Mugg & Bean manager lost his job because he was retrenched‚ not because he’s black

Mugg & Bean on Tuesday slammed and denied allegations that a former manager was dismissed because customers did not want to be served by a black man.

According to operations executive Jeanne Geldenhuys‚ the man lost his job because he was retrenched.

“The dismissal was an operational retrenchment undertaken by the franchise owner. The business downsized due to weak trading conditions. We categorically refute allegations that the retrenchment was racist‚” she said.

This comes after reports emerged that Andile Bozo‚ who held a managerial position at the restaurant chain’s store at the Waterstone Centre in Cape Town‚ lost his job because customers demanded a white manager.

Geldenhuys said there was no wrongdoing in Bozo’s dismissal‚ saying that due process had been followed by the franchisee. She said the company had clear codes of conduct and policies in place that governed the conduct of all staff and franchisees.

Bozo held the managerial position for four years.

His dismissal caused an outcry on social media‚ with some people calling for action to be taken against the management.

The eatery said‚ “No action had been taken against the franchise owner since there is no legitimate reason to do so.”

This comes after the EFF’s Unathi Ntame said on Monday the party was outraged by what had happened and had demanded that the store’s management reinstate Bozo before Friday‚ August 17 - or hell will break loose.

Responding to the EFF’s threats‚ Geldenhuys said the company did not condone public violence in any form.

Bozo told TimesLIVE that the matter had been resolved through a “separation agreement”. He would not comment further.

Meanwhile CCMA’s spokesperson Dumisani Mavundla confirmed that a case was lodged with them.

“There is a case in our system; we however cannot reveal its details.”

He added that it was still in the conciliation phase.