Deadflocks's journey

Applied at Mattel for Unknown

I was laid off from Mattel, the well-known toy company, after I reported a sexual harassment complaint that was never addressed. It was a relief to be separated from the company, as I had been unhappy for a while. Initially, they offered me severance and other perks, but I ended up rejecting their offer. A coworker had informed me that my manager made a sexually harassing comment, which was reported to a higher-up and supposedly to our HR representative. However, I never saw any follow-up on that report. After I emailed HR to discuss my concerns, I was laid off about a month later. I suspect there might be a connection, but I can't be certain. I took action by reporting the HR representative to our Ethics Line and the California Civil Rights Department, and I initiated an internal investigation. While many of my claims were dismissed as uncorroborated, it was confirmed that HR had failed to address my complaint before my layoff. I had everything documented, which was a relief. I consulted a lawyer about my severance, but they didn't think I could negotiate a better deal. Surprisingly, I managed to get Mattel to double my severance offer, but I still found it too low and rejected it. They then quadrupled the amount, but I rejected that as well because they only gave me two business days to sign the agreement, which was against California law that requires a minimum of five business days. The agreement also contained clauses that would have forced me to deny ever reporting sexual harassment, which I found unacceptable. I learned that other employees who were laid off after me faced similar issues with their agreements, which seemed designed to cover up any claims against Mattel. I hope this isn't a widespread practice in other companies.