After several years of working at an L.A.-area bar, a woman says she was fired when she refused to wear the skimpy outfits that the new manager said were now required for female employees.

The woman, who recently filed a lawsuit alleging wrongful termination and sexual harassment, says that when the new manager started, all the female waitresses were told to wear skimpy schoolgirl-style skirts.

“It wasn’t fair to me, it wasn’t fair to the other girls who were working there,” she tells KTLA-TV. “Everyone was offended by it. Nobody wanted to do it, but unfortunately, jobs are hard to come by right now and some people were stuck.”

From The Daily Bruin:

She alleges that [the owner] objectified the women on staff by forcing them to wear revealing uniforms as a way to increase the bar’s profits… [S]he feared that drunk customers could easily tear off the short, plaid skirt – secured only by Velcro – that female workers were required to wear as part of the bar’s dress code. When [she] demonstrated how difficult it was to bend over in the short skirt, [the manager] allegedly said “Oh yeah!” in a sexually suggestive manner, the suit states.

Her lawyer says that his client did give the new look a try for a few days, but when she decided not to wear it, “her hours were cut… She was not given the same shifts that would allow her to gain good tips and income and then she was terminated.”

The lawyer for the bar claims that the woman was not fired but quit.

Former worker files lawsuit against Westwood bar O’Hara’s [Daily Bruin]
Waitress Sues Westwood Bar Over Skimpy Outfit [KTLA]

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