"That's not how we operate": Burger King responds after Nykia Hamilton gets fired after running entire restaurant for 12 hours alone

A South Carolina fast-food worker who gained widespread attention for managing a Burger King restaurant by herself has been dismissed from her role, according to both the former employee and the company.

Nykia Hamilton, a 25-year-old mother of three from Columbia, gained attention online after a TikTok video in July captured her handling every part of the restaurant for about 12 hours due to a staffing shortage. The video went viral, showing her working multiple stations alone to keep the business running and serve customers.

A South Carolina Burger King employee, Nykia Hamilton, went viral for running the entire store solo after a co-worker quit. Balancing multiple roles, she showcased incredible dedication to her kids while facing tough challenges. Burger King is investigating the incident after her… pic.twitter.com/gqhBIgwo74

— American Focus (@americanfocusAF) July 16, 2025

Burger King released a statement about the situation. The company stated that it expects more than one person to be working at all times. It shared its disappointment that the franchise failed to follow this rule.

“No Team Member should ever be left to run a restaurant alone, even for a short period of time. That’s not how we operate, and we’re disappointed that our policy, which requires more than one Team Member to work per shift, wasn’t followed,” a company spokesperson told The Post Wednesday.

“Terminations are the decision of the franchisees who own and operate the BK restaurant. In this situation, the franchisee confirmed that the individual involved is no longer employed due to repeated attendance issues,” the statement continued. “While we can’t share more on individual personnel matters, we’re focused on making sure every restaurant, whether company or franchise-run, has the staffing and support needed to take care of our Team Members and deliver the kind of experience our Guests expect.”

Nykia Hamilton opens up about juggling work and kids

Nykia Hamilton explained that her job ended in early August because she struggled with being on time while managing her kids. In a TikTok video posted on August 8, she shared that parenting duties sometimes caused her to be late for work.

Hamilton talked about how hard it was to handle her job and raise three young kids at the same time. She mentioned working long hours and tough shifts, often feeling like she had no time with her family. Sometimes, she stayed late to cover closing shifts when the restaurant didn’t have enough workers.

“My mind is already f–kked up. I’m trying to keep pushing for my kids but I cannot do this s–t no more. The devil been on my back bad …I promise you he won,” Nykia Hamilton said.

“One of my employees just quit on me, and they didn’t have anyone else to come in, so I had to work by myself, and close by myself,” Hamilton told WACH News. "Had to do the dishes, do prep, do the floor, do the front counter, drive-thru.”

Following the news, Nykia Hamilton’s supporters kept donating to a GoFundMe set up to help her. By mid-August, it had raised over $81,000. Hamilton did not provide further comment when contacted.