Pizza Hut Orders Woman To Leave Restaurant For Unexpected Reason
An Ohio woman claims a Pizza Hut employee told her to leave the restaurant after she began breastfeeding her child.
Page Martin, 22, says she was having dinner with her husband and 3-month-old son when he began to cry, WTOL reports.
Martin started to nurse the hungry child when the Pizza Hut worker in Wauseon, Ohio, allegedly embarrassed her.
“I was approached by an employee there who asked me if I could cover myself up with a blanket and I said, ‘No it’s my right because he won’t eat with a blanket over his head,’” said Martin.
At that point, the employee requested she move to an area of the restaurant with fewer people for the sake of those parents “who don’t want to expose their children to that.”
The mother responded that it is her legal right to breastfeed in this manner and refused to move.
“That’s when she said, ‘Well I’ll have to ask you to leave,’” said Martin.
Now Martin is demanding Pizza Hut apologize for the incident.
“Stick up for yourself, stick up for your rights. I’m not just doing this for myself I’m doing this for all breastfeeding mothers,” said Martin.
“Breastfeeding is a constant emotional uphill battle. You are your child’s bottle [and] that’s a lot to ask because babies do nurse a lot. I think people need to be a little bit more compassionate about that and if you don’t like what you’re seeing you’re more than welcome to look away,” added Martin, reports WHSV.
Pizza Hut’s corporate office responded apologetically:
Pizza Hut fully supports state law regarding a mother’s right to breastfeed in our restaurants. While this customer was not asked to leave the restaurant, but rather offered another table with greater privacy, we deeply apologize that this situation in anyway upset her or if she felt mistreated. We will take this as an opportunity to further train our employees.
Although Ohio law states restaurants are not allowed to discriminate against women breastfeeding in public, there is no legal consequence if they do so.