Trader Joe’s Lawsuit Claims Employee Fired For Complaining About Lack of Gloves

A former Trader Joe’s employee has filed a lawsuit against the company for allegedly firing him because he complained about the lack of response that the company had following the outbreak of the coronavirus.

Plaintiff Kristopher King says that he started working at Trader Joe’s in Louisville, Ky. in 2011. He states that, following an Executive Order by the Governor of Kentucky, Trader Joe’s failed to take any steps to encourage the safety and health of its employees related to the spread of COVID-19.

King explains that Trader Joe’s management specifically told their employees that they were not allowed to wear gloves while on the job. Trader Joe’s allegedly told King and other employees that they could only wear gloves if they had orders from a doctor and that they must apply via Americans with Disabilities’ paperwork requesting the accommodation from a physician.

On March 11, the plaintiff says he started to experience symptoms associated with COVID-19, including a dry cough, fever, sore throat, headaches, and congestion.

The next day, King says that he saw a physician and was diagnosed with bronchitis and strep throat and was told not to return to work until March 14, according to the Trader Joe’s lawsuit.

King claims that on March 13, he created a private Facebook group with his fellow Trader Joe’s employees so that they could discuss concerns that they had about the lack of support in putting together specific safety measures for its workers.

On March 14 and 15, the plaintiff maintained that he was still experiencing symptoms and called Trader Joe’s to tell them that he was self-quarantining and would not come to work on those days. King also says that, on March 15, he posted to the private Facebook page regarding Trader Joe’s lack of implementing safety measures to protect employees and their health due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The plaintiff alleges that he self-quarantined until March 21 when he reported back to work at Trader Joe’s. During his shift that day, he was taken aside by a store captain, and was presented with two screenshots of the private posts that King had placed on Facebook, the Trader Joe’s lawsuit states.

King then goes on to say that he admitted that he posted the messages to the private Facebook group because he was concerned about the company’s lack of implementing any safety policies for their employees in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

During the meeting, the store captain reportedly made numerous requests for King to voluntarily resign his position at Trader Joe’s, to which King declined each time the request was made.

That said, on March 28, one week after his conversation with his manager, King was reportedly terminated from his position at Trader Joe’s.

The lawsuit against the grocer alleges that Trader Joe’s reasoning for firing him was due to two incidents about his behavior as well as the creation of the private Facebook group. 

“Trader Joe’s retaliated against King and terminated King’s employment in violation of Kentucky public policy because King complained and made numerous specific requests for Trader Joe’s to implement safety measures in its store in accordance with Governor Beshear’s Executive Orders and mandates from the CDC,” the Trader Joe’s lawsuit claims.

King maintains that his firing constitutes “oppressive, malicious, and intentional conduct.”

The Trader Joe’s lawsuit goes on to say that King’s firing violated Kentucky public policy because he brought legitimate complaints to Trader Joe’s regarding workplace safety surrounding the coronavirus pandemic.

King says the complaints that he made to Trader Joe’s management about workplace safety constitute a legally protected right under Kentucky law. He also explains that he was fired for participating in a protected activity, specifically about Trader Joe’s refusal to abide by Kentucky’s safety, emergency, and disaster laws as well as the Executive Orders put forth by the Governor of the state.

The lawsuit against the grocer argues that King should be awarded punitive damages due to the company’s malicious, oppressive, and intentional conduct towards him.

On April 2, The New York Times published an article about Trader Joe’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, which included excerpts related to King’s employment at the company and his subsequent creation of the Facebook page, the lawsuit notes.

King says that only after the article was published did Trader Joe’s implement many of the requests that he had complained about not only on Facebook but also at his meeting with his manager on March 21.

What do you think of Trader Joe’s policies during the coronavirus pandemic? Go here if you affected by similar policies.

The plaintiff is represented by Bradley S. Zoppoth of the Zoppoth Law Firm.

The Trader Joe’s Coronavirus Lawsuit is King v. Trader Joe’s East Inc., Case No. 20-CI-002406, in the Jefferson Circuit Court, Kentucky.

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