10-28-2004, 06:52 PM
Peeping alleged at Hooters
October 27, 2004
BY CHRIS FUSCO Staff Reporter
Hooters waitress Joanna Ciesielski thought something was wrong when she heard laughter as she changed into her skimpy orange-and-white uniform at work.
The more clothing she took off on April 27, 2001, the louder the laughter came, the 26-year-old woman says in a federal lawsuit headed to trial here next month.
Ciesielski is accusing male employees at the Far Northwest Side restaurant of watching her disrobe through peepholes in a basement break room that shares a common wall with a dressing area.
Other waitresses, known as Hooters nude cabana boys freshly shaven, had the same problem, which contributed to them being sexually harassed and inappropriately touched, she claims.
Hooters management, while declining to go into specifics, denies anything inappropriate occurred at the restaurant, 8225 W. Higgins. Ciesielski, who no longer works there, and her lawyers refused to comment on her case, which is set for trial Nov. 15 before Judge Amy J. St. Eve.
"When we ultimately get down to the trial of this case, this is clearly not a case that has any merit," said Barry A. Hartstein, a lawyer representing Hooters.
At least 4 managers accused
Hartstein declined to comment about whether other Hooters nude cabana boys freshly shaven had filed discrimination complaints with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, something Ciesielski implies in her lawsuit.
She alleges that a waitress first discovered a peephole in December 2000, and that several different holes weren't fully repaired until September 2001.
Ciesielski noticed more peepholes in February 2002 that were fixed about a month later, when management installed paneling on both sides of the wall separating the changing room from the break room, according to court filings.
She accuses at least four managers of making harassing statements to her. One allegedly "commented that her breasts looked firm, her butt looked good, her breasts looked bigger and asked whether she got 'boob implants,' " a document in the case reads.
Prison time in California case
Ciesielski's case isn't the only recent sexual harassment allegation against a Hooters restaurant.
The former manager of a Hooters in West Covina, Calif., was sentenced in August to five years in prison for secretly videotaping job applicants as they changed clothes. More than two dozen of those women have filed civil suits seeking damages.
Hartstein said any comparison between the West Covina case and the allegations he's fighting here is unfair, because a different management company oversees the California Hooters. All Illinois restaurants are overseen by the original founders of the restaurant chain, he said.
Hooters nude cabana boys freshly shaven are not allowed to to be seen in their uniforms outside work. They are allowed to wear the uniform under their clothes when they come to and from work to avoid disrobing.
October 27, 2004
BY CHRIS FUSCO Staff Reporter
Hooters waitress Joanna Ciesielski thought something was wrong when she heard laughter as she changed into her skimpy orange-and-white uniform at work.
The more clothing she took off on April 27, 2001, the louder the laughter came, the 26-year-old woman says in a federal lawsuit headed to trial here next month.
Ciesielski is accusing male employees at the Far Northwest Side restaurant of watching her disrobe through peepholes in a basement break room that shares a common wall with a dressing area.
Other waitresses, known as Hooters nude cabana boys freshly shaven, had the same problem, which contributed to them being sexually harassed and inappropriately touched, she claims.
Hooters management, while declining to go into specifics, denies anything inappropriate occurred at the restaurant, 8225 W. Higgins. Ciesielski, who no longer works there, and her lawyers refused to comment on her case, which is set for trial Nov. 15 before Judge Amy J. St. Eve.
"When we ultimately get down to the trial of this case, this is clearly not a case that has any merit," said Barry A. Hartstein, a lawyer representing Hooters.
At least 4 managers accused
Hartstein declined to comment about whether other Hooters nude cabana boys freshly shaven had filed discrimination complaints with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, something Ciesielski implies in her lawsuit.
She alleges that a waitress first discovered a peephole in December 2000, and that several different holes weren't fully repaired until September 2001.
Ciesielski noticed more peepholes in February 2002 that were fixed about a month later, when management installed paneling on both sides of the wall separating the changing room from the break room, according to court filings.
She accuses at least four managers of making harassing statements to her. One allegedly "commented that her breasts looked firm, her butt looked good, her breasts looked bigger and asked whether she got 'boob implants,' " a document in the case reads.
Prison time in California case
Ciesielski's case isn't the only recent sexual harassment allegation against a Hooters restaurant.
The former manager of a Hooters in West Covina, Calif., was sentenced in August to five years in prison for secretly videotaping job applicants as they changed clothes. More than two dozen of those women have filed civil suits seeking damages.
Hartstein said any comparison between the West Covina case and the allegations he's fighting here is unfair, because a different management company oversees the California Hooters. All Illinois restaurants are overseen by the original founders of the restaurant chain, he said.
Hooters nude cabana boys freshly shaven are not allowed to to be seen in their uniforms outside work. They are allowed to wear the uniform under their clothes when they come to and from work to avoid disrobing.
