PITTSBURGH - A woman is suing the International House of Pancakes, claiming, among other things, she was locked in a freezer and subjected to sexual harassment.
Anna Russell, a former employee of IHOP Restaurants, Inc., filed a lawsuit Jan. 24 against the company alleging racial discrimination and wrongful termination. The case was filed in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania.
Russell claims that during her employment with IHOP, she was subjected to discriminatory treatment based on her race, which resulted in emotional distress and loss of wages. She also alleges that this discrimination led to her wrongful termination. The complaint states that these actions violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act.
The defendant, IHOP Restaurants, Inc., is a foreign business incorporated in Delaware with over 1,687 locations worldwide, including 28 in Pennsylvania. At the time relevant to the lawsuit, Russell was employed at an IHOP establishment located in Pittsburgh.
Russell claims she was told to "pick up the pace," even though she was pregnant. She says Black workers were held to a higher standard than white and that one supervisor "forcefully pushed female African American employees, including Plaintiff, into a commercial freezer and other secluded areas and/or corners within the Facility, in order to isolate and subject them to physical and verbal sexual harassment."
Erik M. Yurkovich of The Workers' Rights Law Group represents Russell.