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Employees at a Pizza Hut in Lafayette LA, say they have been working in unsafe conditions, enduring months of extreme workplace heat due to a broken air conditioning system.
Community members are now raising concerns over the risks posed to both workers and customers.
Shakirra Ferguson, who has been employed at the site for several months, said conditions inside the kitchen have become unbearable.
“The heat in the kitchen it’s like blazing hot. I mean, like, it’s just unexplainably hot in it,” she said. “When you work in a fast food restaurant, you have to be at a steady pace back and forth, running, doing this, doing that, making this, making that, and then when the heat comes in, it just makes it worse. You sweat a lot and then you get it all over the place. So you have to stop, clean yourself back up, get back to work, and you just keep ripping and running in a fast food restaurant mainly every day.”
Charles McKinley, a regular customer and president of a local advocacy group called Concerned Community Crusaders, said he visited the restaurant and found staff visibly struggling.
“I could see them just being dehydrated, sweaty; wiping and I knew that’s not up to par as far as getting ready to serve food. You have to constantly be on guard and sweat pulling off of you,” he said. The customer was reportedly told the temperature reached over 100°F.
Health complaints and staff walkouts
McKinley said he returned at another time and was told some staff had left mid-shift due to heat-related illness. “I know they are scared because of job purposes but just be bold in what you need to do, you can’t work if you’re sick or you’re ill or you’re making somebody else sick,” he said.
A manager at the location confirmed the air conditioning system has been out of service for six months. The problem was less urgent during the winter, but with high summer temperatures, conditions have deteriorated.
The business reportedly needs to bring in $5,000 a week to cover expenses but has not been able to meet that target. The manager added that staff feel like they are “waiting ducks” as they hope for repairs.
“We as citizens was concerned about their health and the health of other people around here, because germs pass; epidemics come about all kind of ways, and it was stressful. It was deplorable and they couldn’t work in those conditions for over six months. That’s not cool,” McKinley said.
“It’s been six months, and they can’t work like that because something bad is going to happen to somebody.”
Ongoing delays put safety and service at risk
Despite acknowledging the problem, no repairs have yet been completed. Workers continue to report sweltering conditions, illness, and customer dissatisfaction.
The manager said the company is “trying to fit the AC” into its budget, but staff remain in limbo, and very hot.
