Whole Foods store managers fired after bonus probe

Whole Foods Markets confirmed Wednesday that it had fired nine store managers in the Washington, D.C. area for improprieties in managing a profit-sharing program for their benefit.

A spokeswoman contacted by SN declined to provide additional detail beyond that which was reported by the Associated Press late Tuesday.

That story said the managers at stores in Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C. had been terminated recently after a company investigation found they had manipulated a profit-sharing program meant to reward hourly employees. The story said the company was still determining how much money was involved and making sure that employees of the affected stores were properly compensated.

Whole Foods employees are eligible for what the company calls “gainsharing” bonuses when their store teams meet certain performance goals, according to Whole Foods’ website.