MrBeast staffer says she was harassed for years in new lawsuit

A former employee has filed a lawsuit against MrBeastYouTube LLC, alleging she was fired from her role as a social media manager after returning from maternity leave, following years of what she describes as sexual harassment and workplace gender bias. 1News Reported.

According to 1news...The lawsuit, brought by Lorrayne Mavromatis in a US federal court in North Carolina, names both MrBeastYouTube LLC and GameChanger 24/7 LLC.

It accuses the companies of violating federal protections that allow eligible employees to take unpaid, job-protected leave for family and medical reasons, including childbirth.

Mavromatis has also lodged a complaint with the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, alleging discrimination based on sex and pregnancy, as well as retaliation.

She claims that she continued working “nonstop” even after giving birth, including while she was in the delivery room...... Said by 1news.

“I was still bleeding, and I just had to show up,” Mavromatis told the AP in an interview.

According to her account, she was dismissed less than three weeks after resuming full-time work.

According to 1 NEWS. The lawsuit raises serious allegations about the internal culture of the media company founded by Jimmy Donaldson, better known as MrBeast, at a time when the organisation is undergoing rapid expansion under new leadership.

The legal action was filed shortly before the TIME100 celebration in New York, where Donaldson was scheduled to be honoured among the world’s most influential people, alongside Pope Leo, US president Donald Trump and New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani.

A spokesperson for Beast Industries dismissed the claims, describing the lawsuit as a “clout-chasing complaint” based on “deliberate misrepresentations and categorically false statements”.

The company stated that Mavromatis’s role had been eliminated during a team restructuring led by a new head of e-commerce.

It also shared a Slack exchange dated March 31, 2025, in which a colleague told Mavromatis she “shouldn't even be checking” messages after she cancelled a meeting, explaining she was “actually in labour at the hospital as we speak.”

In response to allegations that the company failed to inform her about her rights under the Family and Medical Leave Act, Beast Industries presented a document showing her acknowledgment of the employee handbook, which included FMLA policies.

“We will not submit to opportunistic lawyers looking to manufacture a payday from us,” the statement said.

Company culture under scrutiny

The lawsuit portrays a workplace environment described as toxic and misogynistic, even as Beast Industries has attempted to reform its internal culture while expanding into new sectors such as television and financial services.

The company’s projects now include the Amazon Prime reality show Beast Games, which has completed two seasons, as well as the acquisition of the youth-focused banking app Step.

Concerns about workplace culture at Beast Industries first emerged two years ago, following controversy over Donaldson’s past use of racist and homophobic language, along with allegations involving a longtime collaborator accused of sending inappropriate messages to minors.

In an August 2024 email to staff, Donaldson acknowledged the need for change, stating he must “create a culture that makes all our employees feel safe and allows them to do their best work.”

Following a third-party investigation that identified “isolated instances” of harassment and misconduct, several employees were dismissed.

Donaldson has continued to expand his presence in mainstream entertainment, appearing at the MTV Video Music Awards, featuring in a Super Bowl commercial for Salesforce, and joining the cast of the upcoming Angry Birds Movie 3.

Beast Industries, which employs around 700 people according to chief communications officer Gaude Paez, has also been actively recruiting senior talent from companies such as NBCUniversal and TikTok as it seeks to grow beyond Donaldson’s personal brand.

A high-intensity work environment

According to the lawsuit, employees were encouraged to “go to great lengths” to meet expectations.

The complaint references a 36-page internal document titled “HOW TO SUCCEED IN MRBEAST PRODUCTION,” which outlined workplace expectations.

Among its contents were statements such as, “It’s okay for the boys to be childish” and “The Amount of hours you work is irrelevant.”

Mavromatis alleges that this culture contributed to her decision to join a team meeting from her hospital bed while in labour, fearing she might lose her job if she did not attend.

“I actually had to hold my breath in between talks because of how hard the contractions were,” she said.

Now 34, Mavromatis joined the company in August 2022 as head of Instagram and was promoted twice within a year. Between June 2023 and January 2024, she led operations for the company’s verticals division, which she described as an executive-level role, although Paez characterised it as mid-level.

The lawsuit also details an interaction with James Warren, Donaldson’s cousin and then-CEO, after Mavromatis observed that Donaldson avoided eye contact with her.

According to the complaint, Warren said: "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.”

The company attributed Donaldson’s behaviour to his diagnosis of Crohn’s disease.

Mavromatis further claims that after she reported concerns about sexual harassment and a hostile work environment to human resources—headed at the time by Donaldson’s mother—she was reassigned and demoted to what she described as “an obscure role.”

The company has denied this allegation, calling it “false and inaccurate.”

The case is being supported by the TIME’S UP Legal Defence Fund at the National Women’s Law Center, which was established during the early #MeToo movement.

Senior director Jennifer Mondino commented: “Abusive workplaces rely on a persistent lack of accountability. We see this pattern frequently, where those with influence and power are allowed to harm others and retaliate against those who decide to speak up.”

“We are in a collective fight to address a longstanding culture of harassment that relies on entrenched silence and shame.”