Model Alliance Slams Victoria's Secret For Not Taking Harassment Allegations Seriously

It seems the troubling times for Victoria’s Secret are not going to end soon.

The famous brand is facing a lot of heat after the New York Times published a report that one of the top executives of L Brands named Ed Razek has been accused of misbehaving with the models. As soon as the report surfaced online, the Model Alliance wrote an open letter to the renowned lingerie brand for changing how the organization has been working for the last two decades.

In the letter, the organization stated various facts revealing that the Model Alliance has been writing to them about all the complaints they have received about the poor working conditions at Victoria’s Secret.

The letter, which was addressed to the CEO of Victoria’s Secret John Mehas, started by saying that Model Alliance had a meeting with L Brands and Victoria’s Secret regarding the working conditions of the models and told them to take some strict action against “misogyny” and “abuse.” The organization started the RESPECT program and so it urged the lingerie brand to join it, but the company refused.

“Victoria's Secret's failure to create an environment of accountability, both in-house and in their interactions with a network of agencies and creatives, undermines these values,” the organization said.

The organization also claimed in the letter that Victoria’s Secret has a history of ignoring such complaints and when they met one of the top executives of L Brands, the parent company of Victoria’s Secret, recently, they felt that the complaints are not being taken “seriously” by the clothing brand.

“When the Model Alliance met with Tammy Roberts Myers, Chief Communications Officer of L Brands in New York City last September, it was made abundantly clear that Victoria's Secret does not take these complaints seriously,” the letter read.

The letter concluded by requesting the brand to join the RESPECT program to create a better and safe working environment for the models.

In the NYT report, accusations were specifically made against Razek, who has stepped down from his role as the company’s president and chief marketing officer in August 2019. The report cited allegations of misconduct by Razek against the company's models such as bullying, lewd comments and sexual harassment.

One of the models that were tied to accusations against Razek is Bella Hadid . Hadid has since ended her relationship with Victoria’s Secret and opted to join Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty lingerie brand.