McDonald’s Workers Share Stories of Sexual Harassment in CBS Report | Eater

"Multiple current and former employees told CBS Sunday Morning that sexual harassment was pervasive at the chain’s restaurants, recounting explicit incidents and a pattern of retaliation when reports were made. One employee, who started at 17 in 2016, said a male shift manager would routinely comment on workers’ bodies—saying things like “I would have sex with you, I wouldn’t have sex with her”—and would touch employees “pretty much every shift.” Another worker described harassment by a coworker in 2018 that continued and escalated after she reported it to supervisors, including being grabbed in the groin; a separate coworker allegedly asked how much it would cost to have sex with her one-year-old daughter, a comment that led to that employee’s firing while she remained on the job to support her child. These accounts are part of a larger set of discrimination charges and lawsuits (filed over several years) and, according to a 2020 union-commissioned poll, widespread reports of harassment and punishment for reporting it; news outlets say at least 50 workers filed complaints with the EEOC or in state courts in the past four years. The company has pledged to fully investigate allegations, announced a goal of gender parity in leadership by 2030, and the CEO issued a statement calling for a safe, respectful work environment; advocates note that high rates of harassment are common throughout the food-service industry, where many workers are young, low-income, and have limited recourse." - Jenny G. Zhang