Legal

Restaurant Manager Wins Sexual Harassment Case

The Gold Coasts's long-closed Twelve 12.
The Gold Coasts’s long-closed Twelve 12.

We often admire and glorify the “pirate” aspect of restaurant kitchens— all the ways in which it seems a more vital, macho, freewheeling life than the corporate desk jobs many followers of the scene have. But there is a dark side to that, as a release we recently saw from a law firm demonstrates. (The release, clearly, represents the plantiff’s side of the story, but we assume the facts in it are facts.) Demetri Alexander and a partner, Richard Daniels, conceived of an early 2000s restaurant called 1212 (actually styled Twelve 12). Two other partners entered the business— Russell Scalise and Scott Schwab. Daniels exited the business at some point but Alexander remained as creative director and front of house manager. At one point during construction of the Gold Coast restaurant, Alexander was injured by a piece of equipment and spent some months recovering and/or on crutches, and it appears that Scalise and Schwab came to resent him, because they allegedly subjected him to a long campaign of harassment.

According to Alexander’s complaint, he was subjected to relentless harassment and namecalling for being gay (which he says he is not), at the juvenile level that, if he met with a contractor or vendor, he would be immediately accused in front of other employees of having sex with him. This went on until finally, when the restaurant was opened, Scalise and Schwab fired Alexander.

Alexander filed a complaint with the Chicago Human Rights Commission. Amazingly, Scalise and Schwab apparently didn’t contest the allegations about their behavior, simply argued that there was nothing wrong with it. However, they also apparently couldn’t agree on why Alexander was fired— one said he didn’t show up for work, the other said he was on drugs, neither of which was apparently proven. Alexander won a judgement that was subsequently upheld on appeal.

It seems astonishing that anyone would see this as an effective workplace atmosphere to create— one of open homophobic war on a manager and partner— but the business attracts big personalities and they are sometimes unpleasant ones. Something to keep in mind as you contemplate ditching that corporate desk job, where all the aggression is passive, we guess.

Restaurant Sexual Case Demonstrates How Hostile Workplace Can Get Says Chicago Employment Lawyer
[Law Firm Newsire]

Restaurant Manager Wins Sexual Harassment Case