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On Sept. 16 an 18-year-old Waffle House employee in Laurinburg, N.C., was shot and killed during his shift. The tragedy brought attention to Waffle House workers across the South who have been engaged in a long-time struggle for safer working conditions

Around 12:45 a.m., a customer became agitated and verbally abusive toward employees while his food was being prepared, according to a Laurinburg Police Department news release. 

After exiting, he fired two shots toward the restaurant, striking Burlie Dawson Locklear. Locklear, who had recently graduated high school, died after being taken to the hospital. 

“I read the story, and I cried,” Cindy Smith, a 30-year Waffle House waitress, said. “That innocent baby did not deserve to lose his life because that man wanted to be stupid. Waffle House should have had security in place. If they did, that baby would still be here.”

Soon after, Waffle House released a statement calling Locklear's death “an outrageous act of violence” and offering free counseling services to their employees. However, organizers say Waffle House has made no substantial effort to address the greater issue of workplace safety in their restaurants. 

“It's sad to know that when you go into work, you're clocking in not knowing if you're gonna make it home to your family that afternoon, that morning or that night,” Smith said. “You shouldn't have to work like that; nobody should.” 

‘Then take care of your family’

Smith is 50 years old and has worked at a Waffle House near Atlanta for 30 years. She remembers the events of one traumatic morning years ago, when she had to bring her 6-year-old son to work with her and he sat nearby while she worked. During the day, a man reentered the store after receiving his order and Smith asked if there was anything she could help him with. In response, she said he pulled out a gun and demanded every penny in the register. 

“I had tunnel vision,” Smith said. “All I could see was that pistol in my face, and all I could think was that my son was gonna witness his mother getting murdered in front of his face. If I don’t move fast enough, this man’s gonna pull this trigger.” 

Smith said that Waffle House never checked on her, her son or anyone else who was working that day. She also said that violence like this is, unfortunately, a common experience for Waffle House employees. 

“It's almost like we are in as much danger as police officers are in the streets every day,” Smith said. “That's ridiculous. It should not be that way, and they claim that they're a family restaurant. Then take care of your family.”

Smith is a member of the Union of Southern Service Workers, who has spearheaded the movement of Waffle House employees demanding safer working conditions. 

“We refuse to be exploited — and so we're getting organized,” the USSW wrote alongside a petition for Waffle House to meet their three demands: safety at work, an end to unfair paycheck deductions and fair wages. 

In June, Waffle House CEO Joe Rogers III announced a plan to raise base-pay at franchises nationwide to at least $3, promising an increase to $5.25 by June 2026. 

‘How we can support the people who support us’

The demand for safety at work includes providing 24/7 security and allowing workers to have input on creating a safety plan for their store, including during natural disasters. 

Waffle House is known for staying open as much as possible, whether it's holidays or hurricanes, to the point where Southerners — and even federal officials — sometimes use the “Waffle House Index” to gauge the severity of natural disasters. 

The index refers to the level of operation of Waffle Houses during storms. If the restaurants remains open, locals are reassured that the storm will likely not be severe, but a closed restaurant has come to indicate impending disaster. 

Blair Kelley, the director of the Center for the Study of the American South at UNC-Chapel Hill, said that the decisions of Waffle House stem from their workers not being seen as valuable. 

“They are forced to work through storms with no additional pay or support,” Kelley said. “They have been the target of people's anger and violence because they deal with the public on a 24/7 basis, and they're really not protected.” 

Kelley said that Waffle House workers are the experts on their own condition, which is why the USSW calls for them to have a say in creating safety plans for their restaurant locations. 

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Despite the severity of violent events like Locklear's death, Kelley said that the fights that break out in Waffle House restaurants are often made fun of on social media and used as entertainment. 

“Remember that that's where someone has to go to make a living so that they can pay for their housing, educate their family and do all the things that we all want to do,” Kelley said. “We have a duty to think about the cost that people are suffering in those circumstances.”

Kelley, author of “Black Folk: The Roots of the Black Working Class,” says that restaurant workers are a historically vulnerable population and one that many rely on. 

“Their presence at their jobs is essential for the comfort of others and the things that we expect of our society,” Kelley said. “So we as a society ought to think more broadly about how we can support the people who support us.”

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