Three employees — including the general manager — of a Cracker Barrel restaurant in Waldorf, Maryland, were fired after a group of students with disabilities and their teachers were turned away during a Dec. 3 visit.
The restaurant chain’s media relations department confirmed in a statement that it conducted an internal investigation after the chain received a complaint that students with intellectual and developmental disabilities were denied service.
The restaurant pledged it would be “moving forward with specialized training for all employees at this particular store,” and that it has “a zero-tolerance policy against any form of discrimination.”
However, it also contested the claim that the group of 11 students and seven teachers were denied service.
“We did not refuse service to this student group, but operational breakdowns caused by staffing shortages and poor communication on our part led us to fall well short of our service standards,” the statement read.
Representatives from Cracker Barrel met with Charles County Public School officials and parents on Monday, Dec. 9, and the chain’s media relations department said that after that meeting, “We would be honored to host this student program if they will give us another chance.”
The business added that it hopes to have an ongoing discussion with school officials on “how we can best serve the community going forward.”
WTOP reached out to the school system but have yet to receive a response.
Before Monday’s meeting, Charles County School Superintendent Maria Navarro said in a Dec. 5 letter to parents that while she was initially “disheartened” to hear how the group was treated during the outing, she said it was “encouraging to learn that the district manager said the business would be willing to work with CCPS to do better.”
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