The #MeToo movement arrived at McDonald’s as employees in 10 cities organized a strike to highlight the company’s handling of sexual harassment claims.
The Associated Press reported that workers were planning to walk out on Tuesday at McDonald’s locations in Chicago; New Orleans; Orlando; Durham, North Carolina; San Francisco; St. Louis; Kansas City, Missouri; Los Angeles; Miami; and Milwaukee.
Organizers are asking for better processes for reviewing harassment claims, mandatory anti-harassment training and the creation of a national committee, the AP reported.
“This committee would chart a path forward to make sure nobody who works for McDonald’s faces sexual harassment on the job,” a workers statement said, according to NBC Los Angeles.
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McDonald’s told the AP in a statement, “We have policies, procedures and training in place that are specifically designed to prevent sexual harassment at our company and company-owned restaurants, and we firmly believe that our franchisees share this commitment.”
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Employees and the organizations who support them have been posting pictures of the protests on social media throughout the day on Tuesday.
Some organizers filed complaints in May at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, according to the AP.
The National Women’s Law Center said that one incident of harassment involved a male employee in St. Louis saying to a 15-year-old cashier, “You have a nice body. Have you ever had white chocolate inside you?”
The cashier reported the incident to her manager, who replied, “You will never win that battle.”
According to the National Women’s Law Center, a manager in Chicago asked an employee, who was reportedly fired for reporting the incident, “how many penises she could take.”
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Mary Joyce Carlson, a lawyer who worked with the organizers behind the filings, told the AP: “We see no evidence there’s been any change at all.” She added, “Whatever policy they have is not effective.”
McDonald’s did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
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