A 60-year-old electrician working at Ford’s Kentucky Truck Plant in Louisville, Kentucky claimed he was fired after a dispute emerged over whether he paid for a $1.95 chocolate chip cookie at the plant. Kurt Kromm, an 11-year veteran at the plant, said he was marched out by security and was called a thief, according to a report from Shifting Gears.
Shifting Gears, a Substack newsletter on the automobile industry, reported that Kromm claims that he “absolutely paid” for the cookie but was still removed from the role. According to him, the incident started with CCTV footage showing a red screen notification at the automatic payment kiosks in the break room, which reflects a failed payment. Kromm said there are two kiosks and the payment may have gone through the other one.
“I earned over $200,000 last year. Why would I steal? I spent $1,200 last year in the canteen mainly on Diet Cokes,” he was quoted as saying by Shifting Gears. Eventually, the transaction was found to have taken place upon a review of Kromm’s payment account.
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Why Was Kurt Kromm Fired?
Kurt Kromm claims that his direct supervisor came to him and told him that they “need to go to the office.” Then, he said, the union bargainer came and told him that he would be terminated by the company. “They got you on video stealing a cookie,” the union bargainer reportedly told him.
The days that followed put the 60-year-old through a horrific ordeal, according to the report. Kromm claims he was accused of stealing, removed from the factory premises unceremoniously, and was made to wait on his paperwork proving innocence. Eventually, he said Ford offered his job back to him on the same shift.
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He ended up taking up work at a different plant with a pay raise. However, he is frustrated and disappointed with Ford for how his days at the company came to an end.
“I’m thinking, this is the way my career at Ford Motor is going to end?” he was quoted saying by Shifting Gears. There’s no way I’m coming back. First you tell me I’m a thief and then you tell me I’m a liar for saying I didn’t steal.
“They were so confident I’d stolen. And then I look in my checking account statement and the $1.95 is frickin’ there.”
Ford’s Reaction
Ford did not address the incident specifically in response to Shifting Gears’ request for comment. Ford’s spokesperson Jessica Enoch said: “We don’t talk about individual cases, but there are times when we look into things and realize it could have been handled differently. When that happens, we try to rectify it. We value our employees and want to be as fair as possible.”
