No-Beard Rule Sparks Protest By Quad Dining-Hall Workers

Three workers in Radcliffe Quad kitchens have begun grievance proceedings against the Harvard Food Services Department, protesting a department rule which prohibits their wearing beards.

Robert Wood, manager of the Quad dining rooms, notified Robert L. Capobianco, Charles Norwood and Robert Shepard on Thursday that they had to shave before returning to work, Norwood said yesterday. Norwood contacted the Legal Aid Society, which referred him to attorney William Hall, who advised him to initiate the grievance action.

"The rule isn't a new one, but nobody had questioned it in the past. They just shaved their beards," Norwood said.

All three men said they decided to grow beards this year as a result of comments by Charles J. Krause Jr., sanitary inspector for the University Health Services (UHS), at a seminar for kitchen workers last spring. Krause told workers that facial hair was sanitary, and thus acceptable in kitchens if "beard restraints," or surgical masks were worn.

Krause said yesterday that though he made these remarks, he also made it clear at the seminar that University policy expressly prohibits workers' wearing of beards.

Frank J. Weissbecker, director of the Food Services Department, yesterday confirmed that the rule still exists. "It's simple, no beards," he said.

Krause said yesterday that while no Massachusetts statute contains this prohibition, the department, as an employer of food handlers, is legally justified in its ruling. He cited similar rulings by employers in other states which have been upheld in court.

Fuzzy Friends

The three men who filed the grievance said they do not see any justification in the policy and want to keep their beards.

Capobianco said of his beard yesterday, "It keeps my face warm for skiing in the winter. If it's sanitary with a mask, I'm willing to wear one. I don't see why I shouldn't be able to keep it."

Norwood thinks the policy should be changed in light of the lack of a Massachusetts statute. "I want to keep my beard--as long as I keep it covered, it shouldn't be any problem," he said.

Norwood said he expects the grievance process to extend five to six weeks. If the ruling is against the beards, he said yesterday that he would proceed outside University channels to fight it.