I work at a smaller business, they have only a couple stores. There are a few sketchy things they've done before but they're not really relevant to this story.
My co worker, let's call her E, was a friend that recently started working at the same job. This job has been mostly lax about all dress code since I've worked there. When I first started working, there weren't even uniforms.
However, as soon as she was hired, the general manager told E she would need to remove her nail polish for food handling. I do the same work that she does. We wear gloves for everything, so I honestly don't know why this would matter. I've worn nail polish for most of my shifts there, not even subtle colors, and nothing was said to me. Other women at work also wear nail polish, and no one has said anything to them.
E is a tall woman, and the general manager also said that she was violating the dress code because her pants didn't reach all the way to her feet. As a tall woman who isn't as tall as E, I know it's super hard to find pants that actually fit.
The latest incident was last week when the general manager told her she couldn't wear a pronoun pin on her name tag. This is ridiculous since I know other co workers have been wearing Ukraine flag pins, and I have stickers on my name tag, the management doesn't care about those at all.
The thing about this is: none of these things are actually in violation of the dress code, which is printed out and posted. This doesn't stop the managers from saying E is violating the dress code. I have /actually/ been violating the dress code basically daily, and no one has said a word to me.
E, myself, and 2 other co workers have been friends since before we started working at this job. We have all been supporting E and encouraging her to file a discrimination complaint. I hope they actually end up facing some sort of consequence for treating her this way.
Any advice for taking action is welcomed.