


Lululemon's CEO defended the company's recent firing of two employees who intervened during a Georgia store robbery last month.
"Retail theft and shrinkage has been a growing topic," Lululemon CEO Calvin McDonald told CNBC's Sara Eisen Friday. "In this particular case, we have a zero-tolerance policy that we train our educators on around engaging during a theft."
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"Why? Because we put the safety of our team, of our guests, front and center."
"The [employees] knowingly broke the policy, engaged with the thieves...that was what resulted in the termination."
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Lululemon CEO Calvin McDonald on backlash after firing staff who intervened in store robbery.@CNBC @SaraEisen $LULU pic.twitter.com/mBMZCJ1E3l
The products being stolen are only merchandise, according to McDonald.
"At the end, [employees] are trained to step back, let the theft occur, know that there's technology and there's cameras, and we're working with law enforcement," he said. "Unfortunately, in this situation, the educators knowingly broke the policy, engaged with the theft, the thieves, across multiple points."
The employees followed the thieves out of the store, McDonald said.
"Post-investigation, in the zero-tolerance policy, which is well known, that was what resulted in the termination."
McDonald was quick to squash the narrative that the employees who were fired from the Peachtree Corners location in metro Atlanta, identified as Jennifer Ferguson and Rachel Rogers, were fired because they called the police.
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"Just to be clear, our educators are able to call the police," he said. "We train them to step back. It's about their safety, and we take that policy seriously because we've had instances, and we have seen in other retailers instances where employees step in and are hurt or, worse, killed."
"The policy is to protect them, but we have to stand behind the policy, to enforce it, and that was unfortunately the situation in this store."