A pocketknife, a dismissive manager, and a termination backdated by eight days
A convenience-store worker says she was fired weeks after reporting a coworker who waved a pocketknife in her face.
The worker, who started at a Circle K/GetGo location in Indianapolis on or about April 21, 2026, filed a federal lawsuit on October 1 alleging sex discrimination and retaliation under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 - the main federal law barring workplace discrimination based on sex. Circle K Stores Inc. is named as the defendant.
According to the complaint filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, the problems began just over a week into the job. On or about April 29, the filing alleges, a male coworker forcibly hugged the worker without her consent, telling her, "I'm just getting my morning hug." An assistant manager witnessed the incident but did not intervene or address the conduct, the complaint states.
Other staff told the worker the man had a history of what they described as "weird" behavior, according to the filing. She began altering her routine to avoid him.
Then came May 6.
The complaint alleges the same coworker came behind the counter where the worker was stationed, pointed to a cellphone, and told her, "Do you see that cellphone down there? You better not touch it, because I have my knife right here." He then reached into his pocket, pulled out a pocketknife, and waved it in her face, the filing states.
The worker reported both incidents to the assistant manager on shift. According to the complaint, the manager remained seated, said she did not think the coworker was serious, and - when the worker pressed the point - responded, "If you aren't comfortable, you can go home."
The coworker was allowed to keep working. The worker went home.
What followed, according to the complaint, was a week of trying to get someone to act. On May 7, the filing states, she called the store and said she would not return until she could speak with human resources or the store manager, who was on vacation until May 13. The assistant manager told her the coworker would be kept off the schedule until then.
That assurance did not hold, according to the complaint. The worker says she learned from a colleague that the coworker had in fact been at the store on a day she was scheduled to work.
When the store manager returned and called the worker on May 13, the filing alleges, the manager asked whether she wanted to come in the following day and said she did not support bad behavior. The complaint says the manager told the worker she would not be scheduled alongside the coworker - but offered no apology or resolution for the reported conduct.
The worker returned on May 14, as instructed. According to the complaint, the store manager's demeanor was unusually rude and different from their prior interactions.
When the worker asked about her report and what action would be taken, the filing alleges the manager said the coworker would probably not be fired "because he appeared to be smiling." Asked about a transfer to another store, the manager responded, "Transfer for what?" according to the complaint.
The complaint alleges the worker again raised her safety concerns. The manager then asked whether she believed the coworker would "come to the store and kill her," the filing states. When the worker said she believed it was possible given what had occurred, the manager told her she would "cut off all communication" and eventually sent her home, according to the complaint.
The worker went to the police department and filed a report that day, the complaint states. She also contacted the company's ethics hotline.
For the next eight days, according to the filing, the worker waited to hear about her job and a possible transfer. When she reached a district leader on or about May 22, she was told hours later that she had been terminated, the complaint alleges.
The company's system showed the termination backdated to May 14 - the same day the store manager sent her home, according to the filing. The stated reason was that the worker had been a no-call, no-show for five days, including weekend days. The worker disputes this, alleging she had been told by the store manager to go home and was waiting for follow-up. She says she had not regularly worked weekends during her month of employment.
The complaint adds another layer. The worker alleges she later confirmed that the male coworker had a personal relationship with the store manager's husband, who was himself a store manager involved in hiring and firing. The filing contends this relationship was relevant to the favorable treatment the coworker received after her complaints - and to the way those complaints were handled.
The worker brings two claims. The first alleges sex discrimination, contending the company tolerated unwanted conduct by a male employee while treating the female complainant adversely after she spoke up. The second alleges retaliation, pointing to the tight timeline between the worker's complaints and her being sent home and fired. She seeks back pay, compensatory and punitive damages, and other relief.
For HR teams, the complaint maps out how a single incident report - met with dismissal at every level of management - can escalate to a federal lawsuit in under a month.
None of the allegations in this complaint have been tested, and no court has made any findings or rulings on the merits.
