Trader Joe’s announced that store managers must take the COVID-19 vaccine, a striking contradiction to the grocery store’s distinctive focus on natural, organic, preservative-free products.
20. No response was ever received from this electronic communication. Approximately five hours after the response was transmitted to Ms. Cahan, Mr. Crawford received a voicemail from Regional Vice President Donnie Martin, asking for the two of them to meet.
21. VP Martin called again the next day at 7:37 AM, July 30, 2021. He said he was in the Riverside area and asked to meet. The meeting took place at 10 AM at the Riverside Plaza. When he arrived, he asked how Mr. Crawford was doing (he knew Mr. Crawford’s brother had passed away unexpectedly a few days ago, shortly after taking the COVID-19 vaccine). Mr. Crawford said it was a tough week. VP Martin then read an “Employee Incident Report” telling Mr. Crawford he was fired from Trader Joe’s.
22. The Employee Incident Report listed a number of reasons for the termination. The first was that the core responsibilities for Captains include knowing and following company policies, such as the “Open Door Policy.” This states that employees are “encouraged” to discuss problems with superiors, and “may” call Human Resources. It also says “complaints should be filed with Human Resources as soon as possible after the event that led to your concern.”
RANCHO CUCAMONGA, CA —Pacific Justice Institute (PJI) filed a federal lawsuit this week on behalf of a Trader Joe’s employee fired for requesting a religious accommodation to taking the COVID-19 vaccine.
Gregg Crawford, a devout Christian throughout his adult life,
worked as an exemplary management employee at Trader Joe’s for 26 years. In
July 2021, Trader Joe’s announced that store managers must take the COVID-19
vaccine, a striking contradiction to the grocery store’s distinctive focus on
natural, organic, preservative-free products. Crawford respectfully requested a
religious accommodation that Trader Joe’s initially granted.
However, shortly after Crawford’s accommodation was initially
granted, the grocery store’s regional manager informed Crawford that only
vaccinated employees would be permitted to attend a required Leader’s Meeting
in August; failure to attend the meeting would negatively affect Crawford’s
performance review.
PJI’s staff attorney, Ronald Hackenberg, sent a letter to Trader
Joe’s on Crawford’s behalf, pointing out the discriminatory nature of blocking
Crawford from the meeting because he was not vaccinated and then subjecting him
to adverse job actions for non-attendance. Although PJI’s letter suggested
several alternatives that would allow Crawford to still attend the meeting,
such as undergoing COVID-19 testing and participating by Zoom, Trader Joe’s
refused to interact with Crawford to explore those accommodation options and
instead fired him.
While Crawford’s letter through legal counsel reminded Trader
Joe’s of state and federal law and suggested reasonable accommodations, Trader
Joe’s described his communication as an “adversarial perspective” and a
conflict with the interests of the company.
PJI initiated this case, Crawford v. Trader Joe’s, Case
No. 5:21-cv-01519-JGB-SHK, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District
of California.
“Trader Joe’s mandate that employees inject themselves with
experimental vaccines while building an empire on giving customers natural,
healthy options is hypocritical,” Brad Dacus, President of PJI, commented.
“COVID-19 has not suspended the obligations of employers under federal and
state law to take seriously and accommodate employees with religious
objections.”
To see the actual complaint filed by PJI, please click here
Running the Race,
Brad Dacus
President and Founder, Pacific Justice Institute
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