U.S labor agency finds Chipotle in violation of the U.S labor law

According to an announcement made on Friday, the U.S labor agency’s general counsel found Chipotle Mexican Grill in violation of the United States’ labor law. The company reportedly fired a New York-based employee following his repeated complaints about the challenges of the workplace. The employee was also reported to have attempted to approach a union.

The complaint was filed by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) on December 12^th. A copy of the complaint was also sent to the 32BJ union. The union has been active in organizing the staff at the Mexican restaurant chain.

Chipotle has not commented or divulged any further information about the incident at this stage.

Chipotle’s Manager Threatened Employees Of Physical Abuse For Involving In Union Activities

According to Peter Robb, NLRB’s general counsel, a manager at Chipotle’s Manhattan-based restaurant not only threatened the employees that their involvement with the union activities could have them fired, but also hinted at physical abuse if such an incident is caught. The manager further promised rewards and promotions to workers who brought information about such activities to the authorities.

Another manager in one of Chipotle’s other Manhattan stores was also accused of similar intimidation, as per the complaint. Upon complaining about workplace problems including scheduling, one of the employees was also fired.

The complaint seeks that American chain of fast-casual restaurant reappoint the employee who was fired and offer compensation to him for the damage. The general counsel is not dependent on the Board for investigating as well as prosecuting the cases that involve unfair labor practices. Peter Robb was appointed as the general counsel by President Trump in November 2017.

32BJ’s parent Union, the Services Employees International Union, is involved in organizing workers at McDonald’s. The union is best known for the Fight for $15 American political movement.

Chipotle Has To Respond To The Complaint Before December 26^th

Chipotle is allowed to take until December 26^th to respond to the filed complaint. March 2^nd, 2020 has been announced as the date for the hearing.

Following the complaint, Chipotle was seen losing strength in the stock market on Friday. The stock opened at $838 on Friday and was last seen trading around $832 before the market close. The year to date performance for the American chain of fast-casual restaurant, however, has remained largely upbeat in 2019. The $23.20 billion company has recorded around 90% gain in 2019. The company started the year at $443. With consistent upward rallies, it printed a record high of $851 in August.