Harassment complaints filed against McDonald’s

A Tucson mother and daughter are joining a national fight against McDonald’s by filing a complaint of sexual harassment against the fast-food giant.

More than 20 sexual harassment complaints and lawsuits have been filed against McDonald’s with the support from the American Civil Liberties Union and Time’s Up Legal Defense Fund. The filings are a part of the “Fight for $15” effort to address workplace harassment.

The ACLU of Arizona filed discrimination charges with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on behalf of the mother and daughter Tuesday.

The two claim they were sexually harassed while working at a McDonald’s location in Tucson. The mother and daughter joined others on Tuesday by marching to the company’s headquarters in Chicago and sharing their stories at a rally.

The daughter began working at the McDonald’s location in 2016, when she was 16, according to the complaint.

She started as a cashier earning $8.50 an hour. She was promoted in April 2017 to crew member, earning $10.50 an hour, and then promoted to crew trainer. In November 2017, she was demoted and later fired in 2019.

She said her shift manager gave her

“unwanted attention,” by touching her ponytail or neck as he walked by, or by brushing up against her.

Her complaint cites “a work environment pervaded with sexually explicit language and sexually harassing behavior,” which was reported to and condoned by top managers.

The girl said she would receive comments and text messages about her appearance.

There were inquires about her personal life, if she had a boyfriend, and comments with sexual innuendos between male co-workers regarding her.

She said that a co-worker tried to kiss her when giving her a ride home after her family’s car was repossessed.

“Around the same time, I was subject to verbal harassment including being called a ‘whore,’ a ‘ho,’ a ‘homewrecker,’ and other names,” she said in a statement submitted by the ACLU.

She said that employees witnessed what was going on, including managers. According to the complaint, she told her father what had happened after she came home crying one day. Her parents reported it to the managers.

The teenager met with managers and was told to “stop bringing up the past and to let it go,” according to her statement.

“Nothing came of the meeting and I felt ashamed,” the statement said.

A co-worker was transferred out of the store after her father reported his behavior to the franchise manager, but the person was transferred back into the location.

“I dreaded going to work but my family needed the money,” the teenager stated.

According to the teen’s statement, she was harassed and retaliated against for reporting. She was demoted and disciplined for infractions and her hours were reduced. She was also suspended for two weeks and given undesirable work assignments.

After Tuesday’s march and rally, “I feel brave and hopeful for the future,” the teen told The Arizona Republic.

“Companies should see us as humans first, regardless of what position. People should be respected regardless of anything.” Former McDonald’s employee

What are the mother’s claims?

The mother began working at a McDonald’s location in Tucson in August 2017 as the primary breadwinner of her family of six. She worked two jobs.

The mother started working as a crew member earning $8.25 an hour and worked her way up to crew trainer earning $11 an hour by February 2018. However, she was demoted in March 2019 and was forced to resign a month later, according to records.

“At all relevant times, McDonald’s maintained a work environment pervaded with sexually explicit language and sexually harassing behavior, that was reported to and condoned by managers,” the mother stated in the charges.

In the charges, she detailed hearing younger male crew members talk coarsely about how her daughter looked when she stopped by the location before her prom.

The mother claims she was retaliated against for reporting sexual harassment in the workplace.

“I repeatedly spoke up and reported it. My husband also reported it. After I notified McDonald’s about the harassment, I was retaliated against. I was passed over for a promotion to Floor Manager,” she stated in records.

She said in her statement that she was entitled to receive a merit raise but did not receive one for months and was disciplined for minor infractions and had her hours reduced. She said she was assigned to do undesirable work assignments like working the hot grill shift after shift.

After inquiring about why she did not receive a raise and why she was pulled out of a management training class, a general manager asked her to sign a contract asking her to represent the company in a “positive manner” and to not “gossip.”

The mother told The Republic that after participating in the rally she found a sense of purpose.

“Companies should see us as humans first, regardless of what position,” she said. “People should be respected regardless of anything.”

The discrimination charges will be evaluated by an EEOC investigator.