Burger King | Facial hair ban flouts worker rights, lawmaker says

Fast food chain Burger King has been criticised by a local lawmaker that claims the restaurant’s strict policies on facial hair on the grounds of health and safety infringe upon worker rights.

The Labour Inspection Committee in Barcelona, Spain, has ordered the fast food giant to allow workers to grow out their facial hair after it found the chain’s rules to be in violation of employee constitutional rights.

The group also took issue with Burger King’s policy of making male employees wear ties in the region, whilst women are made to wear ribbons, which it claims constitutes sexual discrimination.

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The chain banned facial hair after stating that any such hair posed a ‘food hygiene concern’, yet the authority stated that any such concerns would be counteracted by what it called ‘more moderate measures’ such as enforcing compulsory use of beard nets – a requirement already in place for long-haired employees.