UNIDAD LATINA EN ACCIÓN DECLARES VICTORY IN WORKERS' RIGHTS CAMPAIGN
Outback Steakhouse in North Haven settles sexual harassment charges, fires manager.
NEW HAVEN – Unidad Latina en Acción has declared victory in its campaign to end sexual harassment at the Outback Steakhouse in North Haven. Outback management settled the claims of three kitchen workers and fired a manager accused of repeated sexual harassment.
"Sexual harassment is wrong, and it's a big step forward that Outback Steakhouse recognized that workers have rights and we won't let our rights be trampled," said Juliette Zuluaga, one of the former Outback employees. "This is a victory for us, but also for all restaurant workers everywhere who are sick and tired of putting up with discrimination and abuse."
Zuluaga and two of her co-workers, Valeria Gomez and José Alberto Serafin, complained to Outback management about rampant sexual harassment in the kitchen of the North Haven branch. The manager would corner them in the walk-in freezer, ask them out on dates, and try to touch them. But instead of dealing with their complaints, Outback management forced them out.
The three Outback workers came to Unidad Latina en Acción, a New Haven-based immigrants' and workers' rights organization, with their complaint.
"The abuse these three workers suffered was appalling. We couldn't just stand by, we knew we had to act," said Megan Fountain, an organizer with Unidad Latina en Acción. "We decided to respond the best way we knew how, by protesting in front of the restaurant."
Unidad Latina en Acción and other community partners started a weekly protest in front of the North Haven Outback Steakhouse. Every Friday night at 7pm, more than a dozen activists would gather on the sidewalk to chant, hold signs, and pass out leaflets denouncing sexual harassment at the restaurant. North Haven police tried to scare off the protesters, ticketing one and taking down the names and addresses of others, but the group would not be intimidated: they returned every week.
Finally, Outback corporate headquarters in Florida bended to the pressure. They sent four head honchos, including the Vice President for Diversity and Equal Opportunity, to meet with workers and with Unidad Latina en Acción.
"We had suffered in silence for so long," said John Harvey, another former Outback employee who joined Unidad Latina en Acción to help other workers fight for their rights. "I never thought I would get to tell a corporate vice president about all the abuse that went on in the kitchens. But we put the pressure on, and they had no choice but to listen to us."
In the end, Outback agreed to fire the North Haven manager who committed some of the worst abuses. They also settled with Zuluaga, Gomez and Serafin.
Unidad Latina en Acción had requested that Outback issue a public apology for calling the police on peaceful demonstrators, but Outback only agreed to a private apology – in exchange for a promise never to protest at any Outback Steakhouse ever again.
"They can forget their private apology," said Fountain. "If we ever hear about another incident of sexual harassment, we're going to be right back out here."
