Auburn Walmart fires manager who says he left work to be with his dying grandmother

Auburn Walmart Fires Employee Who Left to Care for Dying Grandmother

AUBURN — A local Walmart team leader was terminated without warning after he left his shift to be with his terminally ill grandmother, a situation that has sparked outrage on social media and renewed debate over workplace policies during family emergencies.

Vaughn Sawyer III, 29, of Lewiston, says he was a manager at the Auburn Walmart when his grandmother, Jacqueline Sawyer, became critically ill on Saturday, Sept. 19. Around 5 p.m. that day, Sawyer received a call from his aunt, Lisa Sawyer, informing him that Jacqueline had only a few hours left to live. He immediately told his supervisor he needed to step away from work to be with his family.

Sawyer said he assured his boss that he would set everything up for the other employees on duty and promised to return later to complete the required bereavement paperwork. He went back to the store at about 7 p.m., but could not locate a supervisor to help him finish the forms. Thinking the paperwork might already be in progress, he left the store to spend more time with his grandmother.

Jacqueline Sawyer died the following morning, Sunday, Sept. 20. According to Sawyer, he returned to the store on Sunday to return a set of keys that he had forgotten to hand over to a coworker. When he arrived at the front register, he was unexpectedly asked, “Hey, do you want your last check too?” followed by “They didn’t tell you?”

A manager Sawyer had never seen before then approached him and handed him a termination notice. He said he was not given a reason for the dismissal, did not receive an exit interview, and was not offered any prior warning—details that contrast sharply with the formal process he said he has observed in previous terminations.

The situation escalated after Sawyer’s aunt, Lisa, posted a detailed Facebook account of the incident. The post has since been shared more than 2,500 times and liked more than 10,000 times, drawing support from many of Sawyer’s former coworkers. Lisa, who once worked as a district manager for Walmart stores in Maine, also highlighted what she described as a serious breach of confidentiality: a photograph of her nephew with a hole punched through the forehead was found in the Auburn Walmart’s human‑resources trash. She said the image had been sent to Vaughn by a store employee and noted that Walmart offices are required to shred such pictures to protect employee privacy.

Lisa Sawyer called the termination “deliberate” and “heinous,” and she believes that those responsible for the decision should be held accountable. She added that the loss of her mother, who suffered from Alzheimer’s disease and a brain hemorrhage, had been especially hard on Vaughn, who described his grandmother as “the peak of stability and security in my life.” The family does not plan to pursue legal action, but they are asking Walmart to conduct an internal investigation, fire the individuals involved, and issue a public apology.

A Walmart spokesperson said the company was aware of the matter but could not comment further on personnel issues.

The case has reignited discussions about balancing corporate policies with employees’ need to care for family during critical moments. Many commenters on social media have expressed sympathy for Sawyer and called for greater flexibility in bereavement procedures.