Colorado is suing the pet care retailer PetSmart for allegedly “trapping” dog groomers in their jobs by having them sign contracts in which they agreed to pay thousands of dollars in training costs if they quit too soon.
The state’s Democratic attorney general, Phil Weiser, alleges.
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Training repayment agreements have gotten more regulatory scrutiny as workers have spoken up about how they prevented them from taking better-paying jobs.
“Weiser alleges that PetSmart entered into a contract with the debt collector IC System to go after dog groomers who went through the training academy and quit before two years.”
When the Federal Trade Commission moved to nullify noncompete agreements, the rule also included a ban on the training provisions on the grounds they illegally stifle worker mobility. But that regulation has been blocked in court and its future is now uncertain under an FTC shaped by President Donald Trump.
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The nonprofit Student Borrower Protection Center issued a report on training repayment agreements in 2022, finding many contracts involved large debts for training of dubious value. For instance, the programs often don’t include industry-recognized credentialing that could be carried to another employer.
BreAnn Scally, the former PetSmart dog groomer interviewed by HuffPost in 2022, said she ended up quitting her job with the company after about seven months because she couldn’t get by on the low pay. Her new training debt soon showed up on a credit check through Experian.
“I was really struggling just to provide for myself, to feed myself and put gas in my car on a regular basis,” Scally recalled. “It’s not what I wanted for myself.”
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