Today show host Allison Langdon has been branded ‘tone deaf and ignorant’ after she told a fast food worker to consider getting a job in a different industry.
The presenter made the comment to Laurence Sadler, who works for a national fas food chain, on Friday morning after he detailed health and safety concerns he had for the industry.
The remark was met with an awkward laugh and silence, before Langdon quickly moved onto the next segment of the breakfast TV program.
However the blunder wasn’t missed by angry viewers who blasted Langdon for her comment on social media and said she should be ‘ashamed’ of herself.
Today host Allison Langdon told a fast food worker to consider getting a job in a different industry after he raised concerns about workers’ safety during COVID-19
‘Talk about out of touch with the real world. Apologise and don’t be so pompous,’ one person tweeted.
Another said: ‘Clearly you’ve never had to struggle through a sh***y hospitality job just to make ends meet. Clearly you’ve never had to apply for a job. If everyone “gets another job” good luck finding a coffee. Tone deaf and completely ignorant.’
‘Did you think that your comment was helpful? Productive,’ another asked.
‘Channel Nine and The Today Show should issue an apology to all hospitality workers in Australia who were just told that their suffering is their own fault.’
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Channel Nine for comment.
Mr Sadler, who is a Hospo Voice union representative, told Daily Mail Australia if every hospitality worker left their job the TV host wouldn’t have anywhere to buy a takeaway coffee.
He said: ‘There’s no jobs. That’s just a fact. And also the kind of logic doesn’t really weigh up because I’d just told her how bad hospitality was for workers and she’s saying if it’s so bad, then leave.
‘Obviously, the logic there is that everyone would leave because it’s bad for everyone then there would be no industry anymore and Allison would no longer be able to get takeaway coffees.
Social media users have said the breakfast television host should be ‘ashamed’ for her comment
‘I’ve been looking for jobs for ages, but you apply for 500 hospitality jobs and you get two responses, so it’s not a very fruitful or rewarding exercise.
‘And it’s the lowest paid.’
He said he had been bracing for a difficult interview but he was still thrown by the comment at the end.
‘I wasn’t thrilled, it took me back a bit. It was already quite a hostile interview… it was a bit of a run the mill union bashing piece and I wasn’t expecting much more but it was still a bit of a rubbish comment,’ he said.
Laurence Sadler, (pictured) who works for a national fast-food chain and is also a Hospo Voice union representative was asked why he didn’t just ‘get a job in a different industry’ after raising concerns about issues in the hospitality sector
‘I’ve been looking for jobs for ages, but you apply for 500 hospo jobs and you get two responses, so it’s not a very fruitful not mentally rewarding exercise… and it’s the lowest paid,’ Mr Sadler said (pictured top left)
Figures released on Thursday revealed 600,000 Australians have lost work since the pandemic began, but the figure is thought to be much higher at 1.3million.
Mr Sadler told the Today Show the hospitality sector is already plagued with issues without the added concern of staff contracting coronavirus.
‘Hospitality is a really raw deal for workers. It often exploits the most vulnerable member of our society that is young and migrant workers… It’s a really quite a dodgy industry for workers and we need to be vigilant against bosses who are willing to rort the rules to get a profit,’ he said.
‘Well maybe you should get a job in another industry then,’ Langdon said.
‘Maybe,’ Mr Sadler laughed uncomfortably.
‘Yep,’ Langdon said after an awkward on-air silence.
The United Workers Union which oversees ‘Hospo Voice’ believes a decision to ease lockdown restrictions will put workers’ safety at risk because of a lack of regulated health and hygiene measures.
Langdon made the comment during Friday’s airing of the breakfast television show
The United Workers Union which oversees ‘Hospo Voice’ believes a decision to ease lockdown restrictions will put workers’ safety at risk because of a lack of regulated health and hygiene measures (stock image)