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In reply to the discussion: Food Network Says It Won't Renew Paula Deen Contract After Admission She Used Racial Slurs [View all]calimary
(81,845 posts)Last edited Tue Jun 25, 2013, 03:52 PM - Edit history (1)
I found this among the posts on the Food Network Facebook page - where most people are excoriating the Food Network for being so unfair to Paula Deen. Having read a lot of the documents in this case, I thought the post below was an EXCELLENT summation:
" PAULA DEEN SUPPORTERS I am posting this again because I know most of you have not seen this. Many people think that Paula lost her contract with Food Network over saying the N-word 28 of 30 years ago. If only that were the problem, but it isn't.....
The Lawsuit that was filed against Paula and her Brother Bubba is a Federal EEOC suit alleging violations in protecting workers at their workplace.
Paula opened a restaurant with her brother, Bubba, 5 years ago. The business has never been profitable. That was the first red flag for me. One of Paula Deen's restaurants not profitable in her home town? It is at least $300K underwater.
Paula hired a business consultant to help her, and Bubba, figure out what was wrong with the business. The consultant came back with a report after studying the restaurant and speaking with all the employees. The primary problem was Bubba! The other major problem (risk) was numerous EEOC violations in the workplace. (Here is where Food Network, its parent company and their advertisers become concerned). The consultant went to Paula's house on her way back out of town, handed her the report. Because their first suggestion was to remove Bubba, Paula refused to read the report, she claims. She says she didn't read the report she paid for. So, here is what we have so far. Paula is concerned and hires a consultant. So she knows there are problems. The consultant suggest removing Bubba, because he is taking money (and even her business manager told her he was taking money) AND because he is using racial slurs, physically assaulting workers, told the manager to only have white workers in the dining room, instituted separate bathrooms AND has physically assaulted the manager (he forcibly tried to kiss her and when she resisted he spat in her face) and is sexually harassing her on a daily basis. Paula paid for the professional consultant, was duly warned but did nothing to protect her workers.
Her family friend who was acting as her business manager, under Paula's instruction, was using money from Paula Deen Enterprises (the items and products she sells - the multimillion dollar venture) and The Lady & Sons Restaurant. So, monies were commingled between the businesses, and to make things worse, Paula has testified that the businesses were one family.
Now to the deposition, Bubba has already testified in deposition that YES, he did the things in the report. Employees have testified in deposition various violations of EEOC law. The plaintiff attorney asks Paula questions about her history, her use of slurs, but what will hurt most is that she testifies she paid for the report, she had no intention of removing her brother, she gave him a raise when she was told he was stealing because he wasn't getting enough money. He asks her how she felt about him watching porn for hours on end in the restaurant and she seems to think its okay because men do it. As far as slurs go, well she can tell if a person is going to be offended before she says something... He asks if she was aware her brother went to rehab and asks what he went for. Paula says he went for alcohol. The plaintiff informs her it was alcohol and cocaine. She wasn't aware of that.
I am not a lawyer, but this is a federal case she is likely to loose because of 5 consecutive years of racial abuse and sexual harassment and some physical assaults. Bubba has testified he did the things in the report. Paula testifies she did noting in the report to give the workers some relief.
In light of this scenario, can you see where Food Network, the Parent Company and the thousands of Advertisers can not be associated with this ????
The deposition is a perfect study tool for what not to do in the workplace for small businesses. "
http://www.scribd.com/doc/148813272/Transcript-of-the-Testimony-of-Paula-Deen-Date-May-17-2013
They have a show on Food Network called "Restaurant Stakeout," where this brash successful restauranteur - Willie Degel - is invited by a failing restaurant owner to come and find out why the place is failing. He wires it up, but good, with hidden cameras and mics all over the inside and even looking out at the parking lot, and watches a typical night. LOTS of shitty behavior goes on behind the scenes that can be directly blamed for the restaurant's failure. If Willie Degel did that in Paula Deen's restaurant and saw the appalling, loutish, disgraceful, unprofessional, ragingly sexist, ragingly racist, and utterly Neanderthal behavior that Paula Deen's thoughtless jerk of a brother was displaying, and what the rest of the staff had to put up with from him, he'd be thundering to fire Bubba's ass! And I seriously wonder if ANY of the so-called Christian, compassionate, forgiving, Bible-quoting, liberal-bashing people posting their wrath at the Food Network would want their daughters working at such a place! Bubba's behavior was abominable! And his sister, where the buck stops, was advised, warned, and given many many facts, and did NOTHING. Stood by him and made excuses for him. Sheesh!!! Her poor employees! Ol' Bubba raised "creating a hostile working environment" to a VERY high art.
That Neanderthal brother of hers is a freakin' LIABILITY!!! These are federal EEOC rules and laws that they repeatedly and flagrantly violated. OUCH!!! Ol' Paula Deen may be brought down by her own brother. There was nothing that the Food Network could do in response BUT to cut ties with her. I'm not surprised Smithfield Foods wants to do the same thing. I'd certainly want to get MY corporate brand as far away from that mess as I could!!! Oh, and btw, that racist "Southern wedding" theme about which she spoke so wistfully about wanting to do - was for her brother, Bubba's wedding. Well, whaddya know. Anyone surprised?