ST. LOUIS (KMOV.com) — A woman is demanding compensation after being assaulted on camera and then fired from a local Chipotle restaurant.
Rebecca Foth posted a video to Facebook showing her being confronted and then punched by another employee at a Chipotle Mexican Grill restaurant in Kirkwood, Mo. on December 5.
Foth was the general manager at the restaurant and said the assault happened when the she told the employee, who Foth says quit the day before, that she could not work and had to leave the restaurant.
“I knew I was going to get hit,” Foth said. “I was actually scared. It was kind of open-handed, hit on my neck right here, lifted me off the ground, forced me into the condiment section.”
Foth said she immediately looked to see if any customers had witnessed, spotting two in the restaurant at the time.
“The two customers actually ran out of the building, they were scared,” Foth said.
Foth declined medical treatment at the scene but said she later went to the hospital. She said she had torn back tissue, severe bruising on her neck and shoulders and continues to have more heart tests done.
Kirkwood police said the woman who assaulted her was arrested on 3rd degree assault charge, but they are not releasing her name because these charges are pending.
Foth said the restaurant called her after the assault, but not to check up on her.
“They weren’t calling to check on my wellness, they were calling to ask why the business wasn’t earning money,” Foth said.
“I was fired on the 11th, December 11th, the reason being, they told me, I have actually recorded, is because I cursed at my supervisor,” Foth said. “I used profanity toward him … because he was rehiring people that I terminated.”
In a statement, a Chipotle spokeswoman says the company offered Foth “immediate support” and that they followed up to make sure the “workers compensation process is underway.” It also said Foth’s termination was unrelated to the incident in the video.
Foth says she believes the company should do more in response to this situation.
“I want compensation for all the time I’ve put in, three months with no days off, for being assaulted, my medical bills of course and then my job that I lost,” Foth said.
The full statement from Chipotle can be read here:
“We prefer not to comment in public on employment situations to protect the privacy of our employees. We offered the manager support immediately after the event and have followed up to ensure the workers compensation process is underway. Her departure from Chipotle is not related to this event. The other employee in the video was terminated after the incident.”
