CLEVELAND (AP) – The black owner of 14 McDonald’s franchises in Ohio says one of the world’s largest restaurant chains has shown white owners more favorable treatment and denied him the opportunity to buy restaurants in affluent communities, according to a civil lawsuit Tuesday. the federal court in Youngstown.
According to the lawsuit that Herbert Washington, a former university star, played with the Oakland Athletics over the past two seasons, it was said that the company’s discriminatory practices in Chicago led to a $ 700,000 gap between the black-owned franchises and those owned by whites.
The lawsuit said the number of black franchise owners dropped from 377 in 1998 to 186 today, while the total number of stores more than doubled to 40,000.
“By redirecting black owners to the oldest stores in the most difficult neighborhoods, McDonald’s ensured that black franchisees would never reach the level of success that white franchisees could expect,” the lawsuit reads. “Black franchisees need to spend more to run their stores, while white franchisees will realize the full benefit of their labor,” the lawsuit said.
McDonald’s issued a statement on Tuesday denying Washington’s allegations. The company said Washington “faces business challenges” for which the company “has invested significantly in its organization” while offering it multiple opportunities to address these issues. “
“This situation is the result of years of mismanagement by Mr Washington, whose organization does not meet many of our standards in terms of people, operations, gas satisfaction and reinvestment,” the statement said.
More than 50 former Black McDonald’s franchise owners have made similar claims in a lawsuit filed against the company in September.