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Almost everyone has gone to a store and dealt with bad customer service. No matter where a shopper goes, they run into the chance of having a bad experience with an employee. But for retail companies, knowing how to identify bad customer service, as opposed to prejudiced conduct, is the key to preventing client discrimination claims. Edward Harold, a regional partner in New Orleans at labor and employment firm Fisher & Phillips, spoke to Corporate Counsel on how to best prevent those discrimination claims against your company.

1. Uniform training is the first step. Harold said that in-house attorneys should make sure that all store employees are trained in the same way. “Discrimination comes around a lot of specific activities, especially during theft prevention,” he explained. “It is very easy to create an appearance that you are suspicious of someone because of race, even if really you're just suspicious because it's a teenager.” Howard said there is no law protecting teens from age discrimination. Training is key to customer service and you want to make sure your employees are creating the same experience for everyone.
2. Make sure the policies are the same for everyone, every time. Referencing last year's Starbucks incident in Philadelphia, Howard said that what he didn't know whether the store manager had implemented that same policy of requiring a purchase to use the bathroom against other people of all races. (He did not represent anyone in the matter.) He explained that you need to make sure you can show that for every situation, the employee follows the same policy. “If you do X, Y and Z every time and you can show that you do X,Y and Z every time, you shouldn't have a problem.”
3. Have a diverse workplace. Having diverse staff helps break prejudices that employees may already have, Harold said “Older people working with younger people is my favorite example,” Harold said.
4. Do not argue with customers. If an employee does receive a complaint, it is best to address it head on and find a solution to the problem and continue further training.
5. Pay attention to customer reviews. The best way to know if the policies you have in place are working is to read the customer reviews and what is said on the customer complaint line. “They need to understand the difference between someone complaining about customer service and someone who has felt discriminated against,” Harold said. “You need to be able to focus on those issues and people ready to address them.”

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