Starbucks must pay tens of millions of dollars to a former manager who sued the company for wrongful termination and said she was fired because she is white.
Starbucks has been ordered to pay tens of millions of dollars to a former regional manager who sued the company for wrongful termination and said she was fired because she is white.
The former employee, Shannon Phillips, said in a 2019 complaint she became a scapegoat in the company’s damage control efforts after a viral video showed two Black men being arrested at one of its Philadelphia shops, sparking outrage across the country and leading the corporate behemoth to temporarily close down its operations to conduct an anti-bias training.
After a six-day trial, a unanimous federal jury in New Jersey on Monday awarded Phillips $25.6 million, including $25 million for punitive damages and $600,000 in compensatory damages, according to Console Mattiacci Law, which represents Phillips.
In a statement issued following the verdict, the law firm said Phillips proved “by clear and convincing evidence” that punitive damages were warranted under New Jersey’s anti-discrimination law, and that Phillips is also seeking damages for back pay as well as future pay, which will be decided by the judge. Laura Mattiaci, the lead attorney for Phillips, declined to comment Wednesday, saying the case is “still open.”
Starbucks has denied firing Phillips because of her race and declined to comment Wednesday.
The incident at the center of the case happened in April 2018, when Rashon Nelson and Donte Robinson, who are Black, went to a Starbucks in the Rittenhouse Square area of Philadelphia for what they said was a business meeting.
