Chili’s Pressured into Honoring Sexual Harrassment Policy

If you have the post-holiday blues, check this out: Women’s Media Center Media Manager Rebekah Spicuglia wrote a Huffington Post piece about Chili’s in Georgia firing her sister over a sexual harassment case. An excerpt:

When my sister, Rachel Spicuglia, a five-year employee of Chili’s Restaurant (owned by Brinker International), reported to her manager the escalating sexual harassment she was receiving from the cooks, which had culminated in an assault that morning in the walk-in refrigerator, the manager asked Rachel if the offending employee had gotten a “full cup” when he had grabbed her breasts. Shocked that the manager would joke in such way, Rachel protested that it wasn’t funny, but he insisted that it was actually information that he needed to know.
Rachel ended up taking a leave of absence, filing EEOC Charge of Discrimination on August 12, but she continued to work with Chili’s to arrange transfer to another store. The transfer was approved, but Rachel’s calls to the store manager were never returned, and on December 9, Rachel received a letter from her health insurance, saying that her medical benefits were denied, due to the fact that she was terminated from her job. Two weeks before Christmas, without any warning, and still waiting for the EEOC to review her complaint. Apparently, Chili’s was unable to fire Rachel during her leave of absence, but under Georgia law, unlike other states, you can suffer sexual harassment and be fired.

Shortly after Rebebkah’s piece hit the front page of HuffPo, Brinker International, who owns Chili’s, re-hired her sister, offering her the chance to resume her five year tenure with the company at a new location of her choice. Rebekah has recently posted a follow-up, which gives an even bigger picture of women in the workplace, particularly in service jobs:

There are too many people like Breslin who see sexual harassment as a general mass of “gray area” incidents. Regulating behavior in the workplace IS possible and happens every single day, as employers set a code of conduct for their employees to maintain. In addition, the impact of state legislation and regulation supporting Title VII cannot be underestimated, and Georgia residents would be better served by implementing their own laws, taking sexual harassment and employment law seriously.

Sometimes, justice is actually won through the twin tools of a empathic heart and a democratic media. Way to go Rebekah and Rachel! I’m excited to think about more ways in which HuffPo, and blogs in general, can put pressure on employers to treat their workers–women and men–with respect and dignity.

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