Lawsuit claims Culver's fast-food chain retaliated against trans manager and workers who reported transphobia

The federal government filed a lawsuit Friday alleging the operators of Culver’s restaurants broke the law when they fired a transgender manager and three employees after they complained about a transphobic work environment.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed the suit charging five related entities operating Culver’s locations in Michigan with failing to protect the civil rights of Asher Lucas, a transgender shift manager. The suit, EEOC v. Brik Enterprises Inc., et al., was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, charging the companies failed to act when two Culver’s employees deliberately misgendered Lucas on multiple occasions and then retaliated against Lucas and others who complained.

“Three of Lucas’s colleagues witnessed one of the employees, who was openly hostile toward gay and transgender people, make anti-trans comments and misgender him,” the EEOC said in a press release. “Lucas and his colleagues reported the harassment to a Culver’s general manager, but nothing was done to stop the harassment.”

When management failed to respond to complaints, “the employee was emboldened to obtain Lucas’s birth name, deadname him, and reveal his birth name to coworkers without his consent,” the EEOC continued.

Days after Lucas and his colleagues complained a second time, they were fired.

“Employers must protect all employees, including transgender employees, from sex-based harassment at work,” Omar Weaver, assistant regional attorney in the EEOC’s Detroit office, said. “When employees complain of harassment, whether directed at them or witnessed by them, employers cannot fire those employees because of their complaints.”

Culver’s is a regional fast-food restaurant founded in 1984 in Wisconsin and featuring cheese products such as butter burgers, cheese curds, and ice cream. Franchises operate in 26 states, with a strong presence in the Midwest and recent expansion into southern states like Florida.

The chain pranked patrons on April Fools' Day in 2021 with a fictitious CurderBurger featuring a fried cheese curd patty on a bun.