"It's A Boy's Club": Ex-Employee Sues MrBeast's Company Over Sexual Harassment, Pregnancy Bias

A former executive at Beast Industries has filed a federal lawsuit alleging sexual harassment, discrimination, and retaliation within the company founded by YouTuber MrBeast, New York Times reported. Lorrayne Mavromatis, a Brazilian-born social media professional who led the company's Instagram operations after joining in 2022, has accused the company of fostering a "toxic workplace." In her complaint filed in a North Carolina federal court, she claims she was demoted and later terminated after raising concerns about harassment and gender bias.

"Plaintiff was a rising star promoted twice within her first year of employment, but after complaining about a workplace that suffered from a lack of basic employment protections in November 2023, she was subjected to multiple adverse employment actions, including a negative transfer, demotion, and termination," her lawyers alleged in a lawsuit filed Wednesday in North Carolina.

Notably, MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, runs the most-subscribed YouTube channel with more than 479 million subscribers. 

Sexual Harassment and Gender Bias

• According to the lawsuit, Mavromatis faced repeated instances of inappropriate conduct from senior leadership.
• She alleges that a former CEO requested one-on-one meetings at his home while commenting on her appearance and that when she reported a client's inappropriate advances, she was told she should feel "honoured."
• The complaint also describes a broader culture in which female employees were subjected to demeaning remarks, were interrupted in meetings, and were treated differently from male colleagues.
• She described Beast Industries as a "boy's club" and alleged she was told to "shut up" or "stop talking" during a meeting and demeaned by MrBeast.
• When she asked James Warren, Donaldson's cousin and CEO at that time, why Jimmy wouldn't work with her on certain projects, she was told she was a "beautiful woman" and that her "appearance had a certain sexual effect on Jimmy," the lawsuit said.
• According to the complaint, Warren responded: "Jimmy gets really awkward around beautiful women. Let's just say that when you're around and he goes to the restroom, he's not actually using the restroom."

"Executives' demeaning treatment towards women was publicly displayed at MrBeast headquarters when male executives laughed and made jokes at the office about female contestants of BeastGames who complained they did not have access to feminine hygiene products and clean underwear while participating in the show," the lawsuit said. 

Hostile Environment

• The lawsuit further claims that internal workplace norms contributed to a hostile environment.
• An employee handbook allegedly included troubling language such as "no does not mean no," while the company lacked a clear mechanism to report harassment at the time of her complaints in 2023.
• The complaint states that she was demoted to a lesser role in merchandise social media after she raised concerns with human resources, which was then led by Donaldson's mother.
• Mavromatis also alleges pregnancy discrimination. She says she was pressured to work during labour and throughout her maternity leave, including being asked to join calls from her hospital bed. "I actually had to hold my breath in between talks because of how hard the contractions were," she said.
• After returning to work, she was terminated within three weeks.

"MrBeast terminated Plaintiff less than three weeks after she returned from FMLA and pregnancy-related leave, telling her that she was ‘too high caliber' for the role she was demoted into after formally complaining about sexual harassment and the hostile work environment at MrBeast," the lawsuit added. 

Company Response

In response, representatives for Beast Industries have denied all allegations. The company described the lawsuit as a "clout-chasing complaint" filled with false claims and said it plans to contest the case in court.

It maintains that Mavromatis's role was eliminated as part of a restructuring effort and that internal records, including Slack messages, show she was encouraged to take leave during childbirth. The company also disputed claims about Donaldson's behaviour, attributing references in the lawsuit to his known struggle with Crohn's disease.

"This clout-chasing complaint is built on deliberate misrepresentations and categorically false statements, and we have the receipts to prove it. There is extensive evidence, including Slack and WhatsApp messages, company documents, and witness testimony, that unequivocally refutes her claims. We will not submit to opportunistic lawyers looking to manufacture a payday from us," the spokesperson said.