A manager for Starbucks, a white woman, who was fired because of her race, has been awarded $25.6 million in damages by a jury.
The verdict over the firing of Shannon Phillips came because, the federal jury in New Jersey decided, the company violated her civil rights by dismissing her because she is white.
A report in the Daily Mail reveals the episode was triggered when her staff, when she was manager, declined to let two black men use the restroom at a Philadelphia store.
The men reportedly had not purchased anything and were not customers. It is not out of the ordinary now for businesses to restrict access to their customer conveniences to customers.
The report said that situation developed for Rashon Nelson and Donte Robinson when they reportedly were waiting for a meeting and wanted to use the restroom. They were asked to leave as they did not order anything and eventually police were called.
Their arrests prompted widespread outrage and protests, the report said.
Phillips' lawyer, Laura Carlin Mattiacci, said she was "very pleased" with the unanimous decision.
The decision included $600,000 in compensatory damages, but another $25 million in punitive damages.
Phillips had worked for the company for 13 years, and explained she had nothing to do with the arrests.
The men were detained as they sat in the store without ordering anything.
She claimed in her lawsuit Starbucks was punishing white employees who weren't involved weeks later "in a bid to publicly prove they were handling the incident," the report explained.
She also noted that the manager of the store where the arrests were made was black, and did not face any discipline.
"Phillips said the black manager's subordinate was the one who called 911 after the two men sat down and refused to leave after being told they couldn't use the bathroom without purchasing something," the report said.
The two men who were arrested later were paid a settlement by Starbucks.
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