Darker-skinned ‘Hooters Girls’ weren’t rehired after COVID layoff in NC, lawsuit says
After Hooters laid off dozens of employees from a North Carolina restaurant during the early COVID-19 pandemic, mostly white workers and those of a lighter complexion were rehired, a new federal lawsuit says.
Prior to the coronavirus-motivated layoffs in March 2020, 51% of the 43 “Hooters Girls” who worked at the restaurant were Black or darker-skinned, according to a complaint, which says they regularly faced racial discrimination and hostility at the Greensboro restaurant.
Such hostility included comments from managers about how “light skin-toned servers were more presentable” as dark-skinned employees’ hair and appearances were the subject of their jokes, the complaint says.
Out of the 43 Hooters Girls, 13 were called back to work in May 2020 and 12 were white or lighter-skinned, according to the complaint filed Aug. 24 by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on behalf of former employees.
This reflects “a marked shift in the racial composition of the restaurant’s Hooters Girls workforce,” the EEOC said.
The agency is suing Hooters of America, LLC, accusing it of race and color discrimination in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
McClatchy News contacted Hooters for comment on Aug. 24 and didn’t receive an immediate response.
Before Hooters failed “to recall and/or rehire” some employees “because of their race,” according to the EEOC, white employees were given preferential treatment from managers.
The complaint accuses managers of being friendlier to white and lighter-skinned Hooters Girls and assigning them preferred shifts.
With the lawsuit, the EEOC seeks to recover back pay and compensatory and punitive damages for former Hooters Girls and aims to prevent future discrimination at the Greensboro location.
“When recalling employees from a layoff, it is critical that employers examine their selection criteria to ensure they are objectively verifiable and free from racial bias,” Melinda C. Dugas, a regional attorney for the EEOC’s Charlotte district, said in a statement.
“Federal law protects employees from race-based decision making in the terms of employment, including in layoff, recall and hiring decisions.”
This story was originally published August 25, 2023 at 10:12 AM with the headline "Darker-skinned ‘Hooters Girls’ weren’t rehired after COVID layoff in NC, lawsuit says."
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