Black IHOP Workers Say Manager Wore Monkey Hat, Made Racist Slavery Insults Before Their Hours Were Cut

Complaints about racist treatment at two South Florida IHOP restaurants allegedly cost four longtime Black employees work hours, favorable shifts and, for two of them, their jobs.

But the conduct Margaret Bennett, Stephanie Davis, Carline Hunter and Jeffrey Wright say they reported went far beyond offensive workplace banter. Their lawsuit describes a white manager invoking slavery, mimicking the crack of a whip, wearing a monkey hat around Black workers and making sexualized racial comments toward Wright.

Each plaintiff had worked at IHOP locations in Pompano Beach or Fort Lauderdale for at least a decade. Shift manager Brenda Bertetchuk is accused of repeatedly directing racist remarks at Black employees beginning in 2023.

When a Black customer returned an overcooked omelet that spring, Bertetchuk allegedly remarked, “I thought you people like it burned.” The complaint says similar comments were made when Black customers returned overcooked steak or chicken.

Juneteenth brought references to slavery. Bertetchuk allegedly questioned why Black employees were working on the holiday if it was the day white people freed them and later told a Black worker that her people were still selling Black people.

Other encounters became even more explicit. Bertetchuk allegedly referred to herself as “the master,” talked about having whips and sometimes imitated one cracking while speaking around Black employees.

The workers also accuse her of offering to bring them chicken and watermelon and wearing a hat depicting a monkey on multiple occasions in their presence. Wright says she used an altered version of the N-word while commenting on his shorts.

His allegations also extend beyond verbal racial harassment. The complaint says Bertetchuk repeatedly made sexual comments about Wright's body based on stereotypes about Black men while touching him during encounters he considered unwelcome and humiliating.

Davis describes physical aggression as well. Bertetchuk allegedly threw a pancake at her, while the complaint says plates were aggressively tossed toward Black servers and Hunter was told the manager wanted to trip her.

At the Fort Lauderdale restaurant, Bennett says a white male server repeatedly used the N-word when discussing Black customers and coworkers. He allegedly said he hated Black people and did not want to take their orders, and once spoke about shooting Black teenagers who had left without paying.

Management disciplined that server for at least one racist remark, but Bennett says the behavior persisted. She and the other plaintiffs contend their own working conditions deteriorated when they complained about racial treatment.

Hunter, Davis and Wright reported Bertetchuk either to management or through a human resources hotline. The lawsuit alleges their hours were later reduced, Davis was assigned to work alone in the kitchen and Wright eventually disappeared from the work schedule.

Bennett says she was disciplined and lost work hours before being fired. Wright also claims the scheduling decisions effectively ended his employment.

The four workers are seeking compensation for lost wages and benefits, emotional distress and other alleged harm, along with punitive damages. Their lawsuit accuses IHOP Restaurants, franchisee Sunshine Restaurant Merger Sub and Bertetchuk of race-based harassment and retaliation.

The dispute began in Broward County Circuit Court before the defendants moved it to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida on Aug. 26.

Bertetchuk told The Independent that she remembered the four employees but was not in a position to discuss their accusations. IHOP and Sunshine had not publicly answered the claims when the latest reports were published.