A former Peloton instructor has sued the exercise bike manufacturer for $1.8m (£1.6m) over allegations of disability discrimination and mocking his Irish accent.
Daniel McKenna, a popular trainer who organized virtual training classes for Peloton subscribers, sued the company for wrongful termination, discrimination and harassment.
McKenna, referred to by his followers at Peloton as “the Irish Yankee,” was fired on Sept. 12. He alleges that he was the subject of a harassment campaign by Jennifer Cotter, director of content for Peloton.
Ms. Cotter allegedly made jokes at Mr. McKenna’s expense in front of other Peloton personnel, such as saying “I hope you’re not drunk, Daniel” or “no one understands what you’re saying, Daniel.”
He claimed that Mrs Cotter told other members of staff that he was “our Irish instructor, he is crude and difficult to understand”.
Peloton sells stationary bikes for over £1,300 and a treadmill for £3,345, and offers remote exercise classes run by a team of fitness instructors.
According to a court filing in New York, McKenna said he began experiencing discrimination after applying for a waiver to receive the Covid vaccine after an unexpected surgery in October last year.
Mr. McKenna finally received a vaccination amid fears for his job, however, he suffered another injury in the spring of this year.
His doctors advised him to undergo more surgeries than it would take him six months to recover from. The fitness instructor alleges that he was threatened with termination for taking short-term disability leave.
After returning to housing classes, he was fired on September 12 with a pay of $130,000 for six months.
The lawsuit is added to Peloton struggles as it deals with collapsing stock price and fire hundreds of employees to stop their losses.
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