Employment lawyer talks Starbucks lawsuit on Global

A former Starbucks employee and mother is suing her past employer for wrongful dismissal. Lisa Pedersen was diagnosed with rare blood cancer and alleges that Starbucks mistakenly believed her symptoms to be that of COVID-19 and fired her for not following company policy.

Aaron Levitin, an Alberta employment lawyer and Associate at Samfiru Tumarkin LLP representing Pedersen spoke to Global News Calgary on the suit and the possible outcome.

“She was unfairly reprimanded due to symptoms believed to be COVID-19-related, when in fact it was actually blood cancer,” Levitin stated.

After undergoing further testing, Pedersen informed Starbucks of the mistaken initial diagnosis. “She did send an email notifying them her symptoms were related to cancer and she never received a response to that communication,” said Levitin.

Levitin goes on to explain that the loss of Pedersen’s employment has led to further negative outcomes and consequences. “Starbucks needs to make the right decision and stand by its position that it is a conscientious employer that takes care of its partners,” Levitin said. “It’s a tragic loss for her family. She can no longer qualify for life insurance.”

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• Cancer and long-term disability claims
• Critical illness claims

The outcome of this suit and the ongoing legal action could take years to resolve, and Levitin hopes for a better outcome for Pedersen.

“It would be amazing if Lisa could spend this time with her family and focus on recovering and not be involved in ongoing litigation with a behemoth,” said Levitin. “Unfortunately, that’s the position that Lisa finds herself in.”