Many Florida readers may frequent Hooters when they are in the mood for some wings, but, apparently in some instances, the treatment of the employees is not as good as the food. Two male employees of the restaurant who worked outside the state have filed a sexual harassment lawsuit in a superior court against the company and their former manager. The men claim that they were the victims of physical and emotional abuse and are looking to the court to right the injustices against them.
Both of the plaintiffs were managers for several Hooters locations. Their superior continually harassed them and, in once instance, purportedly threw one of the men down in the parking lot and pretended to have sex with him. The men also claim that their boss would stand behind them and try to touch their behinds.
The abuse toward the men allegedly was also verbal and mental. One of the plaintiffs claimed that the superior would constantly try to pressure him into going swimming naked with some of the female workers even though he voiced multiple times that he was not interested. When one of the men won a trophy, their boss reportedly told his assistant to have it engraved with an offensive nickname instead of his real name.
The men approached their superior about his behavior and, after Hooters conducted an investigation into the harassment, he was fired. However, later one of the men was fired, which they believe was an act of retaliation. The plaintiffs claim that this case is not just about money, but also about preventing this type of wrongful conduct from happening to others going forward. Florida workers who feel they have been the victims of sexual harassment are entitled to file lawsuits against their employers if their complaints are not resolved when placed through the appropriate channels. If they are successful in their cases, they may be awarded monetary damages to help ease their emotional duress as well as any other compensation determined by the court.
Source: Fox News, "Male Hooters employees sue restaurant alleging sexual harassment", March 3, 2016