‘Remove the mask’ tipped workers seeing rise in sexual harassment

It's bad enough tipped workers are losing so much money thanks to COVID-19 restrictions, now they're being sexually harassed just to get a better gratuity.

Those are the findings of a new survey taken by One Fair Wage, which says:

"Many workers report a dramatic increase in sexual harassment during the pandemic, which is compounded by having to ask customers to comply with COVID-19 safety protocols. Comments by male customers indicate that they feel entitled to demand that workers remove their protective gear, exposing them to the risk of illness or death, in order to obtain the tips they need to make up their base wage."

The survey goes on to say that "nearly 250 workers shared sexualized comments from customers, a substantial portion of which were requests from male customers that female service workers remove their mask so that they could judge their looks, and, implicitly, determine their tips on that basis."

If there was ever a reason to throw a drink in someone's face, that could be it, especially when they're not wearing their mask.

The survey of 1,675 tipped workers was taken in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and Washington, D.C., revealed that along with sexual harassment, workers also see their tips suffer when they have to enforce safety protocols to their customers. They are also concerned with their health and safety.

The report also said that 69% of workers reporters that their employers are not consisting following safety protocols.

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Steve Trevelise. Any opinions expressed are Steve's own. Steve Trevelise is on New Jersey 101.5 Monday-Thursday from 7pm-11pm. Follow him on Twitter @realstevetrev.