N.Y. Attorney General’s Office Denies It Has Records Showing Union Collusion in Papa John’s Lawsuit

By Kevin Mooney on February 19, 2015

Did the New York Attorney General’s Office collude with a local union leader to develop the basis for a lawsuit against a Papa John’s Pizza franchisee?

If not — if the union leader was not involved in the investigation of the pizza franchises’ pay and employee practices before it became public– why was the union leader quoted in a press release announcing the lawsuit had been filed?

And why won’t the New York Attorney General’s Office turn over documents relevant to the matter?

In response to a Freedom of Information request from a free-market group known as Americans for Limited Government, the attorney general’s office contended that it has no records showing union collusion in the Papa John’s lawsuit.

Last Oct. 16, New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman filed suit against the Papa John’s pizza franchises in the state’s supreme court over alleged labor law violations. Schneiderman’s suit seeks more than $2 million for more than 400 delivery workers in restitution, damages and interest from New Majority Holdings LLC, which operates five Papa John’s restaurants in Manhattan.

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