London, Jan 16: Leading high street retailer Marks & Spencer has launched an investigation after a customer claimed that a Muslim shop assistant refused to handle a children's Bible she was buying.
Sally Friday said she felt "humiliated" after going to the till to pay for 'First Bible Stories' for her young grandson.
She said the woman behind the till refused to touch the book once she realized what it was, and made a reference to a fellow worker about something being "unclean".
69-year-old Friday said, "the young lady was absolutely fine with the other stuff I was buying, but when it came to the children's Bible she refused to touch it and asked me to put it in the shopping bag myself."
"She turned to another worker and said something about being unclean and at first I thought she was referring to a skirt I was buying and that there was a mark on it. Then she asked me to put the Bible in my shopping bag myself. It took me a while to realize what was happening and I felt humiliated that someone could censor what I was buying.
Friday bought the children's Bible in the reading branch of M&S late last month. She left the store immediately after the incident and later wrote to the management to report what had happened.
She said that M&S had apologized and she was happy that the company was investigating the incident.
Bureau Report
