Fired for Praying With Customers, Woman Says

[The Straight Story]

Fired for Praying With Customers, Woman Says

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (CN) - Wal-Mart fired a pharmacist for praying for her patients to get well, which was captured on video, the woman claims in court.

Anhue Doan sued Wal-Mart Stores, her supervisor Duane Ferrone, and district manager David May in Kern County Court.
Doan says she started working at Wal-Mart in 2006 as a pharmacist.

In June 2011, she says, she sent an email to Ferrone alerting him that other pharmacy workers were engaging in illegal activities, including "not following DEA requirements for controlled substances, releasing controlled substances too soon, using cellular phones in the pharmacy, improperly opening sealed bags of narcotic medication ... cashiers bagging medications without pharmacist supervision, [and] cashiers providing medication to customers without pharmacist supervision."

That very month, Doan says, the defendants wrote her up for practicing her religious beliefs.

"Plaintiff was written up specifically for stating that she would pray for customers and stating to customers, 'be healed.' Defendants at this time stated that plaintiff could no longer pray for customers, and stated that she would be terminated if she continued to do so," the complaint states.

http://www.courthousenews.com/2012/12/12/53052.htm

[msongs]

1. on the clock personal behavior instead of working. sounds valid to me nt

[MrDiaz]

5. This is stupid

if you truly believe something you shouldn't be fired for it. Can a gay person be fired for on the clock "personal behavior" or what about a atheist, can he be fired for engaging a conversation about that subject at work? Or can a muslim be fired for praying at work?

[brooklynite]

13. Not "personal behavior" when you do it with a customer...

...and especially when it relates to what you were supposed to be doing in the first place.

[MrDiaz]

14. she

should not have been fired. What has happened to this country when you get fired for praying for someone else's health? Listen I happen to be an atheist, and i still think this is bullsh!t

[RebelOne]

42. Definitely bullshit.

I am also an atheist, but should I demand that a cashier in a store who tells me to have a blessed day be fired?

[joeybee12]

17. No it's not...clearly a fellow employee or one of the customers didn't like

it...she should have stopped...

[MrDiaz]

18. So

If I work with a Muslim, and a Muslim customer walks in, and they start talking about their religion, they should be fired? That is what you are saying right?

[randome]

35. Yes. Idle chit-chat is one thing.

Engaging a customer in a discussion about philosophy while on the clock...that's another.

If the customer can't stop talking, then it becomes an issue for security. But a pharmacist should continue to do his/her job.

[randome]

33. None of your examples make any sense.

If by being 'gay', you mean engaging in sexual behavior with a customer...fired!
If by 'engaging a conversation' about atheism while pretending to be a pharmacist...fired!
If by 'praying at work'...that's the same example as the woman who was fired.

[nadinbrzezinski]

44. Sorry, the rub here is not belief

But professional behavior.

Also this was the last, from that story, of serious policy violations. This is mild actually. The violations of the controlled substances act are what...IMO, and rightfully so, are at the heart of this.

I am sure the court will have to settle that.

And on careful read, whistle blowing.

[obamanut2012]

47. Pray tell what is "gay personal behvior"?

[TheMadMonk]

19. Iffy. Not being critical, Muslims generally get to pray as required. /nt

[Walk away]

34. But not at customers. nt

[HockeyMom]

2. Go pray in a church

A pharmacy is not a friggen CHURCH.

[Arugula Latte]

3. Yep.

[Skittles]

4. not professional

I would think she had mental problems

[aandegoons]

6. Seems like an impossiblity to me.

At least if what she was praying to was real.

[Quantess]

7. If that pharmacist had prayed for me at the counter like that,

I would be polite to her, smile, possibly even say "thanks", but the experience would leave me doubting the pharmacy's competence. It's unprofessional.

[gollygee]

9. Yeah this is how I feel too

It wouldn't bother me, and I wouldn't complain, but it would feel very unprofessional and make me question their competence a bit.

[Phillip McCleod]

15. i'd complain loudly. it's insulting

not to mention pointless as intercessionary prayer has been shown to be less than effective

[LeftyMom]

8. They're not paying her to be a faith healer.

I'm sure that's a more lucrative racket anyhow.

[Major Nikon]

10. Looks more like she was fired for proselytizing to customers

She was warned and continued to do it. If she had done it to me, I would have complained to the store management and wouldn't have lost a nights sleep if she got canned. There's nothing wrong with praying at work so long as it doesn't unduly interfere with your job, but if you can't keep it to yourself after being warned you deserve what you get.

[johnp3907]

11. If she believes prayers heal...

Last edited Wed Dec 12, 2012, 10:01 PM - Edit history (1)

...why is she a pharmacist?

[dballance]

12. I'd want to smack a pharmacist or any employee if they said they were praying for me.

While I despise Walmat I'm with them on this decision. If she was actually telling customers she'd pray for them and "be healed" she needed to go.

To which deity and in which religious tradition would she be praying? I don't have either as an atheist. I'm betting she just assumed everyone knew it was the Christian God and would be all good with that. I can only imagine the outrage if I told Christian customers I'd be praying to Allah or Zeus or Ra for them to be healed. I would most certainly be terminated. The courts have rather consistently ruled that one does not have the protection of the 1st Amendment at private companies. The 1st Amendment forbids government from abridging free speech and practice of religion. Not one's private industry employer within the workplace. On Facebook and other places outside the work place is another whole issue I won't get into here.

If, as a Walmart employee, I continually told customers at the check-out line how evil Walmart is I'd be subject to being fired and I doubt I get few supportive comments from people. I'd most likely get all the "well get a job somewhere else then" comments. Those comments would be appropriate.

