TGIFriday’s has apologized after refusing to accommodate a disabled teen and her trained companion dog, says the Suburban Chicago Daily Herald:

The manager at T.G.I. Friday’s in Wheeling told the Arlington Heights family on Saturday that the restaurant couldn’t accommodate Dawn even after Greenberg showed him her Public Access card, which explains the Americans With Disabilities Act.

Greenberg said they were told that since Laura already had someone to help her, the dog couldn’t be allowed in.

It’s illegal to refuse to allow a companion animal into a restaurant, and Mr. TGIFriday’s Guy should know that.

The restaurant issued a statement apologizing for the incident:

“We are very sorry for the terrible mistake our restaurant made. We absolutely should have accommodated our guest and her companion dog. We have contacted the guest to offer our sincerest apologies and we have re-educated restaurant management on proper procedures to ensure a similar situation does not occur.”

Amy Freshwater, spokeswoman for T.G.I. Friday’s, said Tuesday the manager had been replaced and the company will be re-educating management on the importance of ADA guidelines.

“We’re absolutely appalled with the situation in the first place,” she said. “This is something we’re taking seriously.”

Hey, what do you know? They’re taking it seriously.

Greenberg said she did not want the employee to be fired, but would like he and his coworkers to receive training, says the Daily Herald.

“He needs sensitivity training,” she said. “He needs more than just telling him, ‘You did a bad thing.'”

No kidding. What a jerk!

Wheeling restaurant apologizes after refusing service to disabled teen [Daily Herald]
(Photo:Mark Welsh )

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