Iowa woman tells Home Depot worker she needs wood cut. They make her do it—there’s just one problem: ‘I’m pregnant’

Being considerate toward a pregnant woman is considered common sense across cultures.

Things like offering her a seat on public transport, helping her with heavy bags, or allowing her to go ahead in a line.

According to one Iowa mother of two, Lauran (@nevagavafvck), however, one Home Depot worker did not offer her an inch of courtesy while she was pregnant with her second.

Why didn't Home Depot help this pregnant shopper?

In a short clip that has now been viewed over 218,000 times, Lauran recalls a visit to Home Depot. It happened when she was visibly pregnant.

“Tb to when I was pregnant af and told the worker I needed the wood cut & he directed me to the hand saw to use,” she wrote in the video's text overlay.

“They got me cutting this myself,” she says in the clip. Then, she sets the phone down and starts using the saw on a thick wooden board. Her young daughter stands behind her, watching.

“This is an arm workout,” she says.

Her daughter even offers to help, saying, “Maybe I can do it for you.”

“No!” Lauran responds, ending the video.

“Like genuinely wtf,” she wrote in the caption.

Does Home Depot offer wood-cutting services?

According to several home improvement blogs, it does, though there are some caveats.

First of all, the wood you'd like cut has to be purchased from Home Depot, not brought in from elsewhere. Customers usually use this service right after making their purchase.

Second, the first few cuts are usually free, and customers are charged for the rest. According to Homedit, subsequent cuts cost $0.25 to $1 each.

Additionally, it depends on whether there's an associate available in the lumber department at that moment. They might be busy assisting other customers, but you can always ask another employee for help instead.

Some stores do appear to have “self-help” stations, as one employee on r/HomeDepot called them, but it's unclear why a worker would direct Lauran there when she had asked for help.

Viewers were appalled

Commenters couldn't understand why a Home Depot worker would let a pregnant woman operate a hand saw.

“Omg girl as someone who worked at Home Depot before if a manager would've seen this they would've written up the employee,” one user wrote. “I'm so fr they should've cut it for you.”

“I used to work at hd and that hand saw is for molding , they have a saw machine the cut the lumber for youuuu!” another said. “Mama didn't raise that man right letting you cut that.”

A third commenter offered a different perspective.

“…thats a liability why would they have a hand saw,” they wrote.

What happens if a Home Depot customer suffers an injury inside the store?

Getting hurt inside a Home Depot doesn't automatically mean the company is legally responsible.

The main question in a case like that is usually whether the store failed to use reasonable care.

The Premises Liability Act, for example, says that businesses must take reasonable steps to keep their premises safe for their customers.

What Lauran described could potentially also qualify as employee negligence, if an injury were to happen.

Personal injury law firm Wocl Leydon says negligence claims against Home Depot can involve employees making poor safety decisions that lead to customer injuries.

As the firm puts it, liability can depend on whether Home Depot “did not take reasonable steps to prevent your injury.”

@nevagavafvck

Subplot News has reached out to Home Depot via email and Lauran via TikTok messages.

The post Iowa woman tells Home Depot worker she needs wood cut. They make her do it—there's just one problem: ‘I'm pregnant' appeared first on Subplot News.