last month at one of its stores, CEO Kevin Johnson traveled to the city and apologized to the two men in person, then reached out to activists and experts in bias training to put together a curriculum for its 175,000 workers.
Starbucks recently announced anyone can use its restrooms even if they are not buying any products. According to documents Starbucks sent to store workers, employees should also think carefully when dealing with disruptive customers. A guide advises staff to consider whether the actions they take would apply to any customer in the same situation. They should dial 911 only if the situation seems unsafe.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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