#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, “I would have to ask: are you still requiring employees to wear the apron with the rainbow heart symbol on it?”

McMullen: we we put in place an apron several years ago because our associates wanted to have a common dress code uh the heart is a symbol of art the Kroger’s fundamental purpose is to feed the human spirit and uh part of feeding the human spirit is the heart and that heart is our fundamental strategy to support our purpose uh the colors were not tied to uh any specific thing.

Cotton: well I’m not sure I believe that because it was introduced during pride month as a supposed sign of inclusivity and a federal judge didn’t agree with it either that’s why he rejected your company’s motion motion for summary judgment and you just paid 180 000 to two employees that you wrongly terminated by the way would you like to offer an apology here to Brenda Lawson and Trudy Richard for the ordeal they went through?

McMullen: I would need to understand more of the details

other clips of this published longer video is here: https://youtu.be/NTJ7fX9uqO0

Kroger: “the colors were not tied to any specific thing” Cotton: I’m not sure I believe that