Ford Fires Employee Earning Rs 1.9 Crore Over Rs 186 Cookie Theft Allegation

American automotive giant Ford has come under scrutiny after an employee claimed that he was fired on allegations of stealing a $1.95 (Rs 186) cookie. Kurt Kromm, 60, who spent 11 years working at Ford's truck factory in Louisville, Kentucky, which builds the Super Duty, the Expedition, and the Lincoln Navigator, said he averaged 60 hours a week at work. However, despite his loyalty and dedication, he was let go over a false accusation.

Kromm said he was earning $200,000 (Rs 1.9 crore) at the company and spent approximately $1,200 (Rs 1.14 lakh) in the office canteen last year, which made the accusation hard to fathom. The cookie was a Grandma's Chocolate Chip Cookie, bought after he felt light-headed from low blood sugar.

"I earned over $200,000 last year. Why would I steal? I spent $1,200 last year in the canteen mainly on Diet Cokes," said Kromm, as per Shifting Gears.

The incident kicked off after Kromm's supervisor called him to the office, where a union bargainer alleged that he would be terminated by the company.

"They're going to terminate you. They got you on video stealing a cookie," the union bargainer told Kromm.

Kromm said he was accused of stealing, removed from the factory premises unceremoniously, and was made to wait on his paperwork proving innocence. The union bargainer urged Kromm to apologise, but he refused.

"I'm thinking, this is the way my career at Ford Motor is going to end? 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," said Kromm.

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Kromm Proves Innocence

Afterwards, Kromm sent screenshots showing a debit card transaction for the cookie purchase to the Ford and the union representative. Two weeks later, the union got back to him, stating that Ford was requiring the bank statements to be notarised.

The union informed Kromm that payment kiosk operator Aramark confirmed his cookie payment to Ford on June 12, prompting an offer to return to work. But it was too late. By then, Kromm had already accepted a better role closer to home. Starting the day after Memorial Day, his new position bumped his pay from $48 an hour at Ford to $52.51, plus an extra $10-per-hour bonus.