The Ellen DeGeneres Show is being investigated after numerous accounts of problems with workplace culture.
WBTV owner employee relations group WarnerMedia and a third-party firm have launched an internal investigation, Variety reported Monday, to analyze staff experiences on set.
Employees received a note last week from executives at producer Telepictures and distributor Warner Bros. Television explaining that current and former employees will be interviewed.
Internal investigation: Ellen DeGeneres Show’s workplace is under investigation after reports of mistreatment on the production set
According to Variety, the note cited recent articles about the crew’s treatment, with allegations of mistreatment, racism, and intimidation on the show as the impetus for the investigation.
One of the staff members who received the memo revealed that he “underscored his commitment to providing an environment where employees can prosper.”
Earlier this month, several employees of The Ellen DeGeneres Show criticized it as a “toxic work environment.”
A current employee and 10 former employees of the daytime chat show, hosted by Ellen DeGeneres, accused the three executive producers, Ed Glavin, Mary Connelly and Andy Lassner, of ‘intimidation’.
According to Variety, a memorandum sent to employees cited recent articles about the crew’s treatment and allegations of mistreatment, racism and intimidation, as the impetus for the investigation.
A source told Buzzfeed: ‘The problem is that these three executive producers who run the show are in charge of all these people. [and] those who do the culture and are taking out this feeling of intimidation and being mean. They feel that everyone who works at The Ellen Show is lucky to work there: “So if you have a problem, you should leave because we will hire someone else because everyone wants to work here.”
Although Ellen, 62, has not been charged with any crime, employees have claimed that they were ordered not to speak to her if they saw her in the building.
A former employee said: ‘If you want to have your own show and have your name in the show’s title, you need to get more involved to see what happens. I think executive producers surround her and say, “Things are going well, everyone is happy,” and she simply believes that, but it is her responsibility to go beyond that. “
A black woman claims she suffered a series of “microaggressions”, her request for a raise was ignored, and she was accused of “walking with resentment and anger” after asking staff members to undergo diversity and inclusion training.
Earlier this month, several employees of The Ellen DeGeneres Show criticized it as a “toxic work environment” accusing three executive producers, Ed Glavin, Mary Connelly and Andy Lassner, of “intimidation”.
Another former employee alleges that they were fired after taking medical leave for a month after a suicide attempt.
They said, “You would think that if someone tried to commit suicide, they would not want to add more stress to their lives.”
Executive producers Glavin, Connelly and Lassner said: ‘Over the course of nearly two decades, 3,000 episodes and employing more than 1,000 staff members, we have strived to create an open, safe and inclusive work environment. We are truly heartbroken and sorry to hear that even one person in our production family has had a negative experience. It is not who we are and it is not what we strive to be, and it is not the mission that Ellen has set for us.
Bad reputation: Numerous reports from previous employees emerged earlier this year alleging that Ellen had been hostile and that crew members were warned not to speak to the host or make eye contact.
More evil alive? A series of tweets from the Kevin T. Porter comic on March 20 asked followers to post “crazy” stories about “Ellen being mean” caught the attention of social media.
Don’t talk to her: Social media users chimed in with their experiences, often with similar topics
‘For the record, the day-to-day responsibility for the Ellen show rests entirely with us. We take all of this very seriously and realize that as many of the world are learning, that we have to do better, we are committed to doing better, and we will do better. ”
In April, it was reported that the production team was angry at the bosses’ lack of communication and transparency after being forced to take pay cuts when production was first shut down amid the coronvarius outbreak.
A group of about 30 crew members were upset after Ellen hired an outside non-union company called Key Code Media to film the shows while she was quarantined at home.
“High levels of production occasionally answered phone calls but revealed little” to the crew members, whose wages were cut by 40 percent amid changes caused by the virus, experts told Variety.
Queen of social distancing! Ellen was accused of being inaccessible to some of the crew who were asked not to speak to her
Shocking accusations: Ellen was accused of being downright rude to some people.
Sources told the store that this was not the case with all the shows, as John Oliver, Desus and Mero and Samantha Bee’s teams charged their full fees, while Jimmy Kimmel went into his own pocket for a while to keep your staff receiving their regular rates
The producers responded that “Our executive producers and Telepictures are committed to taking care of our staff and team and have made decisions first of all with them in mind.”
A month earlier, numerous reports had emerged from previous employees that Ellen had been hostile on set and that crew members were warned not to speak to the host or make eye contact.
A series of tweets from the Kevin T. Porter comic on March 20 asked followers to post “crazy” tales of “Ellen being mean” caught the attention of social media. (Porter’s effort was linked to a charity campaign for the Los Angeles Food Bank.)
Unbelievable: Benjamin Siemon spoke of a staff member who was told to expect Ellen to be bad.
Writer Ben Simeon said, ‘A new staff member was told,’ Every day, she chooses someone different to really hate. It’s not your fault, just hang in there for the day and be mean to someone else the next day. ‘ They did not believe it, but it ended up being completely true.
“Everyone should chew gum from a bowl outside her office before talking to her, and if she thinks you smell that day, you have to go home and shower.”
Ellen, who Forbes reported is worth around $ 330 million, has also come under fire for tone deafness after joking that locking herself in her opulent mansion was “like being in jail.”
Earlier this month, representatives of the program were forced to deny reports that the program was about to be canceled. “Telepictures can confirm that this is not true,” representatives of the producer of the presenter of the television program told the New York Post.
DeGeneres has continued to stream his daytime show, which he has been doing since 2003, from his living room at the Montecito, California mansion, which he shares with his wife, Portia De Rossi, 47.
Sensitive noise: also said the host was very particular about personal hygiene
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