A former employee of a California Taco Bell has sued the company for forcing her to quit after she reported a group sex act that took place at the restaurant during a Christmas party last year.
Alana Bechiom filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles County Superior Court on 15 November, claiming that she was harassed and threatened by associates of her former co-workers who were fired for engaging in the sex act in front of other guests at the party.
The company that owns the franchised Taco Bell location did not respond to a request for comment from the Guardian. Taco Bell’s public relations office said in a statement, “While we don’t own or manage this location, the franchisee who owns and operates this restaurant has shared that they take these claims very seriously.”
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According to the lawsuit, Bechiom was invited by her supervisor to a potluck-style Christmas party at the Taco Bell on 18 December 2022. She brought a bowl of guacamole to the event, which she found to have the windows and the surveillance cameras covered with wrapping paper. Her supervisor also provided alcohol to the employees, some of whom were “overserved”.
Bechiom said she stepped outside for a moment and came back to see a shocking sight a co-worker was “having sex with his wife in front of everyone at the party”.
Bechiom also alleged that the co-worker’s wife was kissing two other women at the same time: her manager and another co-worker.
Bechiom was “shocked, disgusted and outraged” by the scene, the lawsuit said. She ran out of the restaurant, but returned to get her guacamole bowl. She then saw that her manager and the other co-worker who were involved in the sex act were vomiting, one in the trash and the other in her guacamole bowl.
Bechiom reported the incident to Taco Bell human resources and the Colorado-based company that owned the franchised location, Alvarado Restaurant Nation. She said the manager and the other employees who participated in the sex act were terminated.
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However, Bechiom said she faced retaliation from associates of her fired co-workers, who threatened her and broke her car window. She said her employers did not protect her, but instead tried to transfer her to another location. Bechiom eventually quit her job.
Her lawsuit seeks damages from her employers for creating a hostile work environment that forced her to resign. The case is still pending as of Tuesday.
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