Panda Express Employee Forced to Strip During ‘Trust-Building’ Exercise, Lawsuit says

Women who worked at Santa Clarita restaurant stated that she was forced to live through horrific psychological abuse in 2019 at her workplace. 

What We Know:

• Jennifer Spargifiore, 23, a former Panda Express employee, said she felt pressured to strip to her underwear in front of colleagues and hug a partially clothed coworker during a “cult-like ritual” 2019 training seminar. 
• The 23-year-old is suing Panda Restaurant Group, headquartered in Rosemead, and Alive Seminars and Coaching Academy in Pico Rivera for sexual battery, a hostile work environment, and intentional infliction of emotional distress, according to a new report. Alive Seminars and Coaching Academy is a third-party organization in which Panda Express has no ownership interest. 
• Panda Restaurant Group said that they are conducting their own investigations concerning the lawsuit. A company statement states that “We do not condone the kind of behavior described in the lawsuit, and it deeply concerns to us; we are committed to providing a safe environment for all associates and stand behind our core values to treat each person with respect.” According to NBC News, it states “that Panda Express company is distancing its self from Alive Seminars.”
• The seminar had the same atmosphere as an interrogation room. For example, the lights were dimmed, cellphone use was prohibited, there was no clock in the room, and the doors and windows were covered with a black cloth during the seminar, reported NY Post. There has been no response from Alive Seminar or Coaching Academy as to what they felt happened. 

Spargifiore has stated that these Alive Seminars were often a prerequisite to a promotion. Unfortunately, it did not turn out that way. She has since been “constructively” terminated from her position, and a lawsuit is pending. There are no other details as of late.