A family member of an Olive Garden employee said that the restaurant refused to give her sister a vacation check—despite her not taking a single day off in 25 years.
Jamie (@jamierpm) spoke on her sister’s behalf in the TikTok, which has since been deleted. She began by facing the camera with a shocked expression on her face.
“My sister has been at the Olive Garden over 25 years, and she, for the first time ever, took time off because my dad died,” Jamie said. “And they refused her her vacation check.”
She paused before continuing, “Wow. Corporate America.”
As she spoke, text overlay appeared over her head. “Like they can’t afford her vacation pay,” Jamie wrote. “Out of 4 of us, we worked there over 100 years!”
According to Olive Garden’s job board, servers are given one hour of paid sick leave for every 30 hours worked. Moreover, they receive paid family and medical leave for up to two weeks after working at the restaurant for a year. If Jamie’s sister worked at Olive Garden for over 25 years, it’s unclear why the chain would refuse to honor her time off.
Prior to its removal, the video garnered over 62,000 views. It also sparked a flood of support from viewers. TikTok users tagged Olive Garden in her comments, asking them to explain why they wouldn’t honor Jamie’s sister’s benefits after the loss of her father.
“@Olive Garden explain please!!” one user wrote.
“Hey @Olive Garden ‘when you’re here your family. When you work here we treat you like a whole trashcan,’” another chimed in.
“@Olive Garden fix it,” a third person said.
“@Olive Garden do I need to start making my own sketti?” a fourth commenter asked.
The Daily Dot reached out to Jamie via TikTok comment and Olive Garden by email.
