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Police investigate Mich. Burger King employee after Facebook post
March 28, 2010
A Burger King employee's Facebook post has led to a police investigation of possible food tampering, according to WPBF news. The employee of a Detroit metro area store now claims to have been joking after a bad day at work, but his post warning people to stay away from the store because the employees spit in the food has been taken seriously. The franchisee said it had no idea what the employee was writing.
The post has concerned customers, and the story has been picked up by media outlets around the country.
Following employees' social media posts related to their work may become just as important as tracking consumer communications about the brand. Disgruntled employees may feel free to vent and defame the brand in these mediums. In several well known incidents, employees have posted videos of pranks held at their restaurants, leading to public relations nightmares. Last May, a Subway store in the United Kingdom closed after an employee at the restaurant filmed himself tampering with food and posted the video on YouTube. In Ohio, a Burger King employee was filmed bathing in the store's utility sink and later fired after the video was posted to YouTube.
Pizza chain Domino's spent weeks rebuilding its reputation after restaurant employees filmed and posted a video of themselves tampering with customers' food. The incident served as a lesson on the dangers of an online world where someone with a video camera and a grudge can bring a company to its knees with lightning speed, reported PizzaMarketplace.com.
When such incidents do turn into a public relations nightmare, the QSR's crisis management team needs to respond swiftly to calm consumers' fears and restore trust in the brand, experts say.
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