Lululemon criticized the firing of employees who confronted thieves when they brazenly ransacked the Georgia store

  • Shocking footage shows masked robbers stealing merchandise from displays near the store in Peachtree Corners, Atlanta, before rushing to their getaway car
  • The incident happened earlier this month and the Lululemon store where Jennifer Ferguson worked was hit by a spate of robberies
  • Her husband said she and colleague Rachel Rogers were fired for trying to stop the thieves and “violating employee handbook guidelines” about not interfering

Two Lululemon employees have been fired for “violating employee policy” after brazen thieves stole piles of expensive yoga gear and tried to stop them.

Shocking footage shows masked robbers stealing merchandise from displays outside the store in Peachtree Corners, Atlanta, before rushing to their getaway car.

The incident happened earlier this month and the Lululemon store, where assistant manager Jennifer Ferguson worked, was hit by a spate of robberies.

Her husband Jason Ferguson claimed she was fired after calling the police about the gang of thieves who raided the store on several occasions.

Jennifer and another staffer named Rachel Rogers, who worked on the front lines, allege they were fired for trying to stop them and “violating staff handbook guidelines” about not interfering in a robbery.

This is because stores across the US are seeing a sharp rise in crime and millions of dollars in losses have forced some large retailers to close stores as rampant theft plagues businesses.

Shocking footage shows masked robbers stealing merchandise from displays outside the Lululemon store in Atlanta before rushing to their getaway car. Jennifer Ferguson (pictured) and Rachel Rogers were allegedly released for attempting to stop the thieves and violating employee handbook guidelines Rachel Rogers said the reason for her firing was not clear, aside from the fact that there was a ” No Tolerance Policy” would exist. The incident happened at the Lululemon store in Peachtree Corners

Rogers, 23, who worked as a shop assistant, chronicled the recent robbery and said the store had been a victim of the same gang of thieves for weeks.

The video shows a masked thief stealing leggings from a front display while his accomplice, also wearing a mask, holds the door open for him.

An employee is heard saying, “No, no, no, you can march back out,” before the second suspect comes in and grabs more items.

Jennifer, mother of four, then exclaims, “Seriously.” Get out! Exit!’ As they try to stop the thieves before the couple rushes out of the store to escape.

It is said to be almost “the tenth time” that the store has been robbed without deed, leading the frustrated women to report it to the police for the first time.

They said the thieves would regularly strike about an hour before the store closed, snatching as much merchandise as they could from the shelves and tables near the door and rushing to a getaway truck.

However, to ensure the safety of its employees, Lululemon does not intervene in robberies.

“Safety is our number one priority and it’s not worth taking a chance on every quantity of merchandise in store.” is available,” says the staff handbook.

“This includes leaving the store to pursue a guest or to seek further information about the suspected or observed theft.”

The women claim the company also reports robberies internally rather than alerting authorities — yet the employee handbook tells employees to call 911 immediately after suspects leave the store.

Jennifer said, “We’re not supposed to get in each other’s way.” They clear the way for whatever they’re going to do.

“And when it’s over, scan a QR code.” And that’s that. We were told not to write it down in notes because it might scare other people. “We shouldn’t call the police and actually not talk about it.”

She and Rogers said they were fired for violating policy and were told there was a “zero tolerance policy.”

“It wasn’t very clear. They didn’t give specific reasons other than simply saying they had a “no tolerance policy,” Rogers said.

And Jennifer said the same thing, adding, “They said I was fired immediately with no severance pay because they have a zero tolerance policy.”

The masked thief enters the store and takes leggings from a display near the front. An employee is heard saying, “No, no, no, you can march back out,” before the second suspect comes in and grabs more items. The thieves are constantly thrashing about An hour before closing time, when they would snatch as much merchandise as possible from the shelves and tables near the door, Lululemon has a policy of not hindering robberies to ensure the safety of its employees. Jennifer pictured with her husband and their four children

A Lululemon spokesperson said, “The safety of our employees and guests is always a top priority for Lululemon and we have policies and protocols in place to maintain a safe environment.”

It added: “We take theft and vandalism very seriously and our current focus is on supporting our educators as well as continuing to work with local partners and law enforcement.”

Her husband Jason took to Facebook on May 23, criticizing the company for failing to take steps to protect its employees.

“I have only one option left to publicly express my displeasure,” he wrote.

“This was the fifth (maybe almost tenth) time this group robbed the store without Lululemon taking action to contain the robberies and keep employees safe.”

Jason added that Gwinnett police arrived quickly after becoming aware of the robbery and that four officers came forward to testify and express concern that they had never been informed of the previous thefts.

According to him, their report led to the suspects being arrested the next day while attempting to steal from another Lululemon store in Peachtree City.

“The two incidents put the dollar amount into the FELONY theft charge, not the misdemeanor charge,” he said.

“So this crew is in jail.” Partly because of the brave and bold actions of Jenn and the other staff member.”

Jason claimed that Lululemon representatives had a Zoom call with his wife a few days after the incident to find out what she knew about company policies, before arranging a follow-up call a few days later.

They allegedly terminated her and Rogers’ employment, citing the company’s zero-tolerance policy.

He added, “This is where my blood starts boiling.” These are two exemplary employees, both leaders and looking to advance within the company. And what was her reward?

“They were terminated immediately with no mention of severance or financial compensation.”

“When the two terminated employees then compared their experiences using Zoom calls, it turned out that Lululemon’s regional manager openly asked why they were calling the police.

“It would look bad for Lululemon if the company called the police.” Are you kidding me? These ladies are sort of heroes.

“They did what we could all do in a similar situation. They were brave and courageous and honest and good citizens.”

Jason added he had his wife’s permission to speak out about the incident.

He vowed not to spend another penny of his “hard-earned” money back at Lululemon unless they made significant changes to their policies to protect their employees and women.

This comes after a former Big Lots manager claimed she was fired after following a shoplifter out of the store to retrieve a company shopping trolley.

The pair of thieves storm out of the store and sprint towards their getaway car. It is said to be almost the tenth time the store has been robbed without deed, so the frustrated women reported it to the police for the first time. Jennifer She was immediately terminated with no severance pay and told the company it had a “zero tolerance” policy

Lily Oxford, 52, says she and another manager at Big Lots’ Oildale, Calif., location followed a thief who left the house with 15 jugs of Tide laundry detergent in his shopping cart.

The incident happened on April 5 and Oxford – the head of the furniture department – said she and her colleague made no attempt to stop the thief.

A week after accompanying the client, she told KGET that she and her colleague were both unemployed in connection with the incident.

The US saw a sharp rise in crime this year and millions of dollars in losses forced some major retailers to close their stores as rampant theft plagued businesses.

Shoplifting rates have reached alarming proportions, and major retailers including Target, Macy’s and Best Buy are now acting on threats against stores unless petty crime is reduced.

In 2021, retailers lost a total of $94.5 billion to shrinkage, a term used to describe theft and other types of inventory losses. According to the 2022 National Retail Security Survey, organized retail crime incidents increased by 26.5 percent in the same year.

Brazen daylight theft and self-checkouts have also made it easier for people to leave the store without paying.

Workers at a Target store in San Francisco report being shoplifted every 10 minutes.

Employees say they observed people actively “scooping” goods into sacks before heading out.

Merchandise, including trays of lipstick and nail polish, are stripped out daily by shoplifters.