Man Allegedly Fired From Muslim-Friendly Restaurant For Wearing “Cross” Necklace
It all allegedly started because someone questioned whether the popular restaurant in Bukit Bintang was truly Muslim-friendly because one of the employees wore a cross necklace.
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A recent review of a Chinese beef bun restaurant in Bukit Bintang garnered attention for the wrong reasons and it allegedly resulted in one of the staff getting fired.
The popular restaurant claimed to be a Muslim-friendly establishment with many of its customers Muslims themselves.
The issue began when a netizen allegedly saw one of the staff wearing a necklace with a Christian cross while watching the TikTok food review.
The netizen voiced his suspicions on Twitter and wondered whether the restaurant was truly Muslim-friendly, especially concerning food preparation.
So easily fooled. Put “Muslim-friendly” and many Malays will buy. The cashier indeed wore a tudung but the cook wore a cross necklace. What now?
The netizen voicing his suspicions on Twitter
The staff was allegedly fired
Rumours have it that the staff was fired after the claims went viral. Netizens believed he shouldn’t lose his job over a difference in religious beliefs and said it was a targeted harassment.
They also pointed out that other halal-certified establishments such as McDonald’s and KFC hired non-Muslim staff without issues all along.
Someone added that the halal-ness of the food is based on its preparation and the ingredients used, and not based on the employee’s religion.
I don’t understand why was he fired for?there’s nothing wrong with him being a non-muslim working there..I feel pity for him..this is just terrible
— The Malay Bitcoiner ⚡️ ∞/21M (@MalayBitcoiner) November 19, 2023
Orang tu dah kena buang kerja, semoga aman la hidup dah tau kau potong rezeki orang. People are trying to make an honest living, tapi nak buat mcm mana, lambang salib pun takut pic.twitter.com/859lNm5PZU
— 🥜 (@pntbutterguzzlr) November 19, 2023
Exactly! And non-muslim business have been obtaining halal certification left and right so apa beza nya yg ni
— 🥜 (@pntbutterguzzlr) November 19, 2023
Kalau tukang masak mesti orang Islam ke apa nie? Sepatutnya, menghalalkan makanan adalah Cara penyembelihan, kandungan bahan etc.. bukan terletak kepada org yg memasak. Aku baru tahu rupanya orang2 melayu takut dgn tanda salib. Confirm plus chop tengok banyak drama/film 😂
— Ace Kristal (@AceQrys) November 19, 2023
The restaurant’s management apologised
According to Berita Harian, the restaurant management apologised and admitted their mistake in hiring the said staff.
The manager, Sofia, 27, clarified that the staff in question was an ex-staff and had been fired before the video went viral.
However, Sofia admitted that she still felt uneasy over the viral issue as it spread so fast. She promised that the restaurant will be more alert when it comes to hiring staff moving forward to protect Muslims’ sensitivities.
Currently, the restaurant is operating with four workers from China and a local. They are all Chinese Muslims.
Regarding the establishment’s halal status, Sofia said it is the management’s priority and they have kept in touch with an agent to help obtain the certification from JAKIM.
The process to get halal-certified takes time because many documents are needed and I’m still young in managing a business, but I’ll try my best (to get the certification).
Sofia, restaurant manager
Sofia added that the restaurant had only been operating for two months and was surprised by the popularity.
There are 52 branches in China and they are highly popular among customers there too. The Bukit Bintang branch is the first and newest in Malaysia.
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