Papa John's chairman Schnatter quits after racial remarks
[TOKYO] Papa John's International Inc.'s chairman John Schnatter resigned, after coming under fire over controversial comments that battered the shares of the pizza chain he founded.
The independent directors of the company accepted the resignation of Mr Schnatter, the company said in a statement late Wednesday. Olivia Kirtley will act as the company's lead independent director, while Papa John's will appoint a new chairman in the coming weeks, the statement said.
Just seven months after exiting the CEO role after making critical comments about the National Football League's national-anthem dispute, Mr Schnatter came under fire following a media report that he used a racial slur and graphic descriptions of violence against minorities on a May conference call with a media agency.
Mr Schnatter admitted to using an offensive racial term during the call and apologized, according to a separate statement earlier Wednesday.
"News reports attributing the use of inappropriate and hurtful language to me during a media training session regarding race are true," Mr Schnatter said in the statement. "Regardless of the context, I apologise. Simply stated, racism has no place in our society."
BLOOMBERG
BT is now on Telegram!
For daily updates on weekdays and specially selected content for the weekend. Subscribe to t.me/BizTimes
Consumer & Healthcare
HCA beats first-quarter profit estimates on higher patient admissions
US FDA approves Pfizer’s gene therapy for rare bleeding disorder
EU toughens rules on Chinese fashion retailer Shein
Best World under fire from shareholders at AGM over dividends, director salaries
‘Extreme’ climate blamed for world’s worst wine harvest in 62 years
Sheng Siong Q1 net profit up 9.3% on higher revenue