Bowlero BOWL executive Brett Parker comments on EEOC discrimination

A Bowlero executive publicly addressed the sprawling federal discrimination probe the company is facing for the first time Wednesday after it reported another quarter of what it called record-breaking growth. 

Brett Parker, the company’s outgoing chief financial officer and longtime number two to CEO Thomas Shannon, was asked about the investigation during an earnings call. The question came about a week after CNBC revealed authorities want to settle the investigation for $60 million. 

“There’s been quite a bit of noise related to the EEOC review that’s been pending here. It seemed to grab quite a bit of media attention in the last week. Want to see if there is anything that you wanted to comment on that,” Jeremy Scott Hamblin, an analyst with Craig-Hallum Capital Group, asked Parker. 

Parker responded by saying the claims included in CNBC’s reporting are “entirely false,” and “we deny them in the strongest terms.”

“We have nothing to hide. We have fully cooperated and provided information to document – and documents to the EEOC throughout this whole process,” said Parker. 

“Our own thorough investigation into the claims also has not substantiated any evidence of wrongdoing or any violation of our policies prohibiting any form of employment discrimination,” he said.

Parker went on to say the company “does not tolerate discriminatory or demeaning context.” He insisted “these are the facts,” which is why the company has fought so hard to have the claims thrown out.

“Whatever the outcome is, it will not materially impact our business or distract us from executing against our strategic priorities. Our latest earnings results that we’re talking about now reflect our unwavering focus and commitment to excellence,” he said. 

“At the end of the day, we stand by our positive workplace culture, we stand by our visionary leader, and we stand by our track record of cultivating exceptional talent. And beyond that, there’s not much we can say.”

Last week, Bowlero’s stock dropped as much as 9% in intraday trading after CNBC published an investigation that revealed new details about a sprawling investigation the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has been conducting into the company’s employment practices. The stock closed about 4% lower that day.

Parker’s comments mark the first time a Bowlero executive has publicly addressed the EEOC’s probe, which has been ongoing since 2016.

When CNBC reached out to Bowlero prior to publishing a report about the probe, the company refused to make its executives available for an interview. It only communicated through its attorneys and an outside press representative. At times, discussions around reporting the confidential settlement negotiations became antagonistic when the outside press representative intimated a CNBC reporter could be arrested for publishing the information, underscoring the seriousness of the claims.

The case involves at least 73 former employees who claim they were fired based on their age, or…