Allison Brown suggested the restaurant chain to organize better sensitivity traininings

Apr 15, 2014 09:39 GMT  ·  By
California woman decided to sue Subway for the insulting message a worker wrote on her pizza box
   California woman decided to sue Subway for the insulting message a worker wrote on her pizza box

A California woman is considering taking legal action against a Subway franchise after an employee insulted her by writing “Big Mama” in black marker on her order.

Two weeks ago, Allison Brown stopped by a local Subway restaurant on Hacienda Drive in Vista to order lunch for her and her family. When she got home and pulled her order out of the bag, she was horrified to see the words “Big Mama” scrawled on a flat-bread Flatizza box.

The 45-year-old woman says she was always sensitive about her weight, so she found the words humiliating.

“I just broke down crying. I couldn't eat it. I kept thinking, 'Big Mama' doesn't need to eat. It started really messing with me. I started thinking, 'Maybe I need surgery. Do I really look that bad? What's wrong with me?'” Allison told the New York Daily News.

She immediately called the Subway outlet and asked to talk to the owner, who apologized after admitting that an employee had written the cruel remark because he “didn’t know better.” When her subsequent calls to the Subway's corporate office went unanswered, Brown had her lawyer send a letter in which he suggested better sensitivity training for employees.

Although she made no monetary demands, the woman was offered $5,000 (€3,600) if she agreed to sign a confidentiality agreement through which she would have technically waived her right to sue the restaurant chain.

The unhappy customer obviously rejected the offer, saying that, “This isn't about money. This breaks my heart. Here Subway promotes itself as a place for people who need help eating better, then this happens. What if the wrong person got a box like mine? What if they saw that and tried to commit suicide?”

Brown and her lawyer, Daniel Gilleon, plan to file a lawsuit against the fast food restaurant franchise demanding that the sandwich giant organize anti-discrimination trainings for employees.

On the other hand, the owner of the store that at the center of this incident, says he does not tolerate discrimination of any kind, and explained that the employee involved in the controversy was terminated.

The American fast food giant Subway is one of the fastest growing franchises in the world, with nearly 41,000 locations in 105 countries and territories. Its core product is the submarine sandwich, or sub, but the chain also sells salads, wraps and baked goods.

Brown vowed to never go to eat at a Subway restaurant again.