Gender identity again posed a major deterrent for one of the former employee’s most reputed fashion stylists. A few days back, the stylist known for his rich clients’ list was subject to ‘disparate treatment.’ He resigned in 2020 earlier, owing to top inhuman and biased working conditions.
The Complain Against His Employer
Have you heard of Kevin Ericson? He is the man who made a serious complaint at the Los Angeles Superior Court. This was about him facing insult from Christina Ehlrich and Little White Dog Inc, her Sherman Oaks business venture. The former employee of Ehlrich accused her of extreme harassment, discrimination, and even failure to prevent such. Alongside more violations of the state Labor Code – all of which formed a part of his lawsuit.
Written clearly in the suit were valid points like the comments made by Ms. Ehlrich. They were highly unwelcome and offensive. The employment period of Mr. Ericson and Ms. Ehlrich made him work in a rigid and hostile work environment that constantly impacted his mental growth. He had to undergo a lot of mental health. So, Ericson is charging around $1 million as compensatory damages, punitive actions, and restitution. Ehrich, however, was not around for comment!
Ehlrich Is A Top Hollywood Stylist
Most people do not know who Ehlrich is. Almost everyone is a Hollywood name to contend with in the acting domain and share several other common likes and passions. Her celeb clients include Julianna Marguiles, Tina Fev, Margot Robbie, and Penelope Cruz, to name a few. In 2012, she was also famous as the ‘Celebrity Stylist of the Year.’ The lawsuit also mentions that Ehlrich was collaborating with Pandora to be the brand ambassador.
Erickson got the job in 2015. His duties and responsibilities were vast – which included receiving shipping packages from various designers, primarily for client fittings. He was also the person meant to coordinate clothes that were recovered and even returned for the necessary client fittings across showrooms, in addition to managing client fittings—coordinating with the client’s acts and Ehlrich’s travel dates and super-hectic business schedules.
Ehlrich Was Accused Of Discrimination
According to Kevin, Ehlrich had discriminated against him based on his gender orientation. They accused him of using his identity to form a certain ‘alliance’ against her with an agent. As a result, the plaintiff had to lay out a code of disciplinary measures for other male members in the office who failed to behave in socially- acceptable manners. Since Ehlrich felt uncomfortable with how Ericson carried off himself, he even asked the latter to ‘tone down his gender identity.
It was a surprise that Ehlrich described Ericson as a ‘sweet’ and ‘nice’ boy when hiring him. Within some time, she became a completely different personality, simply because Erickson failed to comply with the norms dictated by society for males.
What undermined Ericson’s worth, value, and performance was the presence of clients like fey, Natasha Lyonne, Brie Larson, Alison Brie, Laura Dern, and Priyanka Chopra. The Indian actress started as a model, and later became a singer too! She was one of the highest-paid entertainers in the industry during her prime. No wonder she received a host of prestigious accolades.
The Discrimination
The suit declared that Ericson agreed that he was almost always under stress because he was afraid of staying in a rather abusive situation. On several occasions, Ehlrich had commented about Ericson publicly and forced him into conversations where he cracked up with some demeaning jokes. Worse, was when someone addresses a person with their gender rather than their name. And Ericson was guilty the same. If these didn’t sound enough, she would even force Erikson to text her throughout the day. Also, he had to be close to her, just in case, an immediate response was necessary.
Often Ehlrich would ask Ericson to stay back at his office post working hours. She would squeeze her ‘me-time’ and drink alcohol while making calls. But Erikson failed to get a time-bound rest and meal breaks.
Erikson was a hard-working man undoubtedly. However, let’s not forget he’s a human. Around the same time the pandemic started, he was planning to end all that he had to face. In the end, he filed a lawsuit.