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Loading ...McDonald’s accused of firing HIV+ man
09.08.2008 11:47am EDT
(Dyersville, Iowa) An Iowa gay man says he was fired by a McDonald’s franchise in Dyersville after it was learned he was HIV-positive.
Daniel Carver, 46, has filed a complaint with the Iowa Civil Rights Commission and has served notice to the franchise that he intends to sue for wrongful dismissal.Federal law makes it illegal to discriminate on the basis of physical disability, which includes HIV. Under Iowa state law it is illegal to discriminate against an employee because of race, religion, perceived sexual orientation or gender identity.
Carver worked for the franchise for about four months, but was fired in February.
He alleges in the filing with the commission that after management learned he was HIV-positive, he was denied promotion, had his hours reduced and was subjected to derogatory remarks, violence and death threats.
The filing claims that Carver on one occasion was punched in the stomach by a manager and in another instance was slapped in the face by an employee who called him homophobic names.
“In November 2007, I was threatened by other employees because of my HIV status and my sexual orientation, that I ‘better watch my back or I might get shot,”‘ Carver said in his claim to the commission.
When contacted by The Associated Press, Carver said his lawyer advised him not to discuss the case.
Neither the McDonald’s Corp. nor Glenn and Lois Karpinske, owners of the Dyersville McDonald’s, have commented on the case.
I am kind of like this guy. I am gay and whenever I am on register these guys always come up and say that they never want to be served by a faggot. Whenever they come in my managers don’t do anything about it because they say that the customers are always right. This is not right and something should be done about this.
I’m sure the franchise owners will be asked to sell/close down there store. McD’s has very strict rules about that kinda stuff.
Vanndean,
It doesn’t matter if it happened in a francise store or not. No employer should allow this to happen, nor should they tolerate any form of discrimination in the workplace. Sure the McDonalds company may not allow for discrimination in the workplace, but they also must realize that this happening in the workplace causes bad press for McDonalds as a whole. Let alone it is just wrong. If I was at McDonalds HQ, my legal department would be putting pressure on this francise so fast it wouldn’t be funny, and we would expect the managers to be fired for creating such bad press.
As a gay Iowa resident, your comment only has parcial truth to it. I have been out for over 14 years and have never had a bad thing happen to me in comparison to what I hear happens in states with larger communities. When my partner or myself are in the hospital, we have never been kept in the dark concerning each others conditions or status’. Having lived in Iowa all my life, I have no problem being a gay man here or being open about it. Many cities in Iowa have anti discrimination laws preventing what has happened to Carver and we are currently in the battle for gay marrage just like every other state. Your assumptions about Iowa are incorrect and close minded. I would happily debate this issue anytime in regards to Iowa, since my experence is a little more real life then your occasional trips to our state.
Cory Lynxx, please note that this story occurred in a franchise store and not in a corporate location. Franchise stores are owned by individuals and they do not necessarily follow all the rules that corporate managers are required to follow. The problem with your solution is that you are placing blame not where it needs to be but on the corporation itself.
There are 2 hate crimes in this case. Both the manager that punched him in the stomach and the employee that slapped him should be charged with hate crimes and sent to prison. Their faces also need to be shown on the news to add to the humiliation and send a clear message to America that hate crimes are not going to be tolerated. I hope he sues Mcdonalds for all he can sue for. Discrimination in the workplace is totally uncalled for and must be stopped. He was called derogatory names and intimidated just like they do in the army. This is a corporation that claims to be gay friendly but obviously is not, this needs to be drilled in the ground. We need to organize a massive boycott of Mcdonalds for allowing this to happen to 1 of our gay brothers. How can you punch an HIV positive person like that, they are already struggling. You just don’t kick somebody while they are down, that’s low.
I’m a manager at McDonald’s and I’ve never experienced anything but the utmost respect from my co-workers. Granted I work in a corporate-owned store so my experience may be different, but I’m completely open about my sexuality and everyone knows my boyfriend and have never made me feel awkward. Also, McDonald’s stood up in a sign of support for our community when they were threatened with a boycott earlier this year. As a corporation, McDonald’s is extremely queer-friendly. They offer domestic partnership benefits and provide sensitivity training to corporate-level staff. If something discriminatory or hateful is happening at a franchise, it needs to be reported. Thankfully this incident was.
It would not surprise me one bit if the story is true. I have had a couple of occasions to visit IOWA and to the least they are less than gay friendly. I suspect I have run into homophobic doctors at the University of IOWA, I can’t prove it of course but they have treated me with less than typical doctor “niceness”. I also know 2 people that live in IOWA and from they have related to me IOWA is a homophobic haven.
I am not saying all IOWANS are homophobic but the number is up there.
McDonald’s isn’t alone in discrimination. A Subway in St. Louis fired an employee because a customer recognized him from a gay porn movie and threatened to boycott Subway if he wasn’t fired. What was the RIGHTEOUS customer doing watching gay porn?
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-8920.html
Personally I have worked for Mickey D’s and they are not as LGBTQ friendly as they make it seem. Especially the independently owned stores. They make you feel so uncomfortable that you just want to quit and thats exactly what happened to me. I’m a trans-male and it really bothered me that in such a big family company they have so much discrimination.
It is one thing for McDonalds to have a non-discrimination policy, but if that policy is not enforced, it means nothing. I personally know at least two McDonalds employees who have experienced similar treatment due to their orientation. While these may be exception rather than the rule, it clearly shows that there is still progress yet to be made.