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| Man handing out food to customer |
There was a time in America when a hard day’s work earned you respect. When young men could get their start in a factory, a coffee shop, or a burger shop, learn discipline, and build character. But something has gone deeply wrong.
Today, in restaurants across this country, our sons, and daughters, especially our daughters, are being subjected to a workplace culture that tolerates and even encourages, sexual harassment. And despite all the talk, all the movements, all the corporate training videos and HR slogans, nothing is really being done to stop it.
Let’s be clear: this isn’t just happening in dark alleys or back street bars. It’s happening in plain sight. In your local family restaurant. In the fast food chain down the street. It’s happening to 16-year-old cashiers and single moms pulling double shifts.
And the people in charge? They’re looking the other way.
According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the restaurant industry is one of the worst offenders when it comes to workplace harassment.(EEOC, 2023) And why? Because there’s money on the line, and not enough morals in the owners to care
Management shrugs it off. HR files it under “handle later.” Corporate executives run legal drills to avoid lawsuits. Everyone’s protected except the young woman at the host stand being ogled, touched, or singled out
And make no mistake: this is about power. Not politics. Not feelings. Power. When someone’s paycheck, schedule, or job depends on “playing along” that’s not employment, that’s coercion.
It’s the kind of thing we used to stand against as a nation. Now, we shrug.
Too many of these big corporations have decided that it’s cheaper to stay quiet. Cheaper to protect the harasser than fire him. Cheaper to train employees how not to get sued than to actually build a workplace of integrity.
They slap a few posters on the wall, roll out a mandatory 30-minute “harassment training,” and act like the job is done. But anyone who’s actually worked in these places or has a daughter who has, they know better.
And here's the kicker: when victims do speak up? They’re labeled “too sensitive.” Their hours get cut or they’re even fired. The university of Massachusetts found that 2/3 of employees who submit formal reports or complaints are fired, simply because it is less of a hassle for an employer to fire the victim than to deal with the procedures.(McCann, 2018) They’re punished for telling the truth, while the creep in the back keeps flipping burgers. So what do we do? We go back to values.
We teach young men to act like men not predators. We tell businesses this: you want our dollars? Then protect your workers. We remind our leaders, especially the ones in corporate America that America doesn’t tolerate abuse. Not in the back office. Not on the line. Not anywhere.
Everyone deserves to feel safe at work, Safety shouldn't be granted only to those who are lucky enough not to encounter creeps
Until that’s guaranteed, don’t let anyone tell you this problem has been solved. It hasn’t. It’s just being ignored.
Some might argue that today’s workplace is already well regulated and upheld, that harassment training, corporate policies, and legal protections are enough to address the problem. After all, most major companies now require annual training sessions, and offer reporting systems through HR. To them, this proves that progress is being made. But this perspective misses the point, this isnt something that should only apply to bigger companies and corporations. This needs to be a global upheld moral. No argument can be made against that
Because in the United States of America, nobody should have to trade their dignity for a paycheck. Until that changes, don’t let them tell you the problem is solved. It isn’t.
It’s just being ignored.
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