GREENSBORO, N.C. – Hooters of America, LLC, a Georgia Corporation, violated federal law when it failed to recall employees after a COVID-motivated layoff because they were Black and/or had dark skin tones, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) alleged in a lawsuit it filed today.

In March of 2020, the Greensboro Hooters restaurant laid off approximately 43 employees in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The EEOC’s lawsuit alleges that a class of employees who were Black and/or had dark skin tones and worked as “Hooters Girls” at the Greensboro restaurant were among those laid off. When the restaurant began recalling employees to return to work in May of 2020, the restaurant recalled mostly employees who were White or had light skin tones, the EEOC says.

Of the 13 Hooters Girls recalled to the Greensboro location in May 2020, 12 were white and/or had light skin tones, reflecting a marked shift in the racial composition of the restaurant’s Hooters Girls workforce. Prior to the layoffs, 51% of the Hooters Girls were Black and/or had dark skin tones. After the May 2020 recall, only 8% of the Hooters Girls were Black and/or had dark skin tones. According to the complaint, Hooters Girls with dark skin tones experienced racial hostility and observed preferential treatment of White employees while employed at the restaurant.

Such conduct violates the Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which protects individuals from workplace discrimination and...

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