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A former electrician for Ford is considering filing a lawsuit after he says he was wrongly accused of stealing a $1.95 packet of cookies and fired.
Kurt Kromm, 60, says he was terminated in May after working for 11 years as an electrician at Ford’s Kentucky Truck Plant.
Kromm, who is diabetic, claims he was wrongly accused of stealing a packet of Grandma’s Chocolate Chip Cookies he bought from an Aramark self-checkout kiosk. He made the purchase during an overnight shift when his blood sugar dipped and blames the snafu on confusing instructions on a payment terminal. The terminal initially flashed a red error message, he told The New York Post, then appeared to function normally when he swiped his debit card again.
“I figured, well, it probably went through,” Kromm told the paper. “This was so inconsequential to me — $1.95. I figured I paid.”
A week later, Kromm said he was told he was being fired and escorted out of the plant before he could investigate what happened. Kromm says he later submitted a bank statement showing he paid, prompting the company to give him $33,000 in back wages and an offer of reinstatement.
The longtime electrician says he will not accept the offer.
“The accusation of theft made against Mr. Kromm was false, and the proof was available to both Aramark and Ford from the start,” his attorney, J. Will Huber, told The Independent. “Our investigation is ongoing, and we are exploring all available claims, including defamation.”
“Neither Aramark nor Ford has published a retraction, and to this day neither has cleared Mr. Kromm's name,” Huber added. “The way Aramark and Ford handled this situation was unacceptable, and Mr. Kromm intends to pursue his claims to the fullest extent of the law.”
Ford told The Independent it does not comment on pending litigation and is reviewing “the limited instances where Aramark kiosk issues have been raised."
"We have invested significantly to upgrade our workplaces, including self-serve kiosks operated by Aramark to provide 24/7 convenience for our employees,” a spokesperson said in a statement. “We are aware there have been some issues raised regarding the kiosk functionality in some limited cases, and we are working with Aramark to review these situations."
“We do not comment on potential litigation," a spokesperson for Aramark told The Independent in a statement. "We remain focused on operating with integrity and accountability.”
Kromm has also criticized his former representatives at the United Auto Workers union, which he alleges could’ve done more to protect him.
“I’m doing what the union should be doing,” Kromm told the newsletter Shifting Gears with Phoebe Wall Howard, which first reported on his claims. “They should be standing up and pounding on the table and saying this is unacceptable. You don’t treat people this way,” Kromm said. “Ford shouldn’t automatically fire someone and Aramark shouldn’t be making allegations without doing their research.”
The Independent has contacted the UAW for comment.
Another former Ford employee, Nick Nabozny, claims he lost his job at a Michigan plant in April after being wrongly accused of taking Ritz crackers at a similar kiosk.
The UAW has said the incident is under review.
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