Staff members accuse the network for unfair pay and a misogynistic work culture.
Ashley Flete, an ex-anchor who filed suit against Claudia Jean last August said that a producer had been “berating” her about being “insufficiently feminine”While she was on-air, her earpiece was triggered. After filing a complaint to human resources, she stated that her contract was ended six months into a 2-year contract.
According to the complaint, BNC stated that Flete was fired because they no longer needed a morning host. However, Flete believed that this was in retaliation for her complaint.
Other plaintiffs include Claudia Jean (talent producer), Maria Roach (executive producer), Felicia Burton (newsroom executive), Lauren Coleman (line producer Kyra branch), Kisha Wilkinson (part-time assignment editors), and Felicia Burton (newsroom executive Felicia). Six other plaintiffs are listed. “Jane Doe”The complaint. Branch and the unnamed plaintiff remain at BNC. All others have been fired or resigned.
Coleman claimed in her complaint that she was paid less than the male technical directors at BNC during her time of employment. She claimed she was denied a salary increase after all male directors received increases between $10,000 and $15,000 last year. After discovering the discrepancy, she gave two weeks notice and claimed that BNC refused her full accrued vacation time and sick leave in retaliation.
Branch, who held several producer roles at the network, alleges that male line producers made $90,000 — significantly more than her own $55,000 salary. According to the complaint, another plaintiff claimed she was an assignment manager at BNC with a starting salary of $43,000. Her male counterparts typically earned between $80,000 and $100,000 per year.
Burton frequently spoke with HR about the inappropriate behavior of male employees. He also claimed that male staffers made inappropriate sexual advances to female employees and their subordinates. One employee claimed that a male employee had placed drugs in the drinks of female employees. Burton was later advised that it was wrong to report male employees. “because their conduct was ‘in the past,’”She was on medical leave and was immediately stripped of her job, direct reports and title.
Wilkinson started her career as an assignment editor. She was promoted to senior planning in 2020. Wilkinson also filed a complaint regarding pay disparity and reported two cases of sexual harassment to Human Resources. She claimed she was instructed not to speak during meetings by her male superiors. “because they said women do not sound intelligent,”The filing states. The filing also cites instances where male managers judge female employees based upon their physical attractiveness, and ask her her opinion on her attractiveness.
BNC reps did not respond when asked.
BNC, based in Tallahassee (Florida), is the Only full-timeSince its launch in 2020, the channel has been viewed by up to 50,000,000 households. Former Oklahoma Republican Congressman J.C. Watts founded the network, along with broadcast veteran Bob Brillante.
Among the network’s main anchors are Sharon Reed, Mike Hill, Laverne McGee, Del Walters, Marc Lamont Hill, Kelly Wright and Charles Blow. The majority of major carriers offer programming, including DIRECTV to Xfinity. However, ratings and workforce performance have been challenging for the company.
The company announced layoffs last month just days before Christmas, as the network was still struggling to earn ratings. The company did not give details about how many people would be affected, but BNC employs around 300 people. “We kind of felt this was going to happen,”One employee who was not authorized to speak for the company told previously.
In a ratings ranking of all 124 cable channels in 2021, BNC tied with Comedy.tv for second-to-last place with an average of 4,000 viewers throughout the year, beating only BeIN Sports. Fox News, which averaged 2.36million primetime viewers every evening in 2021, is the highest-rated cable network of all 124.
This report was contributed by Pamela Chelin