Dozens of Latino workers plan to meet with several members of the D.C. council Thursday after they say they were abruptly fired from their jobs at Chipotle.
In a statement Wednesday, Councilman Michael Brown said that both he and Councilman Jim Graham had been contacted by several members of the community complaining of mass firings at several local Chipotle locations.
The workers accused the restaurant chain of unfair dismissal and being replaced without notice or full wages. They also said they had been coerced and intimidated because of their ethnicity and resident status.
Now, Chipotle has responded with their own statement, saying the firings were because of immigration status:
“As a result of an internal review, we have had to let go of about 40 employees at two of our Washington, D.C. restaurants having learned that they are not legally authorized to work in this country. Under law, we cannot employ any individual who is not legally eligible to work in the United States.”
Chipotle is currently at the center of a crackdown on illegal immigration. The federal government asked 59 restaurants in D.C. and Virginia for documentation on their workers last month.
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The fired workers plan on meeting at Graham’s office at 2 p.m.
