Applebees Exec’s Leaked Email Causes Outrage Over Exploiting Employees

An alleged email from an Applebee’s franchise executive had workers and onlookers online frothing with rage after reportedly revealing a plot to lower wages and take advantage of employees who would be desperate for work due to high gas prices.

“Most of our employee base and potential employee base live paycheck to paycheck,’ the email read. ‘Any increase in gas prices cuts into their disposable income,” the email alleged sent by Wayne Pankratz read. Pankratz is executive director of operations for American Franchise Capital, the owner of 50 Applebee’s franchises in the midwest.

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“As inflation continues to climb and gas prices continue to go up, that means more hours employees will need to work to maintain their current level of living,” the alleged email reads. “Besides hiring employees at a lower wage to decrease our labor [cost] (when able) make sure you have a pulse on the morale of your employees. Your employees that live check to check are impacted more than the people reading this email. Be conscious of that. Many will need to work more hours or get a second job.”

The alleged leaked email sparked many online, especially on Reddit and Twitter, to call for a boycott of the chain in response to the appalling email. According to the Kansas City Star, managers at some of the restaurants resigned in protest. It also sparked a response from American Franchise Capital in spokesperson Scott Fischer’s statement.

“He doesn’t have the authority to create policy for our company for the brand or anything. … Maybe he wrote it in the middle of the night. I don’t know,” Fischer said. “The main message here is that this in absolutely no way, shape, or form speaks to our policies or our culture, or anything like that with our brand.”

One of the managers who quit an Applebee’s in Lawrence, Kansas was quoted saying, “I was just stunned and disgusted,” after reading the email. The response online included a lot of “eat the rich” statements and shock by others. There was also plenty of criticism of Applebee’s in general, something that has been prevalent for years at this point.

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According to The Daily Mail, the COO of Applebee’s also weighed in on the email. “This is the opinion of an individual, not Applebee’s,” Kevin Carroll said in a statement. “We understand that the franchisee who owns and operates the restaurants in this market has placed the individual on leave. Our team members are the lifeblood of our restaurants, and our franchisees are always looking to reward and incentivize team members, new and current, to remain within the Applebee’s family.”