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Allegations of misogyny and discrimination rock Moog

Allegations have been made against Moog Music by former employee Hannah Green, who is suing the synth giant after facing “extensive misogyny, discrimination and even physical assault.”

Hannah Green, a former employee at Moog, revealed in local news site The Asheville Blade, that she would be suing the company for “intentional discriminatory acts and practices” and seeking $1.1 million in damages.

The complaint, reportedly filed in Federal Court in March 2021 alleges that Moog repeatedly violated Green’s civil rights. The company has been accused of two separate discriminations based on sex, verbal abuse, physical assault, emotional distress, retaliation and wrongful termination.

moog factory

The working conditions Green relayed in her allegations are unfortunately all too familiar to women working in male-dominated sectors. Green revealed in The Asheville Blade that she had to deal with sexist jokes and a ‘boys club’ attitude where she was verbally and physically intimidated, was passed over for jobs she was qualified for, had work taken away and given to male colleagues, was denied credit for her work and was retaliated against when she attempted to bring to light gender discrimination in Moog. According to Green, this culminated in her wrongful discharge from the company.

In a harrowing statement, Green revealed: “One of my last weeks there the guy that assaulted me and carries a knife, made a joke about killing a woman in a sales team meeting.” 

In January 2019, Green claims she began to air complaints of “disparate treatment in Moog’s all-male sales department,” which was where she worked. She raised instances of misogyny and unfair treatment to HR superiors beginning in 2019.

However, Moog was unable to deal with the toxic situation and management took no action in response to her reports. In light of the allegations, Moog released the following statement:

“Moog categorically denies these claims, which are false. The author of the Asheville Blade article did not contact Moog Music or give us an opportunity to comment, respond to, or refute any of these false allegations.”

The company went on to say that the Equal Opportunities Employment Commission (EEOC) investigated and dismissed the claim, while their own internal investigation found nothing.

“Our executive leadership (50% female/average female tenure ~ 9 years) will continue to focus on providing a safe and nurturing environment for our employees and will have nothing further to say on this matter until the litigation is finalised.”

This is not the first time sexism and misogyny has been brought to light in the music industry. Earlier this year Fender made a tone-deaf Instagram post that has since been removed, while the owner of Synthrotek took to social media to make a rape joke. However, Moog now has the opportunity to make a revolutionary response. While these conversations are being had, it’s important that they hold themselves accountable and ensure they actively work to remove their share of toxic behaviour from the industry.