08/24/2010 // West Palm Beach, FL, USA // Sandra Quinlan // Sandra Quinlan
DeKalb County, GA—After noticing a surcharge on her salon bill, Michelle Fonville inquired as to what exactly she was paying for. The salon manager then explained that Fonville was charged an additional $5 for being overweight, leaving her feeling discriminated against, according to a Friday, August 20, 2010 WSBTV report.
Fonville went to DeKalb County, Georgia-based Natural Nails salon on Monday, August 16, where she proceeded to bask in the simple pleasures of a manicure, pedicure, and eyebrow arch. When it came time to pay the bill, however, her salon experience went from relaxing to mortifying.
“I said, ‘I’ve been overcharged. She may have made an error.’… She broke it down, then told me she charged me $5 more because I was overweight,” said Fonville. “I said, Ma’am, you can’t charge me $5 more. That’s discrimination because of my weight,” she added.
Manager of Natural Nails salon Kim Tran went on to explain that the surcharge of $5 was added on to her bill to help cover the cost of broken chairs. Tran contended the chairs cost $2,500 to repair and has a maximum capacity of 200 pounds.
Tran allegedly told Phillips, “Do you think that’s fair when we take $24 [for manicure and pedicure] and we have to pay $2,500? Is that fair? No.”
While Tran reportedly reimbursed Phillips for the miscellaneous $5 charge, the salon manager stated, “I didn’t want to argue with her about $5. I wanted to make her pleased with her service… I whispered… I said, ‘I’m sorry, next time I cannot take you.”
Nonetheless, Phillips maintained, “The word has to get out there that these people are discriminating against us because of our weight. I mean, come on, we’re in America. You can’t do that.”
Legal News Reporter: Sandra Quinlan– Legal News for Georgia Discrimination Attorneys.
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