5 Women Sue Restaurant Chain For 'Toxic' Work Environment

BOSTON, MA — The #MeToo movement has made its way to the low-wage kitchens of local restaurants. Five women are suing McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurants, alleging they were subjected to groping and lewd behavior from men at work and that they were ignored when they spoke up.

The women worked at the chain's lone Massachusetts location in Faneuil Hall. It is unclear if they still work there.

The women's work environment was "toxic" and "sick," the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights and Economic Justice, which represents the women, said in the complaint filed Tuesday.

One alleged example found in the complaint was of a man grabbing his crotch and telling the women something along the lines of "this is your food."

Landry's Inc., the Houston-based restaurant and hotel operator that owns McCormick & Schmick's, didn't immediately respond to an AP request for comment.

The lawsuit was filed in Suffolk Superior Court and seeks unspecified damages.

The plaintiffs, all Latina women, according to the lawsuit, worked low-wage jobs such as dishwashers and cleaners. The majority of the #MeToo movement has so far taken place in white-collar workplaces with millionaires and well-known local or national celebrities being accused of cultivating or taking part in a culture of sexual harassment.

"These are positions that society often overlooks," Sophia Hill, an attorney for the Lawyers' Committee, said, according to the AP. "These women are particularly vulnerable, with limited English and no access to an effective reporting procedure. They suffered daily and in humiliating ways."

Materials from The Associated Press were used in this report

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