Pigeon Whole Bakers, Hobart: Owner forced to put up sign to protect staff

A bakery has been forced to put up a sign asking customers to refrain from taking pictures and video of staff. 

Pigeon Whole Bakers in the Hobart CBD recently put the laminated sign on its front counter saying it has become a concern as staff were increasingly being filmed by visitors each day as they went about their job.

The sign reads: ‘We love you sharing your enthusiasm for Pigeon Whole Bakers on socials but, to protect the privacy of our staff, please don’t include their faces when taking photos or videos’. 

Tori Burnie co-manages the business, which was founded by baker Jay Patey in 2011.

She said the issue was about workers not being asked beforehand whether they were fine to be filmed while working inside the private business.

‘You’re working away, bagging pastries, passing someone their coffee and you look up and they’re filming the interaction,’ Ms Burnie told the ABC. 

‘That’s how you know, you look up and the camera is in your face.’

Pigeon Whole Bakers has been featured as one of Tassie’s hottest breakfast spots in multiple street press publications and has received glowing reviews on Discover Tasmania, Tripadvisor and Foodtourist among others. 

This has helped the bakery grow hugely popular with locals and visitors but, while the surge in business is welcome, it has brought other challenges.

Mr Patey said in recent years a steady stream of tourists, in particular, would film the shop as content for their social media.

He said while some focused on the delicious food, many would also be filming staff as they served customers, put products out on shelves and even filmed the whole of the shop including other customers. 

Mr Patey said while he appreciated word-of-mouth online, he had a responsibility to protect the privacy of staff while at work.

‘We don’t know what the intent is, it could be for Instagram, it could be live streaming … it could be used for someone’s weird little collection of videos and photos,’ Mr Patey said.

The business said once customers are made aware of the sign they are usually happy to put away their phones.

The bakery’s situation, however, highlights the larger issue of consent about being filmed for social media. 

In 2022 an Australian woman claimed she felt ‘dehumanised’ after she became the the subject of an online viral video.

A 22-year-old TikTokker wandered up to her at a Melbourne food court as she sat alone and given her a bouquet of flowers in what he said was a ‘random act of kindness’.

Really he had just asked her to hold them for him, but the clip racked up more than 60milion views with a few weeks.

The woman, who had been minding her own business before being thrust into the global spotlight, said she was offended and found the premise of the video sexist and ageist.

‘It’s the patronising assumption that women, especially older women, will be thrilled by some random stranger giving them flowers,’ she said.

Similarly, that same year, Aussie mother Evie Farrell, wrote for Mamamia she had been filmed while working out at her gym and posted as part of their content – despite specifically telling staff she didn’t want to be.

‘My friends were annoyed too. They kept seeing themselves on social too, but they felt stuck – they didn’t like it, but they didn’t want to make a fuss,’ she wrote. 

While it is legal to film people in public in Australia, inside a business it is only legal if the owner permits it and they are well within their rights to ask you to leave if you don’t comply. 

Dr Kevin Swarts, marketing lecturer at the University of Tasmania, said it may come down to bosses simply being aware staff or customers could feel uncomfortable and taking action.

He said managers who keep their staff happy not only retain staff but are more successful than their competitors in the long run.