Walmart Employee Claims Female Supervisor Sent S*xually Explicit Messages, Nu*es and Retaliated After Rejection

A former Walmart employee has filed a federal lawsuit accusing the retail giant of failing to address years of alleged s*xual harassment by a supervisor and subsequently retaliating against him for reporting the conduct. The lawsuit, filed on May 6 in federal court in Brooklyn, alleges that repeated complaints to management and the company's ethics system were ignored before the employee was ultimately terminated.

Shawn White, who worked as a team lead at Walmart stores in Uniondale and Valley Stream, New York, claims he was subjected to unwanted s*xual advances, explicit messages and workplace retaliation after rejecting a supervisor's alleged advances. Walmart has denied tolerating such conduct and said it is reviewing the complaint. Chirayu Rana ‘S*x Slave’ Case: Ex-JPMorgan Banker Faces Major Blow After Lawyer Moves To Drop Him As Client and Judge Rejects Anonymity Bid.

According to the lawsuit, White joined Walmart as a sales associate in 2019 and soon became the target of alleged advances from supervisor Robin Ford. The complaint alleges Ford sent nude photographs of herself and s*xually explicit text messages, including invitations to “come over to my house” and “go out to eat.”

White claims the situation escalated in August 2019 during a ride home from a gathering attended by coworkers. According to the lawsuit, Ford allegedly “jumped on top of” him and attempted to s*xually assault him while his brother was present in the vehicle and witnessed the incident. White says he resisted the alleged assault. JPMorgan Employee Termination Dispute Over USD 642 Expense Ends in USD 4.25 Million Payout.

The complaint further alleges Ford later mocked him in a message to another employee, writing: “Omg why [did White] throw his hands up when I got on top of him omg I can’t lol.”

The lawsuit claims the alleged harassment continued after White repeatedly rejected Ford's advances. According to the filing, Ford sent messages including: “I got eyes everywhere watching” and, “when you come back we are having s*x.” White alleges he never encouraged the conduct and consistently rejected the advances. The lawsuit states Ford became upset after being turned down and allegedly told White she had never been “turned down by a guy.”

White alleges he repeatedly informed supervisors and company officials about the situation. After being promoted and transferred to a Walmart store in Valley Stream in 2021, White said Ford later began working at the same location, where the alleged harassment resumed.

In one email cited in the lawsuit, White wrote: “I do not feel comfertable [sic] and I dont feel like im safe or my job is safe.” The complaint states that despite raising concerns, White received disciplinary write-ups and was suspended. White was also terminated in 2022 but was reinstated about a month later after challenging the decision as retaliatory, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit says White continued reporting the alleged conduct through Walmart's Ethics Portal and directly to management. In a January 2023 email to Valley Stream store manager Jared Carpenter and other supervisors, White wrote that he “wasn’t comfortable working with” Ford and feared for both his safety and employment.

“This has been going on, on and off even when I was working at the Uniondale location all because I dont want to pursue a romantic relationship with her,” White wrote.

He also stated: “The management team knows and no one is doing anything about it.” According to the complaint, Carpenter told White he could either continue working or “go home for the day.”

The lawsuit alleges that after White continued making complaints, Ford began filing false reports about his performance. White claims he was accused of incomplete work and poor performance despite previously receiving positive evaluations and promotions.

The complaint cites a statement allegedly made by Carpenter: “It doesn’t matter how good he is, it only matters what is on paper.” According to the lawsuit, White interpreted the remark as evidence that management was building a record that could later be used to justify disciplinary action.

White also alleges that during a March 2023 meeting, market manager Edward Gregorek dismissed his concerns. According to the complaint, Gregorek told him: “Shawn, you are the problem.” The lawsuit further alleges Gregorek warned that there were “lawyers involved” and that “people could potentially be losing their jobs” because of White's complaints.

On June 8, 2023, Walmart terminated White's employment. According to the company, White was dismissed for falsifying time records and poor job performance. White disputes those claims and argues that the reasons given were a pretext for retaliation linked to his complaints of harassment.

The lawsuit seeks compensatory damages, lost wages, emotional distress damages, punitive damages, attorneys' fees and other relief.

Responding to the lawsuit, a Walmart spokesperson said: “We do not tolerate harassment or retaliation of any kind. We are reviewing the complaint and will respond appropriately to the Court.” The allegations contained in the lawsuit have not been proven in court. Walmart, Ford, Carpenter and Gregorek have not publicly responded to the specific claims outlined in the complaint.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 02, 2026 10:30 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).