Lawsuit accuses Pitt of failing to pay for food service during pandemic
A food service provider is suing the University of Pittsburgh, alleging that the school failed to honor its contracts during the pandemic and owes the company more than $7 million.
The lawsuit, filed by Sodexo Operations LLC, alleges breach of contracts on both the Oakland and Johnstown campuses and accuses Pitt of taking “unjust advantage of Sodexo’s willingness to take extraordinary steps to service students during the height of the pandemic.”
A spokesman for the university said he could not comment on pending litigation.
A complaint filed Thursday in federal court said Pitt directed Sodexo to prepare for its entire student body to shelter in place in March 2020. It asked the company to have food on hand and employees ready for when students returned from spring break.
However, the university then announced that students would not return to campus, thereby causing Sodexo to lose revenue.
The number of expected students changed from 4,000 to 1,500 and, eventually, just 200, the lawsuit said.
As a result of the university’s changing requests, the lawsuit said, “Sodexo incurred millions of dollars in additional inventory and labor charges for which (Pitt) has refused to reimburse or otherwise compensate Sodexo, despite numerous requests.”
Sodexo and Pitt entered into a contract to manage and operate food service and beverages at the Oakland campus in 2007, which had been extended multiple times until it expired on June 30, 2020.
Paula Reed Ward is a TribLive reporter covering federal and Allegheny County courts. She joined the Trib in 2020 after spending nearly 17 years at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, where she was part of a Pulitzer Prize-winning team. She is the author of "Death by Cyanide." She can be reached at pward@triblive.com.
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