California
Restaurant hired fake clergyman to bug employees at confessions
The priest mainly asked questions about everyday work, which seemed strange to the employees (symbol image)
© Photoboyko / Getty Images
A US company offered its employees the opportunity to confess to a priest during working hours. However, this was mainly used to control the employees.
There should normally be an atmosphere of trust between believers and clergy – especially when it comes to confession, where people confess their wrongdoing. However, an employer from the US state of California shamelessly exploited this relationship of trust.
The Sacramento-based restaurant chain hired a priest so employees could go to confession during work hours. However, investigations into the company revealed that the man was not a clergyman at all. Rather, he was apparently used by the management to sound out the staff.
Confession of misconduct at work
According to one employee, the fake priest prodded during confessions whether the workers were late for their shifts, stolen money or had other “bad intentions” towards their employer. The Catholic Diocese of Sacramento told the Catholic News Agency that there was “no evidence of any connection between the diocese and the alleged priest.” The US Department of Labor called the restaurant chain’s actions “shameless”.
The company was initially investigated because it refused to pay its employees for overtime. According to a report from the Department of Labor, the employees were not allowed to use their digital time cards, but had to confirm in writing that they had not worked more than 40 hours. In addition, managers were paid by tips. In order for the employees to keep quiet, they were apparently threatened with “impact under immigration law”.
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Company must pay $140,000
With these measures, the employer wanted to prevent investigations by the authorities and prevent the repayment of outstanding wages, the Ministry of Labor said. Ultimately, however, this approach was unsuccessful. The company has to pay its employees 140,000 euros: 70,000 euros in back wages and the same amount in damages.
Sources: US Department of Labor / Catholic News Agency