PetSmart's "grooming academy" traps workers in debt, lawsuit claims

PetSmart touts its program training people how to groom animals as free, but enrollees contend it mostly involves on-the-job training and leads to thousands of dollars of debt if they don't stick out the program for two years, according to a class-action lawsuit.

PetSmart workers groom more than 13 million pets a year, promising four-legged creatures are "groomed with love" by professional stylists with extensive training, according to the complaint, which was filed last week in Superior Court of the state of California. But the retailers' "grooming academy" doesn't provide a recognized degree or credentials, and also leaves workers "thrust into a demanding and sometimes dangerous job, often working for barely above minimum wage," it alleges.

PetSmart — the largest pet supply chain in the country with more than 1,300 stores across the country — promises aspiring groomers free, paid training that includes classroom-style instruction and supervised hands-on experience. Instead, trainees are quickly grooming dogs for paying customers with limited supervision from trainers or managers, the lawsuit claims.