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Restaurant Industry Grapples With Sexual Assault Claims

A server takes orders at a restaurant

It took little time for last year's #MeToo wave of sexual assault and harassment scandals in Hollywood to reach the shores of celebrity chef-dom.

The first was in October, almost concurrent with the 80-odd allegations against Harvey Weinstein that launched the movement.

John Besh, co-owner of Besh Restaurant Group, stepped down after 25 women who were current or former employees said they were victims of sexual harassment.

In December, 10 women broke their silence about harassment from Ken Friedman, owner of The Spotted Pig in New York.

Celebrity chef Mario Batali, a regular at The Spotted Pig, soon announced he was stepping down from his own restaurants amid allegations of sexual misconduct.

Then, 17 employees at three restaurants in Oakland, California (Pizzaiolo, Boot & Shoe Service and Penrose), reported frequent harassment and abuse from owner Charlie Hallowell.

Strega Waterfront in Boston has been found liable for sexual harassment.

The number of accusations against high-profile chefs and restauranteurs continues to crest. Industry watchers say the reckoning has only just started.

The accusations should not surprise anyone. The restaurant industry has long been dogged by sexual assault and harassment claims. The scale of the problem is staggering. And clearly the industry has known about the problem for a long time.

BuzzFeed recently crunched data going back to 1995 from the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and found that restaurant workers have filed more sexual harassment claims than in any other industry.

Ninety percent of women in that industry reported being subject to unwanted advances at work, and more than half said it happens on a weekly basis, according to a 2014 report from the Restaurant Opportunities Center.

It's not easy to find concrete steps that restaurants have taken to reform practices yet.

As an editorial from Clark Wolf in Forbes pointed out, "I have read no statement from the National Restaurant Association. The James Beard Foundation is waiting for its Awards Committees to meet to decide what to do."

But many chefs have been outspoken about the need to change restaurant culture.

The Chicago Tribune interviewed several female chefs about the need for changes. Suggestions included taking immediate action after a complaint, and owners and managers tackling difficult conversations about harassment more directly.

Myles Share, who runs one of New York's biggest restaurant-insurance providers, told Bloomberg in December that the recent wave of scandals will have a significant effect on the industry – that insurance coverage for sexual harassment claims will become more popular.

More insurance might seem to be a lackluster knock-on effect. But when those claims are covered, they show up more clearly on the business radar.

Share said over the past decade, "I can count on one hand the number of sexual harassment lawsuits I've covered." After the recent scandals, he said, "things will be different."

Read More:



  • After the Apologies, Restaurants Struggle to Change (New York Times)
  • Why Is The Sexual Harassment Rate So High In The Restaurant Industry? (Pacific Standard)
  • Restaurants Know About Harassment. Here's How They Avoid Lawsuits (Bloomberg)
  • Since 1995, Restaurant Workers Have Filed More Sex-Harassment Claims Than Employees in Any Other Industry (Grub Street)
  • We Got Government Data On 20 Years Of Workplace Sexual Harassment Claims. These Charts Break It Down. (BuzzFeed)


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