I’m not surprised, though I wish I could be.
Another case against another food franchisor for sexual assault of a franchisee employee, where, of course the franchisor says it’s not the employer. Of course it’s looking to dismiss claims against it.
I’m not surprised because unfortunately, cases like this in the restaurant industry are not uncommon. The facts however, are particularly disturbing – -and the takeaways are too important for the rest of us to ignore. So let’s see what we can learn here…
An employee of Subway franchisee GRB Investments just sued the operator and the brand for $50m. The case is C.S. v Subway Worldwide et al. Here, in a nutshell, are the allegations:
The plaintiff, a high school student and minor in 2022 worked at a ND Subway. Her supervisor was already a convicted sex offender then. He allegedly convinced her to “try” coke and methamphetamine and she became addicted, after which he repeatedly drugged and raped her, at and outside of work. He also threatened to fire her and kill her relatives if she didn’t submit.
She complained to the general manager, but apparently the abuse only stopped when she told school authorities, when they questioned her attendance issues. The supervisor has been sentenced to 25 years in prison after taking a guilty plea.
The ex-employee’s attorneys argue that Subway’s ability to inspect restaurants and other forms of control make it a joint employer. This is not Subway’s first rodeo. The employee’s complaint names 9 publicly reported instances of sexual assault of teenage workers between 2013 and 2023 (so an average of almost 1 each year).
McDonald’s and Taco Bell have had similar issues with franchisees. One pattern appears to be failure to conduct background checks resulting in hiring convicted sex offenders.
Yes, employers hiring anyone working with minors should run criminal background checks and check the sex offender registry. That should go without saying. Yes, there should be training. Yes, you should take complaints of this nature seriously, promptly investigate and appropriately respond.
Now I will zoom out some more. You can’t just assume that whoever you work with is doing the right thing. If you do and they don’t, it CAN come back to bite you, as it has with all of these franchisees in some way. You can’t just assume that it’s not your problem, because it can be. The McDonald’s settlement is a good example.
Admittedly the McDonald’s settlement included dismissal of claims against the franchisor–but that was after long, drawn out and costly pre-trial stuff (think discovery, motions, bickering back and forth) hefty legal fees–and I have to believe, damage to its brand. Does anyone think that this Subway franchisor will exit this scenario completely unscathed — even if it does ultimately manage to get the claim against it dismissed? Something tells me that at the very least it will, going forward exercise more diligence with its franchisees — and look for its franchisees to do so with respect to its employees. If we’re being honest with ourselves (and do, let’s) it: a) doesn’t cost that much in time and money to do so; b) is the right thing to do; and c) is good common and business sense to do so.
Maybe your company wasn’t the “main” wrongdoer. That’s not the point. If you’re deflecting instead of knowing who’s working for your franchisee, subsidiary, contractor, vendor, etc., if you’re not taking an interest in your workers’ well-being (especially if they are minors or other vulnerable populations) can you really be surprised when you’re sued, audited, called out on social media, having retention issues and the like? Should you be in business in the first place if you’re not willing to take even minimal preventive steps or minimal interest in your employees?
Your company isn’t helpless. The choice is yours.
Are you an employer interested in proactively addressing workplace challenges and company culture? Visit my website, http://www.janetteleveylaw.com to contact me for a complimentary 20-minute consultation.
Watch my television interview on Good Morning HR with Mike Coffey on Mental Health and the ADA.
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