She asked for maternity leave. Cracker Barrel fired her instead, Georgia lawsuit says
Raquel Byrd worked as a sales associate at a Cracker Barrel in Georgia for more than a decade before she got pregnant at the end of last year, according to federal court filings.
Byrd asked for 14 weeks of maternity leave, her attorney said. Instead, she got fired.
Now she’s suing the southern restaurant chain in federal court. A lawyer representing Byrd said in court documents that she had a spotless employment record before Cracker Barrel violated federal anti-discrimination laws and fired her just as she was slated to take maternity leave.
A representative for Cracker Barrel and Byrd’s attorney did not immediately respond to McClatchy News’ request for comment on Thursday.
According to the complaint filed Oct. 6 in the Northern District of Georgia, Byrd started working at a Cracker Barrel in Morrow, Georgia, in 2009. Morrow is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area.
Byrd, who lives in Decatur, Georgia, worked 30 hours a week as a retail associate and was paid hourly, her attorney said.
“During her employment, Ms. Byrd had a record of being an exemplary employee and was informed by her manager that she was one of the best retail associates at the store,” Byrd’s lawyer said in the complaint. “In addition, Ms. Byrd had never been disciplined and had never received a negative performance evaluation.”
Byrd got pregnant at the end of last year and told her manager in December she would need to take maternity leave, according to the lawsuit.
Her attorney said Byrd filled out a leave of absence form on Jan. 22 in which she asked to take maternity leave from Feb. 11 to May 21. That leave was reportedly documented on the work calendar.
But eight days later on Jan. 30, Byrd said she was fired.
In a termination notice included in court filings, Cracker Barrel said the reason for termination was “quit with notice (2 weeks).” In the comments section, someone wrote “maternity leave... employee will return (after) giving birth and is rehirable.”
According to the complaint, Byrd tried to ask why she had been fired but was reportedly told her manager put it in the system and it couldn’t be reversed.
Byrd’s lawyer said her firing amounted to discrimination in violation of the Pregnancy Discrimination Act and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. Cracker Barrel is also accused of interfering with Byrd’s rights under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 and retaliating against her.
She is asking a federal judge for back pay, restored benefits, compensatory and punitive damages as well as attorneys’ fees.
Cracker Barrel has not responded to the complaint, court filings show.
This story was originally published October 14, 2021 at 2:13 PM with the headline "She asked for maternity leave. Cracker Barrel fired her instead, Georgia lawsuit says."
