The surveys of Nike staff about sexual harassment and discrimination came after former company executive Melanie Strong’s damning testimony and a court order, with some of the most shocking allegations of misconduct, including “careless drunks” beating staff and “oral sex in the campus gym.” ‘, according to OregonLive.
The so-called “Starfish” surveys were conducted internally by employees who expressed their experiences of discrimination and sexual harassment, after many believed that management did not take their previous complaints seriously.
The anonymous surveys were recorded in 2018. The company initially insisted that only about 30 employees had completed the survey. Monique Matheson, a Nike human resources executive, and Nicole Hubbard Graham, Nike’s chief marketing officer, were two executives who maintained they received “approximately 30” in their 2024 testimony.
However, in March 2024, former executive Melanie Strong, who was one of the last people to handle the surveys, said that they were instead 300 surveys submitted in subpoena-forced testimony.
“There were exponentially more surveys and stories and conversations that didn’t end up on paper,” a Starfish organizer confirmed to The Oregonian/OregonLive.
After Strong’s deposition in 2024, the plaintiffs’ attorneys were able to obtain a new court order and the company ended up handing over another 15 Starfish surveys, admitting that it had missed some.
The local publication also claims that the multibillion-dollar corporation has attempted to block the publication of 31 of the surveys.
“We’re spending millions of dollars to protect people who behaved badly,” one Nike employee fumed after news of Strong’s statement emerged.
Newly discovered documents have revealed that former Nike executives allegedly attempted to cover up allegations of sexual harassment by female staff at its Oregon headquarters.
In surveys, respondents revealed that their coworkers allegedly told them to “dress sexier” and “show some skin” in the office.
One even shockingly revealed that he allegedly caught an executive receiving oral sex from a lower-ranking woman in the campus gym.
Another claimed that “sloppy drunk” men hugged their female co-workers during work trips, while others asked their subordinates to make “work dinners” in the hopes of sleeping with them.
A fifth respondent noted that a manager allegedly once said, “No one gives a damn about female empowerment,” according to Business Insider.
In March 2024, former executive Melanie Strong, who was one of the last people to handle the surveys, said 300 surveys may have been submitted in subpoena-forced testimony.
At a hearing in October, plaintiffs’ attorneys read aloud an email with the subject line “Starfish” that was not provided in initial discovery and argued that it should have been
A Nike lawyer addressed the recent discovery of more Starfish studies at a hearing in September.
“At some point, a collection (of Starfish studies), around 30 that were delivered, that was the universe that we, the company, were aware of,” the lawyer said.
Evidence obtained by OregonLive suggests that senior management, including former CEO Mark Parker, did not turn over all of the ‘Starfish’ surveys to the courts. Nike insisted that only about 30 employees had completed the survey, supposedly in an attempt to minimize the backlash and harm they were facing.
In March 2024, former executive Melanie Strong, who was one of the last people to handle the surveys, said that instead 300 surveys had been submitted in a subpoena forced to testify.
At a hearing in October, plaintiffs’ attorneys read aloud an email with the subject line “Starfish” that was not provided in initial discovery and argued that it should have been
“So we had the printed universe,” he added. “We went back to Judge Russo’s most recent order, searched by email for some additional questionnaires and (produced) the only ones we could find.”
At a hearing in October, plaintiffs’ attorneys read aloud an email with the subject line ‘Starfish’ that was not provided in initial discovery and argued that it should have been.
When asked by District Judge Amy Baggio, who is now overseeing the lawsuit, why Nike had not provided the document, an attorney said the company was only ordered to produce surveys.
But Baggio disagreed, noting that the order went “beyond the questionnaires” and included “all communications and documents related to Starfish that were not already produced by Nike.”
“That seems much broader than what you described a moment ago,” Baggio told Nike’s lawyer.
The next trial for the last four remaining plaintiffs is scheduled for March 2025.