On the first day of 2024 — the day after working New Year’s Eve — former Bull City Ciderworks bartenders Courtney Carroll and Ariel Dale said they and another employee were fired.

Dale and Carroll said they were not given specific reasons for their firings.

The firing of the three bartenders on New Year’s Day has led to a social media backlash against the Durham-born cidery and prompted a response on Instagram from the company.

In response to emailed questions, Bull City Ciderworks co-owner John Clowney confirmed three of the Durham taproom’s 11 employees were fired for specific actions, but declined to specify the events that led to the firings.

“Bull City Ciderworks in Durham released three employees who worked at the taproom,” Clowney said in an email. “The employees were released because of actions that were inconsistent with company policies & protocol. The employees were directly notified that the dismissal was as a result of these actions, they were not arbitrarily dismissed as indicated on some social media platforms and comments.”

After her firing, Carroll posted on the Durham subreddit that she and other Bull City employees had just been fired on New Year’s Day. The thread has been one of the page’s most active topics this week, leading to dozens of comments.

Clowney defended the timing of the firings.

“While we never want to lose team members around the holidays, the timing was consistent with our discovery of the actions requiring dismissal of these employees,” he said in an email.

Cidery has expanded across NC

Bull City Ciderworks began with a Durham taproom and cidery in 2014. That Elizabeth Street location closed in 2016 to make way for the new Durham Police headquarters. The company moved production to Lexington and has since opened new taprooms in Durham, Cary, Greensboro and Wilmington.

Last month Bull City Ciderworks sold its Lexington property for $2.8 million to a Wilmington-based developer. Clowney said the cidery signed a long-term lease for the site and that the company is not negotiating to be sold.

“Bull City Ciderworks is still independently owned and operated by the founders (2 of which are Durham natives and 1 from the Triad), and is not in any discussions for a disposition or merger,” Clowney said in an email. “Bull City Ciderworks had redeveloped the Lexington property to the extent the company planned on investing in the real estate. The property has been sold to a NC buyer who plans on further developing the remaining approximately 60k SF of space on the property. Bull City Ciderworks has entered into a long term lease for our portion of the property as we are committed to the space and our communities where we operate.”

Firings — and social media response — a surprise

Clowney said that the company has been surprised by the social media response to the firings, noting that similar decisions in the past didn’t lead to negative reviews and comments online.

“We don’t take staffing and operating decisions lightly, and have always strived to create a welcoming and safe work environment for all of our employees, and the best establishment and experience for our customers,” Clowney said in an email. “It has been a very concerning and disappointing 24hrs dealing with the untruthful and negative comments online. As a small business we have always strived to be a meaningful part of all of our communities, and it is very disappointing that we operate in an environment where online mobs try to bully good businesses trying to make good decisions.”

Dale said she worked her last shift at Bull City on what was supposed to be her day off. She said Carroll called amid a chaotic scene at the taproom, where the former bartenders said they were minutes from opening at noon, tasked with hosting a children’s event and overseeing contractors working on the space.

“I had never had a day at Ciderworks where I wanted to walk out, but that was an extremely frustrating day,” Carroll said. “I had to make slime for a kids event at noon. I didn’t know how to make slime. The ingredients were Instacarted at 11:56 a.m. and the event started at noon.”

Carroll started working at Bull City in June after being a regular at the taproom for months. She said it was the community within the taproom that made her want to work there. Before the firing she said she averaged three shifts per week.

“It really became a huge community that was really valuable and that’s why it’s so upsetting to have this happen,” Carroll said. “I’ve met some of my very best friends there.”

Like Carroll, Dale was a regular before an employee.

“It’s one of the reasons I fell in love (with Durham),” she said.

When Carroll asked for help on New Year’s Eve, Dale said she didn’t hesitate.

“I love the place and try to help out when I can,” Dale said.

The two said they hosted the children’s event, managed the contractor work, served pints of cider to customers and that Dale worked to book food trucks to fill in when two others had canceled.

The next day they said they found out separately that they were fired from the taproom’s regional manager.

“I asked why I was fired on a holiday,” Dale said. “And was told she didn’t want to do it over the holidays. I said today is a holiday.”

Dale, who grew up in Durham and had moved back last year from New York, said that the bar had helped make the city a home.

“It breaks my heart,” Dale said. “It’s a mourning situation for all of us.”