Ex-MrBeast Executive Says She Was Forced to Work During Active Labour Before Being Fired for Having a 'Sexual Effect' on Boss

A former MrBeast executive says she was pressured to join a team meeting from a hospital delivery room while in active labour, was told her looks had a 'sexual effect' on the YouTube billionaire, and was fired three weeks after returning from maternity leave, a federal lawsuit claims.

Lorrayne Mavromatis, 34, lodged the complaint on 22 April in the US District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina. The filing accuses MrBeastYouTube LLC and GameChanger 24/7 LLC of violating the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), alongside wrongful termination and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

Beast Industries, worth about $5 billion (£3.7 billion) and employing roughly 750 people, denies the allegations and has called the complaint 'clout-chasing'.

'No Does Not Mean No'

Mavromatis alleges the company circulated a 36-page employee handbook titled 'How to Succeed in MrBeast Production' that told staff 'no does not mean no' and that 'the amount of hours you work is irrelevant.'

The document also reportedly stated 'it's okay for the boys to be childish' and instructed workers to 'empower the boys when filming.'

The lawsuit describes a 'boy's club' culture where female employees were excluded from all-male meetings and harassed without consequence.

Mavromatis says former chief executive James Warren, Jimmy Donaldson's cousin, summoned her to one-on-one meetings at his home and commented on her clothes.

When she asked why Donaldson would not work with her on certain projects, Warren allegedly said she is 'a beautiful woman' whose appearance 'had a certain sexual effect on Jimmy.' She says she began wearing baggy clothes and baseball caps to blend in.

First Employee to Ask for Maternity Leave

Hired in August 2022 as head of Instagram on a $100,000 (£74,000) salary, Mavromatis was promoted twice within a year, eventually managing a team of 20 and a monthly budget of roughly $500,000 (£370,000) on a $250,000 (£185,000) package, court papers say.

She filed an internal harassment complaint in November 2023 with Donaldson's mother, Susan Parisher, who then led human resources. An investigation found her allegations 'unsubstantiated', and she was demoted to the merchandise division, which employees reportedly called the place where 'careers go to die.'

Mavromatis says she told her supervisor in January 2025 that she was pregnant, making her the first Beast Industries employee to request maternity leave. The company, she claims, had no formal parental leave policy and never informed her of her FMLA rights.

On 31 March 2025, while at the hospital in active labour, she felt compelled to join a scheduled team meeting after her boss asked if she would still attend. 'I was so fearful of losing my job,' she told Vulture, adding she held her breath between contractions so colleagues would not hear. She told the Associated Press she was 'still bleeding' when she kept working.

Fired and Replaced by a Man

Mavromatis was terminated less than three weeks after returning to work, according to the filing, and was told she was 'too high calibre' for the role she had been demoted into. A man was later hired to perform duties she had previously carried out, the complaint adds.

She has also filed a charge with the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleging sex, pregnancy, and retaliation discrimination. The suit seeks lost wages, reinstatement, liquidated damages, and punitive damages.

Company Hits Back

A Beast Industries spokesperson said the complaint contains 'deliberate misrepresentations and categorically false statements,' and that the firm has 'extensive evidence' including Slack and WhatsApp messages to refute it.

The company says Mavromatis signed a revised handbook detailing FMLA rights on 27 March 2025, and that her role was eliminated during a restructuring under new chief Jeffrey Housenbold.

Donaldson, 27, told a Time100 Summit panel he was not 'the best to set up culture at that scale' and has brought in 'more experienced people' to guide the business.