Fife nightclub faces complaint over ‘sexist’ shot girl advert

A Fife nightclub could be investigated over a job advert which one local group has branded “sexist, discriminatory and insulting.”
Advert for Kittys Nightclub job - Shot Girls.Advert for Kittys Nightclub job - Shot Girls.
Advert for Kittys Nightclub job - Shot Girls.

Kitty’s in Kirkcaldy has been reported to the Equality and Human Rights Commission over an advert for a ‘shot girl’ to sell drinks within the club.

Women Together In Fife (WTF), which protested against owner Mario Caira’s plans to open a lapdancing bar next to the club last year, said it specified applicants must be female, and took issue with the wording as well.

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Marie Penman, WTF co-founder, said she was surprised by its content.

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She said: “My first impression is that it was sexist, discriminatory and insulting to women.

“I know the owner of Kittys also owns Sin, Kirkcaldy’s only strip bar, and that he makes a big deal about employing both male and female dancers in his lap-dancing club.

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‘As being gender-balanced is obviously important to him, I’m not sure why he only wants shot girls and not shot boys?”

Marie added: “The wording isn’t quite right, of course, as the advert makes clear that applicants have to be over 18 years of age. That makes them women, not girls.’

WTF said it has referred the advert to the commission.

It was spotted by group member, Elaine Miller, on the club’s Facebook page.

“My first thought was that the advert was demeaning and quite smutty, but when I realised it might be breaking sex discrimination laws, I brought it up at our most recent meeting,” she said.

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The advert, which includes a photo of a young woman in a low-cut top, is for a job that involves selling ‘shots’ of alcohol inside the nightclub.

The group said it specifies that applicants must be female which it checked with the commission to confirm if it has breached laws regarding discrimination.

Asked about the complaint, Mario Caira, owner of Kittys nightclub, said he was unaware of the advert or its wording and declined to comment further.