Pizza Hut manager fired, then rehired, for refusing to open store on Thanksgiving

A Pizza Hut general manager who was fired for refusing to open his store on Thanksgiving Day has been rehired upon the recommendation of Pizza Hut’s corporate offices.

Tony Rohr, general manager of a Pizza Hut in Elkhart, Ind., was fired recently for refusing to make his employees work on Thanksgiving, accoriding to WSBT.

When Rohr was told opening on the holiday would be mandatory, he told his supervisors the restaurant he managed would not be opening that day.

“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 said.

Rohr said he was told to either open the store or sign a letter of resignation. Instead, he wrote a letter to his boss.

“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,” the letter read. “I hope you realize that it’s the people at the bottom of the totem pole that make your life possible.”

The store is owned by Franchise Management Investors US, according to Gawker. The franchisee’s director of operations said the decision to open on Thanksgiving came from corporate offices.

Supporters of Rohr flooded Pizza Hut’s Facebook page with angry messages and threats to boycott the company.

In a statement posted to Pizza Hut’s Facebook page on Wednesday, the company said it “strongly recommended” that Rohr be given his job back.

“We feel strongly that the situation involving our independent franchisee and the local store manager could and should have been avoided,” the statement said. “We fully respect an employee’s right to not work on a holiday, which is why the vast majority of Pizza Huts in America are closed on Thanksgiving.”

The company said the franchisee has agreed to reinstate Rohr.

“We look forward to them welcoming Tony back to the team,” the company’s statement said.

Contact Stephanie Grimes at sgrimes@reviewjournal.com. Find her on Twitter: @steph_grimes