BrandIndex is a company that surveys a wide customer base across dozens of industries in order to determine what's trending and what's not. They took a hard look at Hooters in 2013, and what they found was pretty hilarious… or would be, if it wasn't so dismal.
Customers were asked to rate Hooters on a scale of 100 to -100, and as of 2013, women rated the chain at a pretty sad -21. That might not be surprising, but how about the guys? Their average score clocked in at an almost equally sad 2, climbing a bit from the -3 they scored just a few months prior.
And that's a big deal. According to American Marketing Association CEO and restaurant expert Russ Klein, getting rid of any taboo associated with Hooters is key. And that taboo? The numbers say it exists with guys, too.
There's an increased awareness of sexual harassment
Hooters' message of objectifying women (something Salon notes they were once quite upfront about on their own website, on a page that's now gone) has never looked more dated than it does post-2017. Thanks to movements like #MeToo, Time's Up, and Time Magazine's naming of The Silence Breakers as 2017's Person of the Year, the world is suddenly listening to women who are sick and tired of suffering sexual assault and harassment in silence. And that makes the hot pants and low-cut tops of Hooters' waitresses even more uncomfortable.
The presence of a Hooters restaurant and an increase in the potential for sexual assault was connected by Cathy Jamieson, deputy leader of the Scottish Labour Party. She noted (via The Independent), "Violence against women is a big problem… and these types of establishments do nothing to promote equality of women in the workplace." Feminist academic Carol J Adams went even further, saying, "It makes the degradation of women appear playful and harmless… thus everyone can enjoy the degradation of women without being honest."
There have been some serious lawsuits
In case you're wondering whether or not Hooters has ever been connected with assault and harassment lawsuits, the answer is yes.
Former waitress Sara Steinhoff sued Hooters for the abuse and harassment she says she suffered through between 1996 and 1997, and she walked away with $275,000. Her testimony included horrifying details like her managers' attempting to take her home, and threatening to tie her up. Others claimed they forced waitresses to participate in bikini contests as punishment (via ABC News).
In 2017, Jade Velez filed charges against Hooters, too. According to Philadelphia, she was subjected to sexual harassment finally culminating in a physical attack. Her managers, she stated, not only refused to help, but interpreted her walking out of the restaurant as grounds for her termination.
It's not just female employees that have had issues, either. In 2016, two men filed charges against their former Hooters managers for sexual harassment. When they complained to upper management, they were fired (via CBS).