Anyone who has worked in retail or the food service industry will know that a major part of the job is dealing with angry customers who aren't happy with the service or product you're selling. While many people often commend customer-facing staff for the level of patience it takes to deal with rude patrons, one McDonald's worker has been forced to defend her occupation after an angry man berated her for working at the fast food chain.
The American woman, named Aleeza, took to TikTok to hit back at the seething man after a tense exchange saw the customer attempt to pay for his food with a fake $50 bill.
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She filmed a clip of herself while stood outside a McDonald's drive-thru in order to urge others to respect people who work in fast food restaurants, as she argues that it's like any other job.
Sharing her frustrations over the patron's nasty words, Aleeza said: "Public service announcement: just because I work at McDonald's does not make me any less of a person".
"This man came through the drive-thru with a fake $50 bill mad at me. I did the money marker, I could see the yellow line sir. It's fake".
The McDonald's worker revealed that things got tense after she rejected the man's bank note, as she explained: "Dude started throwing pennies at me, calling me out my name, talking 'bout 'don't forget you work at McDonald's' - so what?"
"What's that supposed to mean? Yeah I work at McDonald's. You must have no food in your refrigerator if you want to come to McDonald's and eat".
The viral video, which has amassed more than 179,000 views on the app, has sparked anger from fellow TikTok users who criticised the man for talking down to the McDonald's employee.
As hundreds of people flocked to the comments section on the video to share their thoughts, one person said: "It's the attitude that fast food workers have that I can't deal with".
Another added: "I don’t understand why people hate on other people working there. It’s a job. Gotta pay bills somehow".
Others praised the woman for her hard work, with one TikTok user commenting: "You're intelligent, hard working, quick to solve problems, punctual, and don't let anyone take that away from you".
Echoing the other comments, another woman wrote: "Food service Jobs are important jobs. Your out there providing for yourself...ain't nothing wrong with that".
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