A former employee has filed a lawsuit against a well-known restaurant chain, alleging wrongful termination and workplace harassment. Rashid Wilson, through his attorney Jermaine A. Walker of HKM Employment Attorneys LLP, lodged the complaint on November 18, 2025, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia against Benihana National Corporation.
Rashid Wilson began working at Benihana’s Alpharetta, Georgia location on September 7, 2023. According to the complaint, Wilson faced inappropriate behavior from his General Manager, Damion Kisiock, from his first day on the job. The alleged misconduct included unwelcome comments about Wilson’s cologne and standing too close to him. Despite reporting these incidents to District Manager Brian Alfarado on October 4, 2023, no corrective action was taken. On October 6th and again on October 17th, further inappropriate conduct was reported by Wilson but dismissed by management with comments that seemed to trivialize his concerns.
Wilson alleges that after he reported these incidents to Human Resources via a Zoom meeting on October 12th and subsequently followed up when no action was taken, he faced retaliation. He received a disciplinary write-up for an incident he claims he could not have been involved in due to being under medical care at the time. This write-up preceded his termination on November 11, 2023.
The lawsuit accuses Benihana of violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by allowing a hostile work environment based on sex discrimination and retaliating against Wilson for engaging in protected activities—specifically reporting unwanted sexual advances and harassment. Wilson argues that his termination was pretextual and directly linked to his complaints about workplace misconduct.
Wilson is seeking compensatory damages for emotional distress and other losses related to employment benefits and privileges. Additionally, he requests back pay, punitive damages where applicable by law, attorneys’ fees, costs associated with bringing the suit forward, as well as prejudgment and post-judgment interest. He also demands a jury trial for all issues triable by jury.
The case is being handled by Judge VMC-RGV under Case ID: 1:25-cv-06633-VMC-RGV. The plaintiff’s legal representation is provided by Jermaine A. Walker from HKM Employment Attorneys LLP.
Source: 125cv06633_Rashid_Wilson_v_Benihana_National_Complaint_Northern_District_of_Georgia.pdf
