Queer Woman Who Worked for PepsiCo Alleges Years of Anti-LGBTQ Harassment in Lawsuit
She says she was fired after taking approved family medical leave.
A former PepsiCo employee who managed warehouse logistics for the company has filed a lawsuit in the US District Court of Pennsylvania, according to Human Resources Director.
The queer woman reportedly accused PepsiCo of allowing years of anti-LGBTQ+ harassment to go on even as she complained about her treatment. The lawsuit alleges that the company then fired her after she returned to work following an approved extended absence to take care of her husband.
The former employee sued PepsiCo, Inc. on July 24, 2026, according to the publication. The suit brings claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).
Hired in 2022, the woman said in the complaint that the harassment from colleagues began in 2023 and lasted until 2025, when she says she was unfairly determined.
HRD reports that the worker alleges that her coworkers said they couldn’t stand queer people, that she should lower her voice, that two wouldn’t share a bathroom with her, and that another told her he didn’t like “gay people like” her. They also directed anti-LGBTQ+ slurs at her.
The complaint reportedly says she raised these incidents multiple times with her manager, PepsiCo’s human resources department, and the company’s internal hotline, but that it was never resolved and her colleagues continued on.
The former worker says she was then terminated after she took approved FMLA in late 2025 in order to care for her husband. In the suit, she says that a representative from the company contacted her and said that she had touched a colleague’s cheek and blown a kiss at him during a previous meeting. She’s denied the accusation, HRD reports.
Returning to work in December 2025, she said, per her lawsuit, that there were no incidents until the end of the month when her manager told her she was being fired over allegations of sexually harassing her colleague.
In her lawsuit, the woman is seeking lost wages and benefits, compensatory and punitive damages, and liquidated damages, according to HRD.
As LGBTQ Nation noted in its coverage of the case, the 2020 Supreme Court decision in Bostock v. Clayton County established that discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity constitutes sex discrimination barred by Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act that outlaws workplace discrimination based on sex.
GO has reached out to PepsiCo for comment.
