A former regional manager at Starbucks was awarded US$25.6 million in a lawsuit against the coffee giant after alleging her firing was racially motivated..Shannon Phillips is a white woman who claimed she and other white employees were unfairly discriminated against after the arrest of two black men at a Philadelphia Starbucks in 2018..A New Jersey jury awarded Phillips US$600,000 in compensatory damages and an additional US$25 million in punitive damages, saying Phillips’ firing violated federal and state anti-discrimination laws..In April 2018, the two black men entered the Starbucks and sat down without placing an order, saying they were just waiting for a business associate, but when one of the men was stopped from using the washroom, he was asked if he wanted to make a purchase, answering no..Starbuck’s policy was washrooms were for customers only, so the store manager called police, the men were arrested and taken out of the store and later were released without charges being laid. .“The company’s rationale for suspending the district manager, who was not responsible for the store where the arrests took place, was an allegation that black store managers were being paid less than white managers, according to the lawsuit,” reports Newsmax..“Phillips said that argument made no sense since district managers had no input on employee salaries.”.“The lawsuit claimed Starbucks was instead taking steps to ‘punish white employees’ who worked in the area ‘in an effort to convince the community that it had properly responded to the incident,’” added Newsmax..Starbucks disputed the lawsuit’s allegations, saying it needed a regional manager with a track record of “strength and resolution” during a crisis, replacing Phillips with one who had that level of experience, including navigating the aftermath of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings, Law360 reported..Phillips’ attorney, however, cited earlier testimony from a black district manager, who was responsible for the store where the arrests took place, who described Phillips as someone beloved by her peers and worked around the clock after the arrests..In closing arguments at the trial, Phillips’ lawyer, Laura Mattiacci, in addressing the jury, said Starbucks was looking for a “sacrificial lamb” to calm the outrage and show that it was taking action, Law360 reported. Picking a black employee for such a purpose “would have blown up in their faces,” she said..In an email, Mattiacci acknowledged the award from the jury, adding consideration is being given by the judge to award back and future pay, as well as attorney’s fees. .Mattiacci told the New Jersey Law Journal she will seek about US$3 million for lost pay, and in the area of $1 million on her fee application. .Video of the arrest prompted a national outcry, leading the CEO of Starbucks to personally apologize to the men, reports Newsmax. .Starbucks eventually reached a settlement with both men for an undisclosed sum and an offer of free college education..The company also changed store policies and closed locations across the country for an afternoon for racial-bias training..Both men were awarded a symbolic $1 each from the City of Philadelphia plus a promise from officials to set up a $200,000 program for young entrepreneurs. .Additionally, the Philadelphia Police Department adopted a new policy on how to deal with people accused of trespassing on private property, warning businesses against misusing the authority of police officers.
