Kurt Kromm Ford Aramark: lawyer after false cookie claim
Kurt Kromm Ford Aramark fallout is now headed to lawyers: the 60-year-old electrician, wrongly fired from Ford's Kentucky Truck Plant over a $1.95 cookie he had paid for at an Aramark kiosk, rejected reinstatement and about $33,000 in back wages and retained counsel to pursue claims.
Key Takeaways
- Kurt Kromm was fired after a self-checkout dispute over Grandma's Chocolate Chip Cookies priced at $1.95, then cleared by bank records.
- Ford offered his job back with roughly $33,000 in back pay; Kromm refused and hired Kentucky attorney J. Will Huber.
- Ford and Aramark say they are reviewing kiosk issues after multiple alleged-theft firings at U.S. plants.
- Legal analysts are split on damages because Ford reinstated Kromm financially even as his lawyer cites defamation per se under Kentucky law.
For workers tracking paycheck risk and sudden job loss, this case sits beside other wealth hacks and passive income stories about protecting income when workplace systems fail.
What happened to Kurt Kromm at Ford's plant?
Kurt Kromm spent 11 years repairing robots and automated equipment at Ford's Kentucky Truck Plant in Louisville. On an overnight shift on May 9, the diabetic worker said his blood sugar had dropped to 60 around 3:30 a.m., prompting him to buy a two-pack of Grandma's Chocolate Chip Cookies at an Aramark self-checkout kiosk.
According to The New York Post, the payment terminal flashed a red error after he swiped his debit card. He swiped again. The screen never showed the usual green approval checkmark, but it also did not clearly reject the charge.
"I figured, well, it probably went through," Kromm told the Post. "This was so inconsequential to me — $1.95. I figured I paid."
About a week later, supervisors summoned him to a labor office and said he was being terminated for allegedly stealing the cookies. Kromm said he was escorted from the plant and not allowed to retrieve his belongings.
Days later, after a former co-worker photographed the kiosk price and Kromm found the matching $1.95 charge on his bank statement, he sent screenshots to Ford and union officials. The company later demanded a notarized bank statement before reinstating him with full back pay.
Why is the Kurt Kromm Ford Aramark fight going legal?
Ford ultimately reinstated Kromm and paid him roughly $33,000 in back wages. He rejected the offer. "I can't come back to a company that just fired me like this and not give me any chance to show I paid," he told the Post earlier this month.
Kromm has retained Fort Mitchell, Kentucky, attorney J. Will Huber, who plans to send a demand letter to Ford and Aramark this week. "The accusations of theft made against him were absolutely false," Huber said in a statement. "The proof of his innocence was available to or in the possession of both Aramark and Ford from the very start."
In reporting for Shifting Gears, Huber argued that a belated rehire offer does not undo reputational harm, citing Kentucky law that falsely accusing an employee of theft is defamatory per se. He also said neither company has published a formal retraction.
A Ford spokesperson told the Post: "We don't comment on the specifics of pending litigation. We are working to review the limited instances where Aramark kiosk issues have been raised." An Aramark spokesperson said the company does not comment on potential litigation and remains "focused on operating with integrity and accountability."
Kromm, who earned more than $200,000 in 2025 while averaging about 60 hours a week according to Shifting Gears, said he expected to work at Ford until retirement. He has since moved back to Wisconsin and taken higher-paying work elsewhere, per Free Press and Substack reporting.
Are other Ford workers facing similar Aramark kiosk firings?
Yes. The Detroit Free Press reported that Ford and Aramark are reviewing self-serve snack kiosks at Ford U.S. factories after employees were fired for alleged theft that workers say may stem from payment glitches.
At least three workers fired from Michigan Assembly Plant for alleged food-store theft were reinstated after an investigation cleared them, according to a union member and a Ford official who spoke to the Free Press. Ford spokesman Dave Tovar said the companies were aware of "some issues raised regarding the kiosk functionality in some limited cases."
Michigan Assembly worker Brendan Fluker described machines that beep as if payment succeeded, then fail on bank statements, double-charge customers, freeze mid-transaction, or skip receipts. Assembly worker Nick Nabozny, 38, said he was fired after a Doritos and Ritz crackers purchase under $8 allegedly timed out even though he scanned the items and tapped his debit card.
Nabozny's union grievance argues the kiosk has a documented history of malfunctioning and that the facts suggest equipment failure rather than intentional theft. He told the Free Press he cashed out his 401(k) while waiting on a grievance process that could take up to two years.
What do lawyers say about Kromm's odds?
Outside counsel speaking to the Post split on the case. New York civil litigation attorney Imran Ansari said Kromm "may certainly have successful claims against Ford for wrongful termination" and flagged defamation as a strong angle because a false theft accusation can cause lasting reputational harm. Ansari also said Aramark could face liability if it drove the erroneous nonpayment allegation.
Chicago trial lawyer Andrew Stoltmann was more skeptical, calling the case near frivolous in strength and predicting little jackpot upside because Ford reinstated Kromm and made him financially whole. Stoltmann said that offer likely mitigates much of the reputational-damage argument that often drives these suits.
Huber, for his part, told Shifting Gears the investigation is ongoing and looking at both Ford and Aramark. He framed the stakes beyond one worker: automated systems can accuse someone of theft while leaving them to prove innocence—especially when most people lack the bank proof Kromm happened to keep.
For now, the public record shows a cleared payment, a rejected return-to-work offer, a demand letter on the way, and a broader corporate review of Aramark kiosks that already cost multiple Ford employees their jobs before some were brought back.