Dunkin’ Donuts sues franchisee over hiring practices
Dunkin’ Donuts wants to sever ties with the owner of three of its shops in Key West because it claims in a lawsuit the shops employ undocumented workers.
Some businesses caught up in the crackdown on undocumented workers may have another risk to worry about: the loss of their franchise agreements.
Dunkin’ Donuts contends the owner of three Key West Dunkin’ Donut shops violated franchise agreements by hiring undocumented workers and is asking a federal court to terminate the contracts.
The Massachusetts-based chain’s lawsuit comes about a year after it voluntarily agreed to participate in the federal government’s Basic Pilot Program to ensure new hires are legally authorized to work. It marks at least the fourth time this year that Dunkin’ Donuts has accused a franchisee in a federal lawsuit of either violating immigration and employment laws or accepting false identification documents during the hiring process.
Dunkin’ Donuts spokeswoman Susanne Norwitz said it’s company policy not to comment on pending litigation.
Calls to the Dania Beach office of Thomas E. Lewis, president of the Monroe Donut Co., which operates the three Key West shops, weren’t immediately returned. Monroe Donut’s shops are on Duval Street, Greene Street and North Roosevelt Drive. It has been a franchisee for almost five years.
‘Dunkin’ Donuts is not doing anything different than what federal and state agencies are doing in pushing on the enforcement of unauthorized workers,” said Enrique Gonzalez. a corporate immigration lawyer in Miami. Dunkin’ Donuts may be holding their franchisees’ workforces to a higher standard than others’ to ensure its brand image isn’t tarnished, added Gonzalez, who is not involved in the case.
A check of federal court records didn’t turn up any other civil or criminal cases against Monroe Donuts.
Dunkin’ Donuts sued franchisees in Atlanta, Boston and New Jersey to terminate franchise agreements for improperly documenting new hires.
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