Former Home Depot cashiers file suits alleging disability and age discrimination

Three former Home Depot employees have sued the company in separate cases, alleging disability or age discrimination tied to how the retailer handled loss-prevention incidents and routine register practices.

Erin Haynes filed a complaint in Sacramento County Superior Court on January 30, 2026, under docket 26CV002524. The filing names Haynes as a former Home Depot head cashier and, in its headline, alleges disability discrimination and failure to accommodate. The publicly supplied text of Haynes’s filing is truncated and does not include detailed factual allegations, employment start and end dates beyond an incomplete “May 2022–A,” or the relief sought.

In Contra Costa County, Carleen Acevedo filed suit on July 31, 2024 alleging age discrimination, retaliation, wrongful termination and emotional distress after an encounter at the San Ramon store’s garden center on July 14, 2023. Acevedo, reported to be 72, had worked at Home Depot for seven years and was described in filings as a high-performing cashier who won awards including Cashier of the Year in 2021. The complaint says Acevedo assisted a customer using a debit card and became uneasy when the customer later returned seeking higher-dollar purchases; Acevedo says she tried to call a manager for backup but received no answer, and that the customer told her, “Don't call them,” and “menacingly leaned over, as if preparing to strike her.” Four days after the encounter Acevedo was fired. A termination letter cited in coverage said she created “a security or loss prevention risk” after ringing up four transactions the company characterized as fraudulent; one report said the company attributed more than $5,000 in loss to those transactions. Attorney Chambord Benton-Hayes says Acevedo followed training and sought assistance: “She was doing everything she could. She asked for backup. She’s making copies of the receipt. You know she can’t risk her life for merchandise, and employees are explicitly taught not to risk their life for merchandise.” Coverage also notes Acevedo previously complained in January 2023 about pay disparities for younger hires.

In Queens Civil Court, Ellen Strickland, described as an 80-year-old former supervisor of 19 years, sued after being fired in September for ringing up small items to obtain cash back on her debit card, an action the court filing characterizes as manipulation of inventory. Strickland maintains “There was not one penny missing” and says she was a top performer days before termination. Her attorney, Ester Tannenbaum, calls the firing a “blatant case of age discrimination.”

All three cases raise overlapping workplace tensions: employee safety during theft or intimidation, company loss-prevention policies, and whether discipline is applied consistently across age groups. Plaintiffs point to Home Depot training that instructs staff not to confront suspected shoplifters, “Do not approach, do not touch, do not try to dissuade, to interfere, just let them go”, as guiding their actions in tense situations. Reports say Home Depot did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

For store employees, the suits underscore the friction between loss-prevention metrics and frontline safety and fair treatment. The lawsuits may prompt closer scrutiny of termination documentation, internal investigation reports and training materials. As the cases proceed, plaintiffs’ counsel and Home Depot filings will be key to determining whether these incidents reflect isolated disputes or broader policy and enforcement issues that affect cashier safety and older workers’ rights.