EEOC Sues Colorado Dispensary for Disability Discrimination in Firing Budtender

Allegations of Disability Discrimination

According to the complaint, Myrant was hired by Nature’s Herbs in October 2019 to work at its High Plainz Strains store in Garden City. During her interview, she disclosed her disabilities, including memory issues caused by a transient ischemic attack (TIA), or mini stroke, that occurred when she was nine years old. She also informed her managers of her diagnoses of type 1 diabetes, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), generalized anxiety disorder, and depressive disorder, which further impacted her memory.

In December 2019, during a performance review, Myrant was told she needed to improve her memory of product prices. She reiterated her disabilities and explained how they affected her memory. The following month, Myrant received a verbal warning for failing to clock in and out of her shifts six times. In response, she requested a meeting with management to discuss the warning, expressing concerns that it was discriminatory given her known disabilities.

Internal Emails Reveal Disparaging Remarks

The EEOC’s complaint details email exchanges between company managers that suggest discriminatory attitudes toward Myrant. After Myrant disclosed more information about her memory difficulties, Karen Green, the human resources manager, referred to her as a “fruitcake” in an email and stated that “she can’t do the job we hired her for.”