Tony Rohr, who has until now worked as a general manager at a Pizza Hut in Elkhart, Ind., says he lost his job for refusing to open the restaurant on Thanksgiving Day, WSBT 22 reports.
Even though his superiors told him that working on Thanksgiving was mandatory this year, as many businesses and restaurants will remain open on the holiday, Rohr decided to take a stand not for himself, but not for his employees.
"I said, 'Why can't we be the company that stands up and says we care about our employees and they can have the day off?'" he recalled to the local news station. "Thanksgiving and Christmas are the only two days that they're closed in the whole year and they're the only two days that those people are guaranteed to have off and spend it with their families."
After his superiors told him to sign a letter of resignation for protesting the rule, he refused, instead writing his boss a letter in support of his position.
"I am not quitting. I do not resign, however I accept that the refusal to comply with this greedy, immoral request means the end of my tenure with this company," Rohr wrote. "I hope you realize that it's the people at the bottom of the totem pole that make your life possible."
Even though he is now unemployed and looking for a new job, Rohr's girlfriend and family have remained supportive of his decisions, according to WSBT 22, and Rohr feels that his efforts were worth it even though his former employees will still have to work the holiday. Rohr, however, will celebrate at home with his girlfriend and family.