I do support a full investigation of her reporting that proper laws and procedures were not being followed. But that sounds like a lot of coaching by her attorney to misdirect the issue at hand. Just like the most recent guy in FL who now remembers seeing a shotgun pointed at him before he opened fire but never called the 911 about it. You know, the thing most people would do in addition to taking down the license plate number of the car so police could pull it over since he now also contends they left the gas station.

I'm starting to feel like some attorneys have forgotten it's illegal to suborn perjury. If your client is guilty then they are guilty. Sure, you can argue mitigating circumstances to try to get their sentence knocked down. But tell them to take a deal and save us all from the expenses of a useless trial. They may not like what happens if they go to trial and lose. Judges can be rather harsh. Especially if a defendant seems unrepentant in the face of clear evidence. Those are not dice I'd necessarily want to roll.

[Major Nikon]

16. I could care less if they are praying for me or anyone else other than it's a waste of my time

As an atheist it's all silly gibberish to me anyway. I just think people like that do it because they feel the need to advertise and promote their imaginary friend, which kinda gives the impression they must not be all that great if they need such people to promote them in the first place.

[Logical]

21. You couldn't care less!

[petronius]

28. Well, he cared enough to make this post, which is an extremely low level of caring

So I take it to mean that, while technically he could care a tiny bit less, he really doesn't care all that much at all.

Which is pretty much where I'm at. If someone says they're praying for me, then great! - I appreciate the expression of good will, however trite and robotic it may be. But don't slow me down at the checkstand while you say your bit - I've got places to be and medicine to take...

[Major Nikon]

39. I could, but it would take effort

[GiaGiovanni]

20. A pharmacist praying on the job might have a problem dispensing contraceptives or morning-after pill

One of the issues that comes up in pharmacies is pharmacists who don't want to handle or sell particular drugs (usually contraceptives) because of their religion. Customers usually don't know about these kinds of employees unless these employees make it obvious by referencing their religion to customers.

Customers who use contraceptives, morning after pills, or other abortifacients by prescription might be made very uncomfortable by an employee who prays openly with customers or even says such innocuous things as, "God bless you," as you make a purchase. I can understand the pharmacy's concern and would have fired her for this.

If she wants to pray on her lunch hour (or, have prayer breaks like devout Muslims) that's not a problem as long as that is done on her break time and not with customers.

[standingtall]

22. This is a petty reason to be fired period

There is a such thing as freedom of speech in the work place, or there is suppose to be. I don't care if some of her co-workers didn't like or some of the customers didn't like. Classic example of economic fascism. First turn the employees on each other, and then turn the consumer on the employees.

[spanone]

25. so employees can also talk about satanism? paganism? atheism? all the isms?

[standingtall]

26. Yes

or they should be able to anyway.

[spanone]

30. i wouldn't allow it in my business.

same as i wouldn't allow people to talk politics to customers......

[Tikki]

32. Oh yeah...I want to be the 15th person in line while my pharmacist debates...

Satan's prowess with a customer.
She should be exercising her free speech at Book Club, not the Wal*Mart pharmacy counter.


Tikki

[standingtall]

36. As long as she can speak, and do her job

at the same the time I have no problem with it, and btw if she wants to bad mouth her employer while she is doing her job she has a right to do that too.

[OriginalGeek]

29. Lolwat?

I sure as fuck don't have freedom of speech at my workplace - ESPECIALLY around customers. It's not petty if she was warned and she still kept doing it.


And I would damn sure change pharmacies if my pharmacist tried to pray for or with me.

[standingtall]

31. If my pharmarcist said to me

' I hope the science of medication works for you'. That wouldn't bother me one bit, or if they offered to pray to Zeus for me that would bother me one bit either. Just consider it someone wishing you well, and move on.

[Walk away]

37. Just because you don't care doesn't mean other customers feel the same way.

It's a business. She was warned. Bye Bye.

I don't let the folks that work for me talk politics to our clients even though we chat about it on our own time. That would be bad business.

[standingtall]

41. and just because a handful of customers have a problem with it

Doesn't mean the majority does. As far as talking about politics if the customer initiate discussion political discussion. Are your employees not allowed to honestly respond? Usually these types of discussions are triggered by customers in the first place.

[Walk away]

43. I am lucky. The people who work for me are smart. They know better than to play into...

that game. Can you imagine losing half your business because one of your employees is too stupid to keep their mouth shut and smile and change the subject? I would never ask anyone to take personal abuse from a client. They can always depend on me to stand up for them but they can kiss their job goodbye if they are too wrapped up in themselves to not talk about politics with a client.
I do it myself but it is MY business and MY profits so it is MY risk.

[nadinbrzezinski]

45. Read the story

I am sure the violations of the controlled substances act have a bit more to do with it.

And on a second read...whistleblower.

[spanone]

23. walmart is not a church

[4 t 4]

24. It's Walmart

nuff said !

[arcane1]

27. I wonder if she was really fired for busting coworkers who were law-breaking?

[randome]

40. Well, the way she describes it, all her coworkers were on the level of gibbering baboons.

So I doubt it.

[Lady Freedom Returns]

38. Wait a moment

Something smells here.

This comes up after the e-mail?

And wasn't Walmarts one of the companies that stated that they were a "Christian" based company? Like Chic-Fil-La (sp?)?


Could they be doing this to just handle a problem the wrong way? It is cheaper to firer the whistle blower than to straiten up?

To many questions.

[nadinbrzezinski]

46. Correction

I misread it, whistle blower

[tjwash]

48. So - enough customers complained about her pushing her religion on them for WM to take action?

Or is the article intentionally worded to cause outrage?