A transgender barista has been fired from Starbucks after yelling at a customer who misgendered her.
A worker told the woman 'transphobic' in the tirade that was captured on video in Southampton, Hampshire.
According to The Telegraph, Thomas posted the since-deleted video to her social media and captioned it: “The shop had cameras so I had to be cool, it was so much worse, he snatched my bag and through it up in the air over the counter and he picked me up and through me out then slammed the door and smashed the glass in it."
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She added: “He then put his coat on and done a runner, I have reported it with the police and Starbucks, he was out of order.”
In the 56-second clip, the two are seen arguing while the female customer yells: “You're rude, don't ever call me transphobic, ever. You do not know me.”
However, the transgender woman retorts by clapping in the woman’s face and labeling her a ‘Karen’.
“You're calling me a man, you're being transphobic, Karen. Now get out,” she says.
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She then denied the woman’s request for a refund.
The staff member is then seen walking to the man who filmed the incident, hurling abuse at him before knocking the camera out of his hand.
Shortly after the clash broke out, Hampshire Police arrived at the scene.
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In a statement, Hampshire Police told Daily Mail: “We received a report of an assault at Starbucks in Beresford House, Town Quay in Southampton on Sunday 30 April.
“It is alleged that a staff member became verbally abusive towards a customer within the premises, before assaulting a member of the public who was filming the incident.
“No injuries were reported.”
They added that the investigation remains ongoing.
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Starbucks has since issued a statement announcing they had dismissed the employee involved in the altercation.
“The licensee has confirmed that the partner (employee) no longer works at the company.
“Starbucks has no tolerance for behaviour of this kind and we are very sorry for the experience that this customer had.”
The video has outraged many on social media, as one person wrote: “Glad to see that this aggressive and emotionally unstable transgender employee has now been sacked from Starbucks. Completely unacceptable behaviour.
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“Good on the woman for standing her ground during this altercation.”
Another said: “I never go to Starbucks. Their coffee is overpriced and not very nice. This is another reason not to go there.”
Charisa Bossinakis