While many people have turned to making amateur porn in the months since the COVID-19 pandemic decimated the job market, Lonna Wells went in the opposite direction. With coronavirus hampering the logistics of shooting scenes, Wells got a job at her local Taco Bell in Newport, Arkansas to help pay the bills for her family of four. After a customer complained about Wells' prior profession, she was fired.
The 33-year-old was terminated over the phone by a manager, who told Wells that she was being fired over customer complaints about her pornographic work.
“They couldn’t have even given me a heads up, or waited until I got there to say something,” Wells told The Daily Beast. “I just started bawling. I don’t know if it was because I was upset, or I was ticked, or a little bit of both.”
Arkansas' labor laws do not recognize a need for just cause to terminate employment. The state is what's known as an "at-will employment" state, meaning that employers can fire employees at any time, for any reason (outside of belonging to groups protected by anti-discrimination laws). Though Wells claims she was upfront about her past work during her job interview, her firing appears to follow the letter of the law.
Taco Bell's corporate office issued a statement on her termination that distanced themselves from the incident while contradicting Wells' version of events.
“Taco Bell team members come from diverse backgrounds and experiences and all are welcome into the Taco Bell family," they wrote. "This former team member worked for a franchise location and the franchisee has informed us that the accusations made are not accurate and that she was instead terminated for violation of their policies and procedures.”
Wells has launched a GoFundMe to help her with bills in the short-term and says that she hopes to pressure Arkansas to change its labor laws.
“I’m tired of seeing this happen to workers. We’re normal people. Whatever you do in your private life or spare time should be private,” she said. “If we don’t speak up, who’s to say this isn’t going to keep happening?”
