Federal labor prosecutors have accused Medieval Instances of retaliating in opposition to a employee who raised considerations about working circumstances, together with “the sexual assault of workers by prospects,” in line with a brand new criticism obtained by HuffPost.
A regional director for the Nationwide Labor Relations Board in Illinois issued the criticism in opposition to the dinner theater chain Monday. It alleges that Medieval Instances interrogated staff at an Illinois fort about their union exercise, illegally disciplined staff and fired the employee who spoke up about alleged sexual assault.
Employees at castles in New Jersey and Southern California unionized with the American Guild of Selection Artists final yr. The labor board criticism accuses Medieval Instances of “restraining” and “coercing” workers as they tried to train their collective-bargaining rights at a 3rd fort, within the Chicago suburb of Schaumburg. The corporate has 9 areas throughout the U.S.
Medieval Instances didn’t instantly reply to a request for touch upon the allegations.
By issuing the criticism, labor board officers have signaled that they regarded into the union’s claims and located advantage in them. Barring a settlement between the events, the allegations will probably be litigated in a labor board listening to the place either side name witnesses.
The costs come on the heels of two different complaints that prosecutors lodged in opposition to the corporate: one which alleged Medieval Instances administration took half in an unlawful scheme to undermine union assist in California, and a second that alleged the corporate tried to illegally silence staff by getting their union TikTok account banned. (The previous criticism has been settled, whereas the latter is about to go to trial subsequent month.)
The criticism relating to the Illinois fort alleges {that a} employee shared his considerations about prospects assaulting workers immediately with the corporate’s chief govt, Perico Montaner. It mentioned the corporate later gave the employee “extra onerous working circumstances,” disciplined him after which fired him in December.
Prosecutors accuse Medieval Instances of taking these actions as a result of the employee had spoken up about working circumstances and since the corporate wished to “discourage workers from partaking” in protected concerted actions.
When staff at Medieval Instances went public with their union marketing campaign final yr, they informed HuffPost that one of many causes they wished to arrange was to create a safer office. They mentioned that present solid members, together with actors who play the queen character, are generally touched or grabbed by prospects who’ve been consuming.
As one worker mentioned on the time, “It feels just like the buyer expertise so vastly outweighs not solely our worker expertise however our security and our well-being.”
The union has accused Medieval Instances of breaking the regulation repeatedly whereas attempting to throttle the union marketing campaign, together with by attempting to get the union’s social media accounts shut down.
Final yr Medieval Instances filed a lawsuit in opposition to the union, claiming that it had violated the corporate’s emblems. The corporate alleged that the union’s adopted identify, Medieval Instances Performers United, and the medieval imagery of its brand had created “shopper confusion” round the Medieval Instances model. A decide lately tossed the corporate’s declare.
In a separate criticism issued Monday, a regional director for the NLRB in New Jersey alleged that the corporate’s trademark lawsuit was retaliatory and meant to stop staff from talking out, in line with an NLRB spokesperson.