Twin Peaks

Twin Peaks Sued Over ‘Disgusting, Systemic’ Harassment

"At a suburban Chicago Twin Peaks location, I read that two former servers have filed an EEOC complaint alleging they were sexually harassed and subjected to practices they say turned the mountain lodge–themed, Hooters-rival chain that touts “Scenic Views” and a “wholesome, yet sexy, Girl Next Door Image” into something “tantamount to work at a strip club.” Their attorney called it “disgusting, systemic abuse of young women across the country,” saying many employees are still in high school or trying to pay college tuition and that women “signed up to work at a ‘family-friendly’ restaurant, not a strip joint.” The servers allege the chain baited hires into one uniform and then ordered them to wear crop-tops, bikinis, and lingerie, forced them to change in full view of kitchen staff, required them to send management photos of work outfits from dressing rooms to ensure they were “revealing enough for work,” fat-shamed them for eating on shift, and had managers line them up each morning to grade how “taut and toned” their bodies were, with higher grades getting more lucrative table assignments. Police reportedly intervened during a “Sweetheart Lingerie Week” when officers said they observed “almost every employee dressed in lingerie that exposed their buttocks,” and the women were cited for indecent exposure; they later claim a Twin Peaks attorney entered guilty pleas for everyone, leaving them with convictions. Twin Peaks calls the allegations “outrageous” and “baseless,” saying it “does not tolerate any type of harassment or discrimination and has strict policies and training practices in place to make sure every guest and employee is treated equally and with great respect.” Holder says she is drafting a class-action suit and that her phone “is ringing off the hook right now.”" - Clint Rainey