Ex-Starbucks Employee Gets Another $2.7M In White Bias Lawsuit

NEW JERSEY - A federal judge has ordered Starbucks to shell out another $2.7 million in damages to a former employee who was already awarded $25.6 million in a wrongful termination lawsuit after she alleged she was fired for being white.

Shannon Phillips, 52, a former 13-year employee and then-regional director for the coffee giant filed a lawsuit in Camden federal court in 2019, claiming her race was a “motivating and/or determinative factor” in her termination.

On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Joel H. Slomsky issued an order for Starbucks to pay Phillips an additional $2,736,755 million in back pay, front pay and other damages.

Phillips, who previously oversaw operations of Starbucks stores in South Jersey, Philadelphia and Maryland, said her termination was the result of overcompensation on Starbucks’ end after the arrest of two Black men in a Philadelphia Starbucks store in 2018.

The case gained national attention after the men were arrested for refusing to leave the coffee shop after being told by staffers to do so because they hadn't purchased anything. The pair were waiting for another person to discuss a business deal before an employee called 911, Patch reported.

They were arrested without incident and held in police custody for several hours before being released without charges.

“Weeks after the arrests and surrounding media coverage, [Starbucks] took steps to punish white employees who had not been involved in the arrests ... in an effort to convince the community that it had properly responded to the incident,” Phillips’ complaint reads.

As part of Starbucks’ efforts to amend the controversy, Phillips was ordered to put a white employee who was not involved in the 2018 incident on administrative leave due to an “allegation of discriminatory conduct that [Phillips] knew to be false,” the complaint adds. “At the same time, [Starbucks] did not take any steps to punish a Black district manager who had been responsible for the management of the location where the arrests took place.”

Phillips was notified of her termination less than a month after the arrests, according to court records.

A representative from Starbucks did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday morning.

Robinson and Nelson settled with Starbucks and the city of Philadelphia, the latter of which promised to launch a $200,000 investment into programs for young entrepreneurs in the city.

Robinson and Nelson were also offered the opportunity to provide input based on their personal experience to former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, Patch reported, as well as the chance to complete undergraduate degrees through the Starbucks College Achievement Plan.