‘Don’t want those people.’ Subway fires manager accused of refusing to hire black teen

What started with a job application ended with one Subway manager being fired.

High school senior Katelyn Simmons applied for a summer job at Subway in Spring, Texas, where her friend worked, KTRK reported. After Simmons dropped off her application, the friend sent a text to let the manager know, the report said.

The manager responded asking, “How she look?” according to SpringHappenings.com.

The employee responded that Simmons was, “Black girl long dark hair. Shortish,” Spring Happenings reported.

Simmons said she was “appalled and disturbed” by what happened next, KRIV reported.

“Oh no thanks, I don’t want those people in our store lol.” the manager responded, according to the TV station.

The employee sent Simmons a photo of the exchange. Simmons showed the photo to her mother who contacted Subway, KTRK reported.

“It cut me deep,” Simmons said, according to KTRK. “I was hurt.”

In a statement, Subway said the manager was “immediately fired for her actions” and that the owner had reached out to Simmons to “encourage her to reapply,” Spring Happenings reported. The company added that “the former-manager’s actions do not reflect the openness and values shown by Subway Franchise Owners and their staffs.”

While Simmons says she “has no plans to reapply,” she already has plenty of prospects, according to KTRK. Several companies have reached out to her after the incident and she has plans to start a summer job with Quench IV Studio soon, the station reported.

This story was originally published June 4, 2019 at 9:23 AM with the headline "‘Don’t want those people.’ Subway fires manager accused of refusing to hire black teen."