A new report has emerged claiming that G Fuel fired seven staff members after five contacted the company's human resources department to report the CEO’s use of offensive language.
According to a report published Wednesday by Digiday, seven talent managers at the gaming and esports energy drink company filed a report to HR following CEO Cliff Morgan's use of offensive language to describe both current and former employees during a meeting. The comments were reportedly just the final straw for many employees, after enduring months of inappropriate conduct.
Digiday's report explains that employees were subject to abusive management, nepotistic hiring practices, and various instances of toxic behaviour. The claims were supported by 11 current or former employees at G Fuel.
During the meeting, Morgan reportedly blamed the talent managers for declining sales, calling out specific previously fired staffers as "lazy motherfuckers" and calling those still there "retards." According to the report, Morgan ended the call by assuring no members of staff would be fired. Five of the staff members attending the meeting filed the complaint to HR, all of which were then terminated, along with two staffers in attendance who did not file a complaint.
A G Fuel spokesperson told Digiday that the employees had been terminated for "lack of performance" and as part of a restructure.
Over 70 partnered influencers have walked away from G Fuel after learning of the employee terminations, many of whom were paid monthly fees or commissions in return for promoting products.
Morgan's behavior has been made public before. In a Tweet from 2019, and in response to a post made by ex-G Fuel creator partner Daniel “Keemstar” Keem, Morgan called a prominent female Twitch streamer a slur, though it appeared to do little to damage G Fuel's reputation at the time.
This article was originally published on dbltap as G Fuel Reportedly Fired Staff Offended By CEO's Inappropriate Language.