Lawsuits claim Wendy's in Sydney failed to protect female employees from sex assault
CBC
Two lawsuits are alleging that a Wendy's fast-food restaurant in Sydney, N.S., was negligent in failing to protect female employees from repeated sexual assaults by a supervisor.
The lawsuits were filed in Nova Scotia Supreme Court Thursday against the restaurant, according to a press release sent from Halifax-based law firm Valent Legal.
Valent Legal said the restaurant took no steps to investigate or address the reported sexual misconduct by the plantiffs' supervisor, identified as David MacDonald.
Court records show that MacDonald, 25, has pleaded guilty to five counts of sexual assault, each involving a different victim. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Tuesday. The law firm said the charges relate to incidents at the restaurant.
CBC has reached out to Wendy's for comment.
The plaintiffs were minors at the time the assaults occurred. The plantiffs say they and other female employees informed Wendy's of the sexual assaults, and that in 2019, one female employee filed a police report accusing MacDonald of criminal sexual assault at the workplace.
"This case highlights the importance of taking allegations of workplace sexual assault seriously," Basia Sowinski, a litigation lawyer with Valent Legal, said in a press release.
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