Over the past several months, we have been proud to support fast-food workers facing a variety of workplace issues. Through long-term, strategic partnerships with worker champions like the California Fast Food Workers Union (FFWU) through the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), we’ve been showing up not just in courtrooms, but on picket lines.
KFC/Taco Bell, Sunnyvale (December 2025)
At the end of 2025, our SEIU partners alerted us of workplace discrimination happening at a KFC/Taco Bell in Sunnyvale, CA in search of legal support. The workplace conditions were so bad that cooks and cashiers planned to launch a three-day strike to protest the company’s unfair treatment of workers.
The complaints described a pattern of blatant age-based harassment. Management allegedly told older workers that they were “useless,” “worthless,” and that younger workers were simply smarter. Hours were systematically cut, with one worker seeing their weekly schedule slashed from over 30 hours to just 16. And when workers pushed back, management threatened to call immigration authorities — a tactic designed to exploit fear and silence dissent.
Rosie Bichell, attorney and Disability and Health Justice program director, filed complaints with the California Civil Rights Department on behalf of two workers at a Sunnyvale KFC/Taco Bell the day before those workers walked off the job.
Rosie and Pilar Gonzalez, VP of Programs and Litigation, attended the rally that launched the strike and spoke with local media covering the action. The case is ongoing, and we remain committed to these workers for as long as it takes.
Taco Bell, El Dorado Hills (February 2026)
When SEIU connected us with two Taco Bell employees facing national origin and gender-based discrimination, sexual harassment, and retaliation, attorneys Milo Inglehart and Jaime Colon on the Gender and LGBTQ+ team were there to help. They simultaneously served the franchise operator, J.A. Sutherland, Inc., with a demand letter and a CRD complaint.
Jaime attended the in-person protest alongside workers and union supporters at the Greater Sacramento Taco Bell location.
Not long after, an internal investigation confirmed misconduct and resulted in the termination of both the direct manager and the district manager responsible. J.A. Sutherland also committed to new HR and management training to prevent future violations. The team has since reached a settlement in principle with favorable terms for their clients — an outcome that not only compensates them for what they endured, but changes the organization from within.
Taco Bell, Carmichael (March 2026)
In March 2026, SEIU reached out again, this time on behalf of a worker at a Taco Bell in Carmichael who had experienced severe gender and national origin discrimination, harassment, and retaliation. What the case revealed was a workplace culture of entrenched misogyny, where sexual harassment went unchecked by management unless it affected male supervisors.
Jaime attended a protest at the location on International Women’s Day, March 8th, standing in solidarity with the worker and a coworker who had been fired in retaliation for speaking out. Weeks later, Jaime joined a second protest while the team simultaneously sent a formal demand letter to Taco Bell. We are awaiting a response and will continue to fight alongside this worker.
LAAW’s Wage Protection Program also filed a retaliation complaint on behalf of another employee of the same Carmichael Taco Bell. The complaint describes a pattern of retaliation that began when the worker refused to work when he became physically ill at work; reported violent conduct by the store manager; complained about ongoing wage theft; and supported his coworker in her sexual harassment complaints.
The Larger Pattern of Worker Discrimination and Our Commitment to Keep Showing Up
These cases are distinct, but they tell a common story: fast food workers — many of them older, immigrant, and women — are being subjected to discrimination, harassment, and retaliation. These communities are targeted then threatened into silence when they speak up. We refuse to let that go unchallenged.
We are grateful to the FFWU, SEIU, and the courageous workers who trusted us with their cases. We will keep filing complaints, drafting demand letters, and showing up to rallies in solidarity with workers.