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A former Waffle House employee who was fired for taking part in a viral TikTok challenge has claimed she did not violate the company’s policies, with thousands of social media users criticizing the restaurant chain.
Yadira Ramirez, the viral sensation in question, has released a video claiming that she was let go for taking part in the challenge.
She alleges none of her co-workers who also took part in the challenge in her video were fired.
The incident has caused an employer brand PR fallout for Waffle House after a follow-up video announcing her firing gathered over 13 million views and over 29,000 comments, with comments slamming Waffle House and even advising Ramirez to file a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) gathering tens of thousands of likes.
Why did Waffle House fire the employee?
Ramirez’s video was part of a social media challenge launched by Latto, a rapper and music artist. On September 15, Latto took to X after criticism about her song ‘Brokey’ suggesting she bragged about her financial privilege.
“I hate that y’all think I was calling hard workers brokeys so I got $10k for whoever make the best video at they job to brokey & I’ll fly u out to be in the music video…no mo waiting til ur bday to go outta town. Tag me & hashtag #Brokey so I can see them all,” Latto wrote.
Ramirez posted a video on September 20 showing her and her colleagues dancing to video.
In the 27-second video, Ramirez only appears once mouthing along to the song lyrics, with five other Waffle House employees taking part. The video features Waffle House signature menu items (including waffles).
To date, the video has collected over 25 million views, 3.8 million likes, and nearly 21,000 comments.
Ramirez then shared a further update revealing that Waffle House fired her a day after she posted the video. “I just got fired because of that video… a day after posting one video that literally harms nobody. That everybody was actually, literally rooting for and happy about,” she said.
Ramirez also stated that she worked at Waffle House for six years and claimed that Waffle House put her on a “no-rehire” list.
In a further video, Ramirez went on to claim that she did not violate Waffle House rules by posting the viral TikTok.
“Our company policy does not say we’re not allowed to have our phones. It just says don’t bash or talk bad about the company, and we didn’t,” Ramirez said. “I was the only one to get fired. No one is getting written up from what I’ve been told.”
29,000 comments: Could the firing be an employer brand problem for Waffle House?
For Ramirez, the story has a happy ending. Her viral video, no doubt compounded by her rollercoaster Waffle House story, ended up winning the $10,000 promised by Latto.
Under another follow-up video she wrote: “also, i’m good. i’m not sad. just was sad in the moment i do understand that life is about growth and blessings, im looking forward to my new path.”
But the decision to fire Ramirez as triggered an employer branding crisis for Waffle House. The video in which she discussed being fired has been viewed over 13 million times, with a staggering 29,000 comments that overwhelmingly support Ramirez and criticize the fast food chain.
“I know it hurts, but you’re better than waffle house. You will find something so much more grand that will appreciate your creativity!” wrote one user, in a comment that got over 172,000 likes.
“File an EEOC complaint unless the fired everybody else in the video too!!!” another user advised in a comment with over 32,000 likes.
Other restaurant chains have made similar attempts to stop employees from filming social media content at work.
In April, Chick-fil-A informed an employee who was making viral videos about menu items and life as a staff member that she would have to stop making the videos as they broke employee handbook rules.
Comments from users disappointed with the news suggested Chick-fil-A missed a trick – and even tagged competitors suggesting they hire the worker, gathering thousands of likes: “I’m thinking maybe @Culver’s @Whataburger or maybe @Wendy’s could put you for work!” one user wrote.
