'We all quit': Burger King staff post on store sign

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Sagar Malik

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Last updated on Jul 14, 2021, 03:05 pm

"We all quit," reads an atypical signboard outside a Burger King outlet in Lincoln, Nebraska in the United States. The note was posted last week after most restaurant employees tendered their resignations as they were fed up of the management. They said the store was understaffed, the working conditions were bleak, and the managers were downright cruel.

'It was pretty hectic'

Rachael Flores, a former general manager at the outlet, said she had filed her two weeks' notice, along with several of her colleagues, at the end of June. She had joined the restaurant last August with prior experience of working at restaurants, believing she was prepared, but was taken aback by the upper management's behavior. "It was pretty hectic," she told TODAY.

Flores said her boss was 'loud and argumentative'

Flores said, at the time of her joining, the general manager was "pretty loud and crazy, very argumentative." She was later promoted to that position. "As I became general manager, it got more crazy. I had multiple different bosses." In shifts that were supposed to have five to seven employees, there were only two or three, she said.

'Sorry for the inconvenience,' staff further said

The full message on the board read, "We all quit. Sorry for the inconvenience." Kylee Johnson, also a former employee at the eatery, said the first part was clearly for the upper management. The second part was an apology to their customers. "They wanted to put up a sign to say, you know, sorry there's really not going to be anyone here," Flores said.

Employees worked without ACs for weeks, fell sick

Recounting a particularly horrific experience, Flores told TODAY store workers were forced to work without air conditioning for weeks at the peak of summer. "Temperatures were reaching the mid-90s (in Fahrenheit) most days," she said. Flores said she had to be hospitalized for dehydration one day while several others fell sick. The same day, her boss had told her to stop "being a baby."

'Do your job,' Flores recalls her former boss' words

"When I was two minutes late, my boss called me and when I told him what was going on, he told me I was being a baby and I was making excuses and that I needed to do my job," Flores said.

Burger King says it is looking into the matter

A spokesperson for Burger King said they are aware of the situation and are currently investigating it. "The work experience described at this location is not in line with our brand values," the spokesperson said in a statement. "Our franchisee is looking into this situation to ensure this doesn't happen in the future," they added, according to TODAY.

'Feels really nice': Employees receive an outpouring of support

Flores says she was fired, days before her notice period was to end, over her role in putting up the signboard. Since the employees came forward with their story, they have received an outpouring of support from many on social media. "To know that we are inspiring people to re-evaluate their self-worth when it comes to a job actually feels pretty great," Flores said.