For Jodi VP Speedy-Q reply

[JLH]

Joan,

Thank you for your email. I appreciate your frustration as I have had the same thing happen to me at other stations while traveling. The store in question, in Reese, MI, is one of the few we have left without public restrooms. All of our newer stores and stores we have remodeled have restrooms. In most cases they have both Men’s and Women’s rooms as well. We recently spent $45,000 remodeling all of our public restrooms, as we realize how important they are to the consumer. We normally do not let the public use the employee restrooms in the store without public facilities due to security concerns.

Having said that, all of our employees at those stores are instructed to bypass this policy if the customer has a special need such as small children, or if the customer expresses that it is an emergency. Although we cannot allow the general public full access to unsecured areas of our stores we try to accommodate when possible.

If you could provide me with more information about this incident I would like to talk to the employees on duty and find out what happened in this case. Did this happen to you personally, or was it someone else? If so, if you could provide me with the customers contact information and the date and time they were in?

Thank You,

Dan Wynn
Vice president
By-Lo Oil Co
dwynn@bylooil.com

Office: (810) 982-9700

[jodibelle352]

Joan:
Just read the reply you received and also shared it with my husband David. I will contact him myself and see what happens as the date of this incident was June 2nd or 3rd and it was after 12p.m. because we had taken our son to work that particular day. I will send you a private e-mail with our address, phone # and other personal information so Mr. Wynn may contact us if he chooses.
I'm a little sceptical about his response because it sounds like a bunch of back paddling in a boat to me. I'm not so certain he trully understands that I did not make a scene in his store. I asked nicely the 1st time and tried to explain that it was neccessary that I beable to use a restroom when I asked the 2nd time and the clerk was Brief, Direct and To The Point "We make NO EXCEPTIONS"
What he says is falling on deaf ears with me as I know if Joan had been working that afternoon she would have allowed me access because we're friends but the other clerks didn't give a "Fat Rat's Ass" and made No Exceptions for me.
Love Ya Sweety:
Jodi

[tex]

Bingo! It sounds like they take issues such as this quite seriously.

I was planning to send them an e-mail tomorrow, if you hadn't heard from them by then, but I don't like to do things just to antagonize company officials, until after they have had the opportunity to state their case, and demonstrate their concern, (or lack of it).

Treating them with respect, (and the benefit of any doubt), will usually result in a much better outcome than name calling and finger pointing. It definitely sounds as if the executives of this company take their responsibilities seriously, and I'm expecting this to have a much better outcome than was first anticipated. We shall see where this goes, but I'm very favorably impressed, at this point.

Tex

[tex]

Jodi,

Personal relationships with other employees notwithstanding, a VP can't be expected to anticipate the reactions of any and all of a company's employees, in any unusual situation. Please give this guy the benefit of the doubt, until/unless he proves himself unworthy.

Put yourself in his shoes - he didn't deny you access to that bathroom, he's just trying to find out exactly what happened, so that he can take whatever action is justified, once he knows the facts. Personally, I have a gut feeling that he will treat you right, if you give him the opportunity.

Love,
Tex

[jodibelle352]

HELLO TEX,THIS IS JODIS HUSBAND DAVID....

AROUND 5-7 YEARS AGO THEY REMODELED THE WHOLE SPEEDY Q
STORE AND STILL DIDN'T PUT IN PUBLIC RESTROOMS,TO ME IT SOUNDS LIKE IT'S A ROPE AND WATER STORY,AND SINCE THEN THEY HAVE PUT NEW AWNINGS OVER ALL THE GAS PUMPS THIS HAPPEN ABOUT 3 YEARS AGO...I DON'T LIKE SOUNDING SCEPTICAL,WITH ALL THESE NEW ADDITIONS BUT NOT A PUBLIC RESTROOM,SOMETHING ISN'T RIGHT HERE,,,SORRY THATS MY OPPINION..

DAVID

[JLH]

Jodi and David, why don't you just use the VP's email address if his phone number isn't local for you?

Interesting comments, David.

[tex]

David,

Well, that sheds a slightly different light on the issue, alright. Personally, I don't see why it should even be legal for a C-store to operate without a public restroom, but that's another issue.

Don't misunderstand me, what those employees did, is unforgivable. If they worked for me, they would now be looking for another job. Still, from a pragmatic viewpoint, there's no reason to hang everyone in the company, just because of a stupid mistake by a couple of bottom tier employees.

All I'm saying is, give him a chance to set things right. He may surprise you. If, after a reasonable length of time, you don't get satisfaction, then you will have plenty of time to "cast stones". There's nothing to be gained by hanging the defendant before the verdict is read.

Tex

[JLH]

I got an immediate reply. (Sent from a Blackberry.) He said he checked with his district manager and that the Porta John has been there ever since they installed it and that it was on the west side of the building.

I emailed the note to Jodi and David.