Four White Rhino Coffee managers told the Dallas Observer that they were fired after a dispute over a new workplace dress code and after they left part of a managers’ summit.
The reported policy called for khaki pants and white shirts and included restrictions involving tattoos, piercings and hair color, according to the Observer’s account of the dispute.
Company disputes managers’ account
A White Rhino representative denied that the firings were discriminatory or retaliatory. The representative instead attributed the dismissals to the managers’ conduct during the meeting.
The two sides therefore offer different explanations for the employment decisions. The former managers connect their firings to objections over the appearance rules and their departure from part of the summit. The company rejects discriminatory and retaliatory motives and points to conduct at the meeting.
The approved reporting establishes that the dismissals occurred and that the dress-code dispute preceded them. It does not resolve the competing accounts of why White Rhino made the decisions. Claims about motive remain allegations from the former managers, while the company’s explanation is its response to those allegations.
