This Teen Says Her Manager At Chili's Sexually Harassed Her For Two Years

One teenager is speaking out after being sexually harassed and stalked for two years by her manager, Josh Davidson, at Chili's. Emily Houser said that from the time she was hired at age 16, and for the next two years, the 24-year-old manager at the local Chili's restaurant in Whitehall, Pennsylvania, inappropriately pressured her to date him by plying her with unwanted gifts and showing up at her house in the middle of the night.

"On my 18th birthday, he showed up to my high school in the parking lot and just kind of rampaged me with gifts and asked me to officially be his girlfriend in front of a bunch of people," she told BuzzFeed News. "I said no, and he replied in a very pompous way, saying he didn't care if he got fired if we were together, and he didn't care if he lost his job because he just wanted to be with me."

Houser said that the final time Davidson approached her was in August. He showed up at her house at 2:30 in the morning and tried to give her a card with $100 enclosed. When she rejected his gift, he allegedly became "verbally and even physically abusive" toward her at work. When he turned his attentions toward another, younger co-worker, she decided to report him and put in her two weeks' notice.

Davidson was eventually relocated to another Chili's location, and Houser's co-workers refused to support her, even holding a "F**k Emily Houser" party to support their manager. The general manager and other staff also attended the party.

"I wish I had a reason as to why they did it, other than they didn't want to see him leave as a manager," she told BuzzFeed.

The employees responsible have since been terminated, and Chili's released the following statement to The Daily Meal:

"Chili's encourages a warm and welcoming workplace to provide our Guests with the service they expect. We do not condone and are disappointed by the actions that took place. When this issue surfaced, our franchise partner conducted a thorough investigation. As a result, the Team Members involved are no longer with the company."

Houser has called the subsequent outpouring of support from friends, family, and total strangers on the Internet "crazy and overwhelming."