Shake Shack Is In Hot Water After A Gender Harassment Lawsuit
Popular burger joint Shake Shack has found itself at the center of a gender harassment lawsuit after management was accused of condoning some inappropriate behavior towards a former employee. The incident happened when a transgender employee who was working at an Oakland, California branch of the restaurant was being continuously misgendered by his fellow employees, per The Sacramento Bee.
Instead of immediately taking action and nipping this harassment in the bud, the location's management informed the employee that he would be expected to "explain his gender" to his harassers every time he was misgendered (via Today). In response, the former Shake Shack employee decided to take matters into his own hands by reporting the incident to the California Civil Rights Department (CRD), per the CRD's website.
The California CRD is responsible for safeguarding citizens from discrimination in all areas, including from discrimination in the workplace. As a result, the former Shake Shack worker was awarded a significant settlement figure.
Former employee settles dispute with Shake Shack out of court
The two parties in the complaint against Shake Shack took part in a process known as voluntary mediation, a procedure provided free of charge by the CRD. As part of mediation, both the former employee and Shake Shack representatives were able to talk through what took place at the restaurant in the presence of a neutral third party, without having to resort to the courtroom.
As reported by Today, Shake Shack agreed to pay the employee a settlement amount of $20,000. While this particular situation was resolved, the restaurant was still in violation of California law by intentionally misgendering an employee, as per the CDR website.
While transgender individuals still face discrimination in the restaurant industry, many activists and organizations are working hard to change this reality. One such organization is the California Transgender Workplace Project, which under the leadership of transgender restauranteur Michaela Mendelsohn, has teamed up with the California Restaurant Association to place transgender individuals into positions within the service industry. While there is clearly still a long way to go in the fight against discrimination, organizations like this are making great strides to bring us one step closer to the goal.