Thread by @JuddLegum

1. As the pandemic rages on, tens of thousands of @redlobster workers lack paid sick leave

A popular.info investigation finds many @redlobster workers are being FORCED TO WORK SICK — either from financial necessity or pressure from management

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@redlobster 2. According to previously unreleased survey data from @shift_hks, a project based at Harvard's Kennedy School TWO-THIRDS of @redlobster workers who were sick in the Fall of 2021 reported WORKING SICK

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3. "We do not get sick pay. If we don’t work we don't get paid. I worry that co-workers who have been in contact with a confirmed COVID-19 family member would still come to work. We live paycheck to paycheck. We can't sit at home without pay"

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4. James Swartz worked as a bartender at a PA @redlobster for a year-and-a-half starting in 12/19. He was paid $3.50/hr + tips.

Swartz said when he developed COVID symptoms and said he was not coming in for his shift, he was subjected to "threats."

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5. Red Lobster management told Swartz that he "needed to come in for work" and if he didn't show up or find another way to cover the shift he would "get written up."

Swartz stayed home anyway.

He could only afford to because he had a second job.

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6. Not everyone has that ability.

A current @redlobster employee in Ohio told the Columbus Dispatch in September that he has worked sick because he can't afford to lose his job.

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@redlobster 7. In a statement, @redlobster appeared to BLAME EMPLOYEES for the problem. The company said that "no one is allowed to work sick" and "employees who violate this policy are subject to disciplinary action, including termination"

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8. @redlobster said their policy of not providing paid sick leave, even during a pandemic, is "consistent with our industry."

But access to paid sick leave @redlobster is "well below the average for chain restaurants"

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@redlobster 9. Further, @redlobster's previous parent company @darden provides paid sick leave to all employees.

And it hasn't impacted their ability to turn a profit. @darden, which sold @RedLobster in 2014, recorded $193 million in profit last quarter

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10. For updates on @redlobster and more accountability journalism that focuses on PEOPLE, check out my newsletter, Popular Information

It's free to sign up ➡️ popular.info/subscribe

11. This was a joint investigation between popular.info and @MorePerfectUS. Here is a video report of our findings — including testimony from @redlobster workers:

@MorePerfectUS @redlobster 12. In August 2020, @redlobster was sold to a group of investors led by Thai Union, a seafood supplier based in Thailand.

A 2015 investigation by the AP found that Thai Union was distributing seafood caught and processed by slave labor

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13. An independent audit of Thai Union in 2018 found a "[l]ack of policies and procedures in place...covering child labor, forced labor, recruitment fees, human trafficking or human treatment." The full audit was not released publicly.

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14. If you work at @redlobster now (or worked there at any time since March 2020) we would still like to hear from you about your working conditions

My DMs are open

Or email [e-mail]

Ask for Signal/Text #

RT to spread the word

popular.info/p/red-lobster-…

15. @MorePerfectUS has also started a petition calling on @redlobster to provide paid sick leave to its employees.

You can check that out here: actionnetwork.org/forms/sign-now…