Starbucks’ new policy allows anyone to hang out and use the restroom in the cafes even without purchasing any food or beverage.
The new policy of Starbucks stated that people can sit and hang out inside cafes without purchasing anything.
In addition to this, non-customers are also allowed to use the restrooms as what the world-famous coffee shop announced last Saturday.
Based on the article published in Inquirer, this new policy came five weeks after two black men were arrested at a Philadelphia Starbucks for not buying anything.
Last April 12, the said two men, identified as Rashon Nelson and Donte Robinson, were arrested while waiting inside the cafe for a third person who they will have a meeting with.
One of them was not allowed to use the restroom because he did not buy anything. Then a worker called the police and they were arrested.
They were jailed for hours before they were released.
The said incident was shared on social media and the company garnered embarrassments online.
What happened was contrary to the image that Starbucks was trying to project to the public.
It is supposed to be a socially conscious company and stores are pictured as a neighborhood gathering place.
After the embarrassment, it was said that Nelson and Robinson settled with the company for a sum of money which was not revealed to the public.
Now, the decision are up to store managers whether they will allow people to sit in the cafes and use the restroom because according to the company executives the former rules were unclear.
It was also said that Starbucks workers are told to consider every person walking into their stores as customer, “regardless of whether they make a purchase.”
Yes, anyone could sit and use the restroom of the cafes, on the other hand, if someone is a safety threat, workers are told to call the police, based on a report.