James Dolan sued by NYC staff ‘fired for refusing COVID vaccine’

February 24, 2023

A group of Radio City Music Hall workers have kicked James Dolan in the chin with a lawsuit — accusing the media mogul of firing them for not complying with his company’s “unnecessary, draconian” COVID vaccination mandate, The Post has learned.

The five backstage employees accused Dolan-owned Madison Square Garden Entertainment – which runs the famed venue where the Rockettes put on their holiday spectacular – of refusing to accept their “sincere religious and medical objections to the vaccine,” according to documents filed in New Jersey federal court this week.

Dolan, who also owns the Knicks and Rangers, is already facing legal revolts from other parts of his entertainment and sports empire. He faces multiple lawsuits for his use of facial recognition technology to ban legal rivals at venues that include Radio City and Madison Square Garden, as well as a shareholders lawsuit over MSGE’s $900 million acquisition of MSG Networks.

A group of wardrobe dressers at Radio City Music Hall say they were terminated for refusing to adhere to MSG's "draconian" COVID vaccine mandate. — A group of wardrobe dressers at Radio City Music Hall say they were terminated for refusing to adhere to MSG’s “draconian” COVID vaccine mandate.

The latest legal fight over the contentious issue of vaccine mandates was filed by Stephanie Marra, Donna Holland, Teofesta Pusillo, Lourdes Garcia, and Kyle Nicholson.

Madison Square Garden and Radio City were among scores of entertainment venues throughout the city that were forced to shut down in the spring of 2020 due to the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.

MSGE required all its employees to at least get their first vaccine shot before July 12, 2021, and set a deadline of Aug. 21, 2021, to show proof of having both jabs, the lawsuit said.

James Dolan, the owner of Madison Square Garden Entertainment, is being sued by ex-Radio City employees who say they were fired for refusing the COVID vaccine. — James Dolan also faces lawsuits from lawyers and critics who say they were banned from MSG-run venues that used facial recognition to bar their entry.

Radio City Music Hall does not require guests to show proof of vaccination, though private companies are legally permitted to demand employees get the shot.

All five refused on religious grounds and were shown the exit. Nicholson was terminated on July 12, 2021, while Marra, Pusillo, and Garcia were fired on July 23, 2021, according to legal documents. Holland lost his job on Oct. 15, 2021. Marra, Holland, Pusillo and Garcia – all New Jersey residents – were wardrobe dressers. Nicholson was a stagehand.

“Madison Square Garden Entertainment chose to disregard the rights of its employees, disrespect their deepest beliefs of conscience, and harass anyone who dissented from its vaccine mandate,” Lexis Anderson, a Los Angeles-based attorney who is representing one of the plaintiffs, told The Post.

The lawsuit accused MSGE and MSG Sports – which owns the Knicks and Rangers – of having “disparately applied their mandate” after making “exceptions for certain groups of people,” according to court documents.

The fired employees cited "sincere religious objections" to the vaccine in their lawsuit. — The fired employees cited “sincere religious objections” to the vaccine in their lawsuit.

The lawsuit specifically cited the Rangers for allowing players to take the ice. The “team was considered fully vaccinated at 85%. This allowed an automatic exemption for players [who] objected to the forced vaccination policy,” the lawsuit stated.

Meanwhile, MSGE workers “were not given the same option but were instead threatened and harassed,” according to the lawsuit.

“This case seeks legal remedy for the discrimination and coercion these individuals experienced at the hands of the entertainment titan,” Anderson said.

An MSGE spokesperson declined to comment.

The five plaintiffs also appealed the matter to the New York State Division of Human Rights, alleging “discrimination on the basis of religion and a perceived disability,” according to court papers.

NYSDHR dismissed all of their complaints.

The Post has sought comment from the NYSDHR.