Whole Foods will allow employees to wear poppies on shift, after reversing a ban on the symbolic flowers that was widely criticized on Friday.
That criticism included a unanimous motion in the House of Commons condemning Whole Foods for the move, while also calling on the company to appear before a Veteran Affairs committee.
At 11:50 a.m. on Friday, federal Veteran Affairs Minister Lawrence MacAulay tweeted that he had personally spoken to the Chief Operating Officer of Whole Foods.
“Employees will now be able to wear their poppies at work,” MacAulay stated.
“The poppy represents those who’ve served, fought, and died for Canada, and it’s deeply personal to everyone here. Glad to hear they’re changing course.”
The incident is not the first time the Amazon-owned grocery chain has found itself at the centre of controversy for enforcing a strict dress code.
This summer, employees were prohibited from donning non-medical face masks and other pieces of clothing that supported the Black Lives Matter movement.
Federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh took to Twitter on Friday to slam the company for both the poppy ban and for the Black Lives Matter ban.
It was wrong when they banned staff expressing support for Black Lives Matter and it’s wrong to ban the Poppy.
Canadians shouldn't lose the right to honour the sacrifices of veterans when they go to work.https://t.co/3hEfXgASwS
— Jagmeet Singh (@theJagmeetSingh) November 6, 2020
The Black Lives Matter ban attracted significantly less attention from Canadian politicians and leaders, and is currently being fought in Massachusetts District Court.
