Who is Kurt Crome? Ford electrician making $200K a year fired over $1.95 chocolate chip cookie dispute
A 60-year-old electrician is Ford’s Kentucky truck plant in Louisville, kentucky Claims he was fired after a dispute at the factory over whether he was paid for $1.95 chocolate chip cookies. Kurt Kromm, who has worked at the factory for 11 years, said he was ushered out by security and called a thief, Shifting Gears reported.
Shifting Gears, a Substack newsletter about the automotive industry, reported that Crome claimed he “fully paid” for the cookie but was still removed from the role. According to him, the cause of the incident was CCTV footage The automated payment kiosk in the lounge displayed a red screen notification indicating that the payment had failed. There are two kiosks and payment may have been made through another kiosk, Crome said.
“I made over $200,000 last year. Why would I steal? I spent $1,200 in the cafeteria last year, mostly on Diet Coke,” Shifting Gears quoted him as saying. Eventually, a review of Kromm’s payment account revealed that the transaction had occurred.
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Why was Kurt Kromm fired?
Kurt Crome claimed that his direct supervisor came to him and told him he “needed to come to the office.” Then, he said, union negotiators came and told him the company would fire him. “They caught you on video stealing cookies,” the union negotiator reportedly told him.
According to reports, the following days were a horrific ordeal for the 60-year-old. Crome claims he was accused of stealing, removed from the factory unceremoniously and forced to wait for documents exonerating him. Eventually, he said Ford gave him the job back on the same shift.
He ended up working at another factory and getting a raise. However, he was frustrated and disappointed with how his days at Ford ended.
“I thought, is this how my career at Ford is going to end?” Shifting Gears quoted him as saying. There’s no way I’m coming back. First you told me I was a thief, then you told me I was a liar because I said I didn’t steal anything.
“They were pretty sure I had stolen something. Then I looked at my checking account statement and there was $1.95 right there.”
Ford’s reaction
Ford did not elaborate on the incident in response to Shifting Gears’ request for comment. “We don’t talk about individual cases, but sometimes we look into something and realize it could have been handled differently,” Ford spokesperson Jessica Enoch said. “When that happens, we do our best to correct it. We value our employees and want to be as fair as possible.”
