#shorts On 11/29/2022, Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas on Senate’s antitrust committee led a grilling of the CEOs of Kroger and Albertsons over their planned $25 billion grocery megamerger. Kroger CEO Rodney McMullen told the committee that these investments into lowering grocery prices and increasing wages for employees would be spread out in a four-year time frame. Cotton asked McMullen about the case, McMullen said,” such accommodations based on their Christian beliefs as well we would not get involved in terms of religious beliefs.”

Cotton: the reason I ask is that you recently agreed to pay a hundred and eighty thousand dollars to settle a religious discrimination case in Conway Arkansas in that case two Kroger employees Brenda Lawson age 72 and Trudy Rickard age 57 declined the directive to begin wearing a new store apron with a multi-colored heart symbol on it they like many other of your employees felt uncomfortable with the new aprons because they thought the heart resembled a gay pride symbol rather than make accommodations Kroger fired these two employees one employee simply asked to cover the symbol with a name tag but Kroger refused even that reasonable accommodation are you aware of these terminations Mr. McMullen

McMullen: senator I am I am not this was not a private lawsuit either by two disgruntled employees.
Cotton: Mr. Mullen this was brought by the EEOC so are you not aware when your company is sued for religious discrimination by the united states government?
McMullen: no Sir I am not not always well I’m disappointed by that are you aware that
other clips of this published longer video is here: https://youtu.be/NTJ7fX9uqO0

Kroger agreed to pay $180K to settle religious discrimination (wear an apron with LGBTQ symbol)