Former MTV VP Andrea Fair is suing her former employer, MTV, and parent company Viacom for sexual discrimination, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Fair is now demanding lost wages and compensatory damages.
Fair claims that the network "maintained a double standard and ignored inappropriate behavior but punished her," according to the suit.
Fair began her MTV career in 2005 as a senior director before being promoted to vice president of talent and music (TAM) in 2008. Fair claims that in 2009 she was appointed by MTV CEO Judy McGrath to be on MTV's Visionary Committee, which discusses the future of the network.
As TAM, she reported to Senior VP Bruce Gillmer, who she claims diminished her role, excluding her from meetings and allowing younger employees to attend events like the European Music Awards instead of her.
"In the days after Gillmer became her supervisor, it became clear to Fair that Gillmer was treating her differently because of her age and gender. On numerous occasions, Gillmer accused Fair of being 'too emotional,'" states the lawsuit.
In 2009, Gilmer hired Allison Farber, despite Fair's reservations, which soon led to problems. Fair claims Farber was difficult to manage, which Gillmer allegedly made worse with special treatment like trips to awards shows and a Rihanna video shoot.
In August 2010, Farber submitted a complaint against Fair for being "inappropriately aggressive and controlling," claiming she was afraid of her.
The network then fired Fair for a "pattern of inappropriate conduct."
In a statement to THR in response to the lawsuit MTV and Viacom said, “While we don’t comment on the specifics of pending litigation, we do not believe there is any merit to this claim and plan to defend against it vigorously.”
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