Former PepsiCo Employee Sues Over Anti-Gay Harassment
The gay former coordinator alleges PepsiCo ignored years of workplace harassment and fired her after she took family leave.
A former PepsiCo coordinator is suing the company, alleging it failed to stop anti-gay harassment by other employees and later fired her after she returned from family leave.
The worker — whom Metro Weekly is not naming to protect her from retaliation by members of the public — is described as a gay man who uses female pronouns. She worked as a coordinator managing warehouse operations and logistics from May 2022 until her termination in December 2025.
The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on July 24.
As reported by Human Resources Director, the worker alleges that she experienced on-the-job harassment from October 2023 through November 2025.
She claims that one co-worker refused an assignment she had given him and said that he “can’t stand gay people.” Shortly afterward, the co-worker falsely accused her of having a firearm in her bag. Management searched her belongings but found no evidence to support the claim.
In another incident, a second co-worker told her that if she was going to speak to men, she “needed to use a deeper voice.” The employee also overheard co-workers saying they would not use the restroom if “that gay motherfucker” was using it.
The employee later asked a subordinate to complete a task. He became hostile and lashed out at her, falsely claiming that she had confronted him while he was using the restroom, even though she had not worked during the week of the alleged incident.
A co-worker also confronted her directly, telling her he “did not like gay people like you,” and removed his safety vest in what she interpreted as a threat of physical assault. A driver said he did not care about her pronouns and refused to respect them. Another co-worker used a homophobic slur, stating that he “can’t stand this f***ie motherfucker.”
The plaintiff reported the incidents to her manager, PepsiCo’s human resources department, and the company’s employee hotline. She alleges that no meaningful corrective action was taken and that the company continued scheduling her to work alongside her alleged harassers.
In November 2025, the employee took approved leave under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act to care for her husband. The law allows eligible employees to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave annually for certain family and medical reasons.
While she was on leave, PepsiCo’s human resources department contacted her about a claim that she had touched a co-worker’s cheek or blown him a kiss during an October meeting. She denied the allegation and said she was never interviewed again or told that the investigation was continuing. She returned to work in early December. On December 30, her manager called and read her a letter stating that she was being fired for allegedly harassing a co-worker.
In her lawsuit, the employee claims the harassment allegation was false and used as a pretext for firing her. She notes that the accusation surfaced only after she took unpaid leave and repeatedly reported the harassment she suffered at work. She also claims that PepsiCo knew about the harassment but took no action to stop it.
The lawsuit claims that PepsiCo subjected her to discrimination and a hostile work environment by failing to address the harassment, violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Title VII prohibits sex-based discrimination, which the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2020 includes discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.
The lawsuit also claims that the employee suffered retaliation in violation of Title VII and the Family and Medical Leave Act. She is seeking $150,000 in lost wages and benefits, as well as compensatory, punitive, and liquidated damages.
PepsiCO has not yet filed a response to the former employee’s complaint.
More from Metro Weekly:
Support Metro Weekly’s Journalism
These are challenging times for news organizations. And yet it’s crucial we stay active and provide vital resources and information to both our local readers and the world. So won’t you please take a moment and consider supporting Metro Weekly with a membership? For as little as $5 a month, you can help ensure Metro Weekly magazine and MetroWeekly.com remain free, viable resources as we provide the best, most diverse, culturally-resonant LGBTQ coverage in both the D.C. region and around the world. Memberships come with exclusive perks and discounts, your own personal digital delivery of each week’s magazine (and an archive), access to our Member's Lounge when it launches this fall, and exclusive members-only items like Metro Weekly Membership Mugs and Tote Bags! Check out all our membership levels here and please join us today!
You must be logged in to post a comment.