Not one week has gone by since our last blog on Chipotle, yet, another lawsuit has been filed against the restraint chain alleging discrimination. A former worker has filed a lawsuit against a Los Angeles Chipotle for racial discrimination, retaliation, workplace harassment and wrongful termination.
According to the worker, she was discriminated against for being African American. When she complained about working conditions, her manager allegedly said “black girls always have an attitude.” Her managers were Latino, and allegedly gave other Latino workers preferential treatment. According to the worker, this treatment included providing Latino workers with the best daytime shifts while reserving nighttime shifts for the African American workers.
The worker took her complaints to the district manager, who agreed to take over responsibility for setting schedules. After complaining to the district manager, the worker was fired without notice. She also claims she filed complaints with human resources at Chipotle, but received no response.
When is it Workplace Racial Discrimination?
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) will investigate businesses who treat employees unfavorably for being a certain race. It will also investigate claims of employees who receive negative treatment for being married to people of a specific race.
Negative treatment can include decisions that affect hiring or firing, pay, job assignments, promotions, benefits and other conditions of employment. If the allegations against Chipotle are true, and it was discovered African American workers were placed on nightshifts due to their race, it could be considered discrimination.
Workplace racial discrimination can also include harassment, such as slurs or derogatory remarks. For example, if the allegations against Chipotle are found to be true, it would have been a derogatory remark to say “black girls always have an attitude”.
Workers who experience racial discrimination can file complaints with the EEOC, who will then decide whether to conduct an investigation. It is also wise to consider retaining an employment attorney to explore additional options.
The Los Angeles employment law attorneys at Kesluk, Silverstein, Jacob & Morrison, P.C. can help workers who have been targeted with discrimination.