White peers got the flexibility he was denied, the executive claims, just weeks before his firing

A Black executive at global chocolate manufacturer Barry Callebaut says he was pushed out after asking for the same remote work flexibility his White colleagues already enjoyed.

Kyle Myers, who joined Barry Callebaut U.S.A. LLC in March 2025 as VP and Managing Director of Global Corporate Accounts, is suing the company and Natasha Chen, the president of its North American business, alleging race discrimination and retaliation. The lawsuit, Myers v. Barry Callebaut U.S.A. LLC, et al., No. 1:26-cv-02232, was filed on May 21, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado.

The package that drew him in was substantial: a $340,000 base salary, a 40 percent bonus target, a $40,000 signing bonus, long-term incentives, a car allowance and six months of severance if he was let go without cause. Myers, who is African American, says he disclosed early on that he planned to relocate from Boulder, Colorado, to Chicago, and the company agreed to a hybrid setup while he made the move. For a few months, he flew between the two cities during the workweek as required.

Then his personal life shifted. In May 2025, according to the filing, his wife told him she planned to file for divorce in Colorado, where custody proceedings for their young daughter would play out. Relocating to Chicago, he says, was no longer realistic.

When he asked HR for more remote flexibility in late June,...

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