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Starbucks recently opened up use of its restrooms to non-costumers after a manager in Philadelphia came under fire for refusing restroom privileges to two men, who happened to be black, and happened to hanging out in the store without purchasing any of the Seattle coffee chain’s lousy food and beverages.
Cue outrage; cue apologies from Starbucks’ corporate; cue new “Hey, non-paying customers homeless people. Come on in and use our restrooms anytime you like!” policy.
Although that company stressed a “no sleeping, no drugs” policy (who hasn’t fallen asleep on the john from time to time?), it seems that not everyone who uses the Starbucks bathrooms is cool with the whole “please don’t shoot up your heroin while evacuating your bodily waste” rule.
In response, Business Insider reports that “3,700 people signed a petition on Coworker.org, calling for Starbucks to place needle-disposal boxes in high-risk bathrooms.” Those high-risk places include urban areas like Seattle and Minneapolis.
Besides needle-disposal boxes, Starbucks is investigating options such as thicker trash bags (but what about the environment?), as well as removing trash cans from some bathrooms altogether.
Click the link below to hear what Tony Katz has to say on the matter:
