Claims elderly woman 'wet herself' in KFC after being refused use of toilet
A KFC store in the Northern Territory reportedly plans to investigate allegations an elderly woman wet herself in a store, after being refused access to staff toilets.
The NT News reports the fast food chain has apologised and reached out to the unknown woman in question after a carer posted an account of the incident to social media.
The post has since been deleted, but said the woman was left in tears after the humiliating confrontation.
“SHAME SHAME SHAME on the (staff member) of KFC Darwin who refused one of my clients access to (the) staff toilet and then stood and watched as she wet herself in the middle of the restaurant,” the paper quoted the post as alleging.
[[img::https://s.yimg.com/dh/ap/default/170221/kfc_bagot_road_638.jpg|The incident reportedly occured at KFC Nightcliff in Darwin. Photo: Google Maps]
“She cried because she had wet her dress… I cried because this beautiful women had been treated with total disrespect and was robbed of her dignity," the post further alleged.
A KFC spokeswoman said the store regretted the incident and had since been in touch with the carer organisation, but safety issues would still have prevented the woman using staff toilets.
"Whilst we sympathise with the customer’s situation, due to the size of the restaurant, it does not have a toilet for customer use and our staff toilets are only accessible through the restaurant kitchen," she said.
"Due to safety and security concerns for both our customers and employees, we do not allow access to our internal employee facilities. Staff at the restaurant have been coached to let people know the location of the nearest public facilities."
The story comes just weeks after an Adelaide fast food chain also found its in store policies in the firing line, after a staff member allegedly refused a thirsty boy water during a heatwave.
Vasu Sharrock, 38, took aim at the Elizabeth McDonald’s outlet for putting her son’s health at risk when it demanded money before allowing him to top up his water bottle on the 40 degree day.
“It’s a bloody joke and it’s completely unacceptable... McDonald’s, a multi-million dollar company all over the world, couldn’t spare 200ml of water in a bottle,” she claimed.
A McDonald’s spokesperson responded to Ms Sharrock’s Facebook post saying: "Free water is at the individual store/licensee discretion. Most stores will offer a cup of courtesy water if a purchase has been made”.
They did however acknowledge that they would implement changes to introduce free water and ice to every customer.
