SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) -- A former employee of a pizza restaurant in northeastern South Dakota is accusing the franchise's owner of forcing him to wear an offensive name tag after he forgot his at home. Caleb Larson filed a defamation lawsuit this month against the Pizza Ranch franchise in Watertown and its owner seeking compensatory damages because of the emotional distress he says he suffered during the one-time incident. Restaurant owner Ross Olson has asked the presiding judge to dismiss the case, but admits in court filings he gave Larson a name tag that read "braindead." Larson, who now lives in Aberdeen and whose age was not listed in the lawsuit, claims in the civil complaint that he went to work at the restaurant on May 25, 2013, but left his name tag at home. Larson says he told Olson that he could either clock out and go home to retrieve it or he could ask a family member to bring it to the restaurant. Olson, according to the complaint, responded, "I got one," and handed Larson the offensive name tag. "Maybe this will be our new pass around here for people who forget their name tags," Larson claims he was told by Olson when he first refused to wear it. He ended up wearing it during the shift, though, because he says he feared losing his job. Larson's attorney, James Lester, would not comment on the lawsuit, including why it was filed two years later. Larson left his job at Pizza Ranch after the incident, according to the civil complaint. In his response to the lawsuit, Olson admits he gave Larson the name tag, but he denies Larson wore it and challenges Larson to present "strict proof." Olson's attorney didn't return a message from The Associated Press seeking comment on the lawsuit. Pizza Ranch is based in Orange City, Iowa, and has more than 180 locations across 13 states. Chief Administrative Officer Ryan Achterhoff declined to comment on the lawsuit. Olson's complaint isn't the first on in which a South Dakota restaurant worker has said to have been forced to wear an offensive name tag. Last year, an openly gay teenager filed a discrimination complaint against Taco John's of Yankton claiming he was forced to put a name tag that bore a gay slur.