A Panera Bread Franchise Doesn’t Allegedly Want “Fat,” “Black” Or “Ugly” Employees

BET:

“Fat,” “Black” and “Ugly” are three characteristics a Panera Bread franchise allegedly has a policy of keeping away, and now, if true, the franchisee may be learning the meaning of the saying “think before you speak.”

In a lawsuit filed in federal court on Tuesday, Guy M. Vines, 21, a former employee, claims that Panera Bread franchisee Covelli Enterprises, based in Warren, Ohio, discouraged managers from hiring African-Americans and kept them restricted to out-of-sight jobs.

“If you’re Black, we don’t allow you to work in the front, and we don’t promote you into management?” Sam Cordes, Vines’ attorney, told a local newspaper when sarcastically speaking of the incident. Read more.