Starbucks has been ordered to pay $25.6 million to a former store manager after a jury found she was wrongfully terminated due to her being white.
The ex-regional manager, Shannon Phillips, held a position overseeing numerous Starbucks locations until the company fired her in relation to an incident that occurred in 2018 at a Starbucks branch in Philadelphia.
During the incident, two young Black men were waiting for a business associate at the Rittenhouse Square Starbucks. Rashon Nelson, one of the men, was denied access to the restroom since he hadn’t made a purchase. In response, a store employee asked if Nelson and his business partner, Donte Robinson, wanted to purchase anything, but they declined.
Shortly after, the Starbucks staff contacted the police, who arrived, handcuffed the pair, and escorted them out of the café.
The arrests were recorded on video and widely shared, sparking protests that led to the temporary closure of all Starbucks stores for anti-bias training sessions for employees. Following the incident, Phillips, the regional manager, was fired, while the manager of the Rittenhouse Square coffee shop, who was Black, retained his position.
In 2019, Phillips filed a lawsuit against Starbucks, alleging that her termination was racially motivated. Phillips’ legal team argued that upper management at Starbucks sought a “scapegoat” in the case.
On Monday, a federal jury in Camden, New Jersey agreed with their claim and awarded Phillips $600,000 in compensatory damages, along with $25 million in punitive damages.
The jury found that Starbucks had violated Phillips’ federal civil rights and a New Jersey law that specifically prohibits race-based discrimination.
News by Breaking911
