Trader Joe's Staff Accuse Store Of Not Acting Against Harassment

BROOKLINE, MA — A group of current and former employees at Trader Joe’s Coolidge Corner store have started a campaign to draw attention to "continuous sexual harassment" at the grocery store, after it said the company did not do enough to protect employees from a particular older staff member calling for him to be fired.

"We have witnessed our coworker sexually harass female employees on a regular basis," the group wrote in an online petition that has some 7,000 signatures as of Tuesday.

The petition is an effort to call attention to what the group describes as "continuous sexual harassment at Trader Joe’s Brookline" and asking store management to listen, support and act according to the store's own policy.

A spokesperson for Trader Joe's said the company could not comment in detail on the petition or the events in question "out of respect for the privacy of everyone involved," but stressed the store is committed to a harassment free workplace, where all staff is treated with respect and dignity.

"Anything short of that is unacceptable," Kenya Friend-Daniel, a spokeswoman for the store, said in an email to Patch. "We take sexual harassment very seriously and will always respond quickly and thoroughly, addressing any allegation and taking action when appropriate. That is exactly what we did in this case."

But the group said they're not satisfied with how it played out. They said the initial employee filed a sexual assault report on July 24, and there were several sexual harassment complaints made, as well.

"We demanded the perpetrator’s immediate termination, as stipulated by the company’s zero tolerance policy toward sexual misconduct," the group, said in a statement.

They said they were sure that because the complaints were corroborated by several witnesses, both in terms of specific incidents against female coworkers and general patterns of behavior, the reports would be taken seriously.

"We trusted the management team at Trader Joe’s Brookline to take immediate and appropriate action and remove these negative influences from our work environment," they said.

But early last month the store management announced a decision to not pursue any action against the accused employee, calling it a “he said, she said” case, according to the group.

Trader Joe’s says on its website that it values open communication and is committed to listening to its crew.

"We structure our entire business around supporting the Crew Members" and "Behave with integrity—we treat others how we would like to be treated," reads the website.

Pointing to that, the group said not firing the accused employee goes against store ethos.

"We strongly believe that Trader Joe’s decision to not terminate the perpetrator violates the company’s core values and sends us a message that sexual misconduct is acceptable in the workplace and our integrity is to be called into question; that we will be punished for addressing the issue, as evidenced by the fact that our coworker was fired immediately after confronting the perpetrator; and that we will face retaliation for working to make our store the best it can be for crew members and customers alike, should we run afoul of employees favored by store management."

"We demand the immediate termination of the employee that has both insinuated and instigated sexual behavior towards female coworkers and ask for your support in seeking justice for the immediate victims and other crew members affected by the offensive workplace environment at Trader Joe’s Brookline," they said.

In addition to the petition, which was posted last month, the group is asking other Trader Joe’s workers to share their stories, and for supporters to call corporate to urge them to push for the removal of the employee.

Friend-Daniel the store spokesperson told Patch the store has a "robust process" for reporting and investigating allegations of all types.

"And that system worked in this situation," she said. "We work directly with our Crew Members to address any concerns they have and encourage anyone with concerns to always feel comfortable to reach out to us with the option to do that through multiple channels."

Patch reporter Jenna Fisher can be reached at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com or by calling 617-942-0474. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram (@ReporterJenna).