A Ford employee says he lost his job after being accused of stealing a $1.95 cookie, only for the company to later realize he’d actually paid for it.
60-year-old Kurt Kromm had worked at Ford’s Kentucky Truck Plant for 11 years, but told Shifting Gears he was fired after the company believed security footage showed him taking a cookie from the break room without paying.
This tactic goes by the lawful name of at will employment.
At will employment isn’t a magic trick, and this case demonstratesit clearly. It means employees can be terminated without cause. But if employees are terminated without cause they get to claim unemployment. That’s why they manufacturered a reason here - to keep him from being able to claim unemployment.
It also allows them to term employees for illegal reasons. An older employee making more money and approaching pension can’t be fired and denied pension for being old. But if they steal a cookie? Absolutely.