Below Deck’s Hayley explains why “harsh” Captain Sandy actually helped crew

Below Deck star Hayley De Sola Pinto has commented on whether Captain Sandy Yawn was too harsh with chief stew Fraser Olender. Sandy, Captain Lee’s replacement, went as far as calling Fraser’s work ethic “cancer.”

Captain Sandy joined the cast of Below Deck after Captain Lee was forced to bow out due to his ongoing back problem. After Captain Sandy hopped on board, she went on to fire two members of Captain Lee’s crew during his absence — Camille Lamb and Alissa Humber — without his knowledge.

Additionally, Captain Sandy consistently clashed with Fraser over his work ethic and how he handled her feedback.

At one point she commented, “When I see where we can change things, I expect you to go downstairs and shoulder what I just told you,” Sandy said. “That needs to be improved and not permeate the boat with cancer… You have now infected my entire program. The fish stinks at the head and right now you are that head.”

Below Deck’s Captain Sandy constantly targeted Fraser

Sandy’s brutal feedback brought Fraser to tears. “If someone refers to cancer to me ever again with what I went through with my father, it makes me disgusted,” Fraser said. “The fact that she thinks so negatively of me makes me feel utterly horrendous.”

Speaking with TV Insider, De Sola Pinto revealed whether Captain Sandy’s cruelty towards Fraser was justifiable.

“I do feel like she was harsh with him, but I feel like she had to be cruel to be kind in the long run because it gave Fraser harder skin,” Hayley said. “I would never take sides, but I do think the pressure helped him, and that situation hardened him up.”

After Sandy ripped Fraser apart, many viewers rushed to the chief stew’s defense on social media and called her a “toxic boss.” One said, “If it was constructive, she would have helped guide you better instead of just criticizing.”

Another tweet read, “That was not constructive Fraser, it was bullying and it was made to break you! It’s your first time and you’re doing amazing and she is faulting you at every hurdle! We see how well you’re doing and the guests clearly love you.”

Sandy publicly apologized for calling Fraser “cancer” and revealed she had suffered from the disease, remarking she should have “chosen different words.”