Why did Burger King fire the employee who ran the restaurant alone for 12 hours? Here's the reason it gave

A 25-year-old single mom from Columbia, South Carolina named Nykia Hamilton, went viral on social media after her video of working alone for 12 hours at a Burger King restaurant. Hamilton did everything on her own from cooking food, taking orders, running the drive-thru till cleaning. She was nicknamed the “Burger King mom.”

After the video went viral, Burger King made a statement saying that it is company policy that more than one worker should be on a shift. They also said they were looking into why she was left alone that day, as reported by The Tab.

Why Nykia Hamilton was fired

Nykia later said she was fired, not for the viral shift, but because she was sometimes late due to her children. She said, “My kids come first. Y’all don’t pay for no babysitter or nothing.”


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Burger King responded again, telling the New York Post that the firing was not their decision but the franchise owner’s. A spokesperson said Nykia was let go because of “repeated attendance issues”, as per the report by The Tab.

Burger King’s statement on staffing rules

The spokesperson also added that no worker should ever be left alone in a Burger King, and they were disappointed the rule was broken. They said the company wants all restaurants to have proper staff and support.

Nykia explained she worked those long hours because she has three kids to take care of, including one about to start school, and she couldn’t afford babysitters. After her story spread, a GoFundMe campaign was set up, and it has raised more than $97,000 to support her and her family, as per the report by The Tab.

FAQs

Q1. Why did Burger King fire Nykia Hamilton?
She was fired by the franchise owner for being late sometimes due to her children, not for running the restaurant alone.

Q2. How did people support Nykia Hamilton after she was fired?
A GoFundMe campaign was created for her family, raising over $97,000.