This Is How Two Juice Bottles Cost Dollar General Store $250,000 In A Lawsuit

Two small juice bottles were the subject of a $250,000 lawsuit at Dollar General.

Linda Akins, a cashier at the major dollar retail chain, had taken two bottles of $1.69 orange juice from the cooler at her Tennessee store to help alleviate her diabetic shock, reports KTLA News. She had later paid for the drinks, but the company had let her go because she failed to do so before opening the bottles, per their company policy.

Akins said she asked if she could keep her own juice at her register, though a supervisor denied her request due to a zero food and drink policy at the cashier station. What no one explained to her was that Dollar General had a policy that medical exceptions could be made.

On Akins’ behalf, the Equal Employment Opportunities Commission sued Dollar General for $250,000.

Dollar General said that Akins already had accommodations for her where she could keep juice bottles in her apron, hidden under her register (out of camera sight), or in the break room.

Akins was awarded $27,565 in back pay and $250,000 total in damages. Dollar General, disappointed with the ruling, is currently appealing for a new trial.