By Compensation culture can often get out of hand, but when an individual is brave enough to take on a corporate juggernaut and eventually win, it does sometimes make for a satisfying read.
In this case, Curtis Broomer took on Burger King after he accused them of lying to him about the promise of free food after being locked in the local branch bathroom.
Broomer stated that when locked in the bathroom, he heard restaurant staff laughing at him through the locked door. Whilst trying to escape, he also cut his hand on the lock. As way of apologising when he was set free, the managerial team offered him free food for life which is where the case began…
After enjoying his free burgers for the following few weeks, Broomer was then turned away after being told “they could no longer honour the arrangement, as it hadn’t been officially cleared”. Upset over the change of heart, Broomer took the next step of filing a lawsuit which calculated the cost of one Whopper meal a week for 22 years (it’s $9,026).
Believe it or not, despite Burger King having a strong legal team, they couldn’t fight this case which left them two options: either provide the free food or settle the cash alternative. Burger King chose the cash option.
Broomer’s lawyer, Mr Michael Fuller humourously said after the hearing:
“Our long national nightmare is over. Today Burger King agreed to pay our client’s demand in exchange for the dismissal of his lawsuit. Burger King makes no admission of liability and disputes our client’s claims. Nonetheless, Burger King has agreed to pay our client $9,026.16, which will allow him to buy one Burger King Whopper Meal per week for the rest of his life.”
Good on him, and may that be a lesson to us all – never make a promise you can’t keep (you never know who is ready to take you to court).