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Fast food manager accused of race discrimination

On Behalf of | May 5, 2020 | Racial Discrimination At Work

A manager at a Florida location of Whataburger is facing accusations of treating applicants unfairly during the hiring and employment screening process. Accusations against the manager include employee statements that say he instructed those overseeing the hiring of new employees not to hire anyone who was not white. The result was a lawsuit against the company that was eventually settled for $180,000.

The lawsuit against Whataburger was filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The claim states that the manager instructed the person in charge of hiring new personnel to hire only white people in order to reflect the demographics of the geographic area where the restaurant is located. This is not accurate as approximately 81% of people hired in the Tallahassee area were African-American.

The hiring manager also states that in addition to receiving these discriminatory instructions, she was also subjected to physical and verbal abuse, unfair work assignments, schedule changes and and threats. She eventually resigned. Whataburger denies any claims that it retaliated against the employee for reporting the behaviors of her superior. Race discrimination in any form is unacceptable, as is retaliation for reporting it.

When race discrimination occurs in a Florida workplace, it is appropriate for an employee to seek  compensation through a civil claim. This allows an individual who was treated unfairly at any point in the employment process to seek justice for what he or she experienced. Because of the sensitive nature of these claims, it is beneficial to work closely with an employment law attorney after experiencing or witnessing race discrimination.