The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Friday that Schnuck Markets Inc. and its CEO were ordered to pay more than $4.5 million to Anthony Hucker, its former president who now is president and CEO of Jacksonville-based Southeastern Grocers.
STLToday.com reported that St. Louis County Circuit Court ruled Hucker had been wrongly fired from St. Louis-based Schnucks. He filed the suit in October 2016 for breach of contract, claiming he had been terminated without cause after he was offered the CEO job at Save-A-Lot.
According to the news site, Hucker said he approached CEO Todd Schnuck, asking him to waive his noncompete agreement, and that Schnuck never responded. Hucker was fired instead, causing him to lose the chance to be CEO of Save-A-Lot.
The news site report said that after the suit was filed, the court ordered the parties to arbitration and the arbitrator issued the award in favor of Hucker in October. The court also ordered the defendants to pay more than $11,000 in post-award interest for 12 days in November.
Progressive Grocer reported Hucker joined Schnucks in 2013 and was promoted to president in September 2014, the retailer’s first nonfamily member to hold that position. He previously held executive posts at Aldi, Walmart and Giant Food.
After he was terminated from Schnuck Markets in November 2015, Southeastern Grocers announced in March he joined as chief operating officer.
After the departure of Ian McLeod, Hucker served as interim CEO and president from July 1-Aug. 10, 2017, when he was named president and CEO.
Southeastern Grocers is the parent company of Bi-Lo, Fresco y Más, Harveys and Winn-Dixie.
Joe Caldwell, senior manager of corporate communications and sports partnerships for Southeastern Grocers, said the suit has no material relation or impact on the company or any of its affiliated banners. “Therefore we have no further commentary on the subject,” he said in an email.