A popular Mexican seafood chain restaurant is being sued by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, KPRC Local 2 reported Wednesday.The EEOC said two former Ostioneria Michoacán #8 employees were unlawfully fired shortly after being hired.

"During the orientation, they were told they were being fired because they could not speak Spanish and their servers were required to speak Spanish," said Kathy Boutchee with the EEOC. "You can't use Spanish speaking for a requirement as a job unless there is a business necessity. A business necessity is not for the convenience of the employer."

The EEOC said that even though its a Mexican restaurant, located in a largely Hispanic area, the agency's investigation shows the majority of the restaurant's customers are not made up of only Spanish speakers. It said, therefore, speaking Spanish should not be a requirement to work at the restaurant.

The Michoacán Seafood Group's attorney said, "Michoacán is an equal-opportunity employer. The company strongly denies that it engaged in any discrimination. The two former employees in question were terminated for legitimate, business-related reasons. Michoacán will aggressively defend itself and fully expects to prevail in a court of law."

The EEOC said the two former workers are seeking back wages, punitive damages and other relief from the restaurant. http://www.click2houston.com/news/21169062/detail.html