Taco Bell Seeks Quick Win in Worker’s Harassment Lawsuit (1)

A teen worker who says she was sexually harassed while working at a Taco Bell restaurant in Kansas can’t hold Taco Bell Corp. liable, the company argues.

The worker’s employer was JPM Inc., the owner of the Garden City, Kan., location, Taco Bell says in a June 14 motion seeking to be dismissed from the case. Taco Bell merely sold franchise rights to JPM and, as franchiser, owed no duty to the worker under Kansas tort law, the company says.

The lawsuit was filed in February under employment discrimination law against Taco Bell and two other companies. However, the worker, ...