Bias Suit Against Del Taco Broadens

Broadening their legal complaint against Del Taco Inc., several former African American employees are accusing the nation’s second-largest Mexican fast-food chain of discriminating against black prospective job candidates in favor of Latinos and of ignoring complaints about the hiring of undocumented Latino workers.

In March, one current and six former African American workers filed a civil suit against the Laguna Hills-based firm accusing it of turning a blind eye to Latino employees mistreating African Americans because of their race. On Friday, new charges were added to the lawsuit, along with two additional black plaintiffs.

“It seems the more we investigate, the more troubling the situation appears,” plaintiffs’ attorney James Urbanic said.

In a written statement, closely held Del Taco called the litigation a “great surprise” but declined to elaborate. The chain has 395 restaurants in 10 states.

Rochelle Manuel, a former cashier who is African American, witnessed a Latina supervisor at a Cypress Del Taco refuse to give job applications to blacks or take completed ones from them, the suit said. The black applicants were told the restaurant wasn’t hiring, while the Latina manager routinely gave applications and even jobs to Latinos, the suit said.

In another instance, a Del Taco human resources consultant failed to respond to African American employees’ complaints that the company was hiring illegal immigrants, the suit said. Instead of launching an investigation, the company retaliated against some of the African American workers by firing them, according to the suit.

The Immigration and Naturalization Service would not say whether it is investigating Del Taco for immigration violations. The agency does not discuss ongoing investigations, a spokesman said.

The suit seeks unspecified damages, including lost wages, punitive damages and reinstatement.