Employee sues Crocs over firing one day after accommodation request

Smith says she suffers from right knee osteoarthritis — she had a full knee replacement in September 2023 — and was later diagnosed with arthritis in her foot in early December 2025. Both conditions, according to the lawsuit, make prolonged standing and walking painful and difficult.

For much of her time at Crocs, Smith says the company accommodated her without issue, allowing her to alternate between sitting and standing during shifts. That arrangement, the lawsuit says, worked. Then in October 2025, Crocs allegedly removed her seated workstation and moved her to a standing-only area on the production floor — a move that directly worsened her condition.

Smith requested a new accommodation on October 29, 2025. According to the filing, Crocs briefly gave her a step stool, then took it away and began conducting covert surveillance of her at work.

In December, her physician provided formal documentation recommending she sit for half her shift and stand for the other half. Smith submitted the paperwork on December 18, 2025. The lawsuit alleges Crocs never engaged in any kind of back-and-forth — no conversation, no exploration of alternatives, no attempt to find her another role within the facility.

The next day, December 19, she was let go. The lawsuit claims the stated reasons were pretextual, and that the real motivations were her disabilities and her history of speaking up about discriminatory treatment at work.