Feds Sue Starbucks for Firing Dwarf

Starbucks is being sued by none other than the US government. Elsa Sallard claims she was fired three days after she was hired in July 2009 as a barista because she is a dwarf. She reportedly asked to be given a stool or small stepladder to enable her to perform her job, but says Starbucks turned down her request and fired her, claiming "she could pose a danger to customers and employees." Now, in a suit filed Monday, the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission says the coffee giant broke the law by denying a reasonable accommodation to Sallard, reports Reuters.

"We absolutely have a zero-tolerance for discrimination of any kind," countered a Starbucks rep. (More Starbucks stories.)