Mexican chain restaurant Cha Cha Cha recently found itself at the center of a gender discrimination lawsuit. The suit itself was filed by Mayra Ramirez, a former Human Resources employee with the establishment and alleges she was not only “paid less than her male counterparts,” but she also “regularly endured fat-shaming and racist insults, endured physically unhealthy workplace conditions, and was later fired after taking medical leave.”
Mexican chain restaurant Cha Cha Cha recently found itself at the center of a gender discrimination lawsuit. The suit itself was filed by Mayra Ramirez, a former Human Resources employee with the establishment and alleges she was not only “paid less than her male counterparts,” but she also “regularly endured fat-shaming and racist insults, endured physically unhealthy workplace conditions, and was later fired after taking medical leave.”
Specifically, the lawsuit takes aim at her former coworker, Julian Garcia, and her employers, Ricardo Lopez, and Francisco Javier Diaz Hurtado. According to Ramirez, the plaintiffs “regularly ignored sexual harassment complaints against their restaurant managers.” But what kind of gender discrimination did she face, exactly? Well, for starters, she claims in her suit that “management held ‘men only’ meetings, talked about sexual escapades and trips to the strip club in the office and demanded she not hire pregnant women or women who were in a situation where they may become pregnant.”
Additionally, her suit alleges she was “paid much less than male counterparts who held fewer responsibilities than her at the company.” For example, when she first started her job at the restaurant she was allegedly offered $14 per hour, “but was only paid $12 per hour for the first year in her new position.” Even after receiving a raise a year later, she was allegedly the “lowest paid person among the office staff.” To make matters worse, she was also tasked with training Garcia, even though she made less than him. In addition, Ramirez claims she was “was never paid for up to 26 hours per week of overtime she worked between December 2016 and July 2017.”
As a result, Ramirez states in her suit that she was subjected to an “emotionally hostile and financially discriminatory work environment” and even had to work in challenging physical surroundings at times. For example, during the “extremely hot summer of 2017, she was required to work in an unventilated room under the kitchen,” according to the lawsuit. When she voiced complaints about the heat, she was allegedly ignored.
As if the blatant gender discrimination wasn’t enough, Ramirez eventually developed carpal tunnel, a diagnosis she blames on the fact that she had to use an old, outdated computer keyboard at work. Prior to her diagnosis, she had requested a new keyboard but was denied. When she took medical leave to have her carpal tunnel treated, “management allegedly denied her request for worker’s comp.” When she returned to work, she claims she experienced “multiple retaliatory pay cuts because of medical leave” and was “later fired after going on leave to treat vertigo.”
Because of everything she endured, Ramirez is seeking $804,943.
Sources:
Former Employee Sues Chain Cha Cha Cha Over Gender Discrimination
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