DEAR ABBY: I'm a waitress at a 24-hour restaurant in a small town. Most of my customers are regulars, and for the most part we talk about current events and what is going on in each other's lives. Last night, two of my regulars came in and one tried to grab my hand after the other put his hand up the sleeve of my shirt. Both repeatedly asked me incredibly personal questions about my love life and finances, and I'll admit, I froze and then I walked away.
In any other kind of work environment what happened would be considered sexual harassment, but I'm not sure what to do about it, since they're customers and I'm the employee. At what point is the customer really wrong? -- MAY I TAKE YOUR ORDER?
DEAR MAY: The point at which the customer is really wrong is when he (or she) repeatedly asks personal questions about a server's love life and puts his (or her) hands on the server. The way to handle it is to report what happened to your supervisor or employer, and make certain that in the future you are not the person taking their order. What happened was inappropriate anywhere -- and that includes in your restaurant.