Employees of Asheville-based Earth Fare are suing the organic grocery chain. The complaint says that Earth Fare violated the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN Act) which requires most large employers to give a 60-day written notice in advance of mass layoffs.
The company says that it provided the notice at the announcement of the closings.
The Asheville Citizen-Times reports that the lawsuit is a class-action filing on behalf of more than 3,000 employees. The workers want pay and benefits for 60 days.
Earth Fare started in 1975 and has locations in High Point, Greensboro, and Boone.
The grocery chain announced last week that it is closing all of its stores after efforts to refinance its debt fell through.