Lawsuit says 70% spoke only Spanish but company offered zero Spanish materials
A longtime manager at Live Nation's Gorge Amphitheater says she was fired for speaking Spanish to workers who had no English-language materials.
Alicia Sanchez filed her lawsuit in federal court in Washington state last week, alleging the entertainment giant discriminated against her based on age, race, gender and national origin—then retaliated when she reported sexual harassment.
The case offers a window into what can go wrong when companies fail to staff HR properly at remote locations. According to Sanchez's October 29 filing, Live Nation operated the sprawling concert venue with no on-site human resources manager despite employing up to 350 people during peak season.
That left Sanchez, who worked her way up to Operations Manager over 15 years, handling HR duties on top of her regular responsibilities hiring and firing workers.
The numbers tell part of the story. At least 70 percent of Gorge Amphitheater employees spoke and read only Spanish, Sanchez says. Yet the company provided no Spanish-language employee documents, notices or communications—not even basic information about worker rights. The online employee portal was English only.
So Sanchez did what seemed practical: she spoke Spanish with Spanish-speaking employees to help them with employment-related issues.
That became one of the reasons Live Nation gave for firing her in May 2024, she says. The company also cited her for creating a "perceived mean girls clique" and lacking "eye contact." Sanchez disputes the allegations.
The trouble began in spring 2023 when a college student named Lailah Brown joined the team. Brown, who is African American, complained that Sanchez was disrespectful and that she perceived discrimination by Sanchez. But according to the lawsuit, Brown herself made a revealing comment to Sanchez and others: she was "surprised there were so many Mexicans" at the venue.
Sanchez, who is over 40, female, of Mexican descent and bilingual in Spanish and English, found the remark both shocking and offensive.
Meanwhile, Sanchez was navigating more serious workplace problems. That same spring, three young women came to her reporting that the Ticketing Director—a 60-year-old white man who was her subordinate—was sexually harassing them. They said he repeatedly asked them to join him in his hot tub at the amphitheater and asked one to join him at his house.
Sanchez escalated the complaints to Melissa Smith, Live Nation's corporate HR vice president. Smith never visited the site to investigate, instead calling only two of the three women. She also asked Sanchez if she had experienced harassment. Sanchez said yes, explaining that the Ticketing Director would ogle her breasts and buttocks, making her feel uncomfortable.
The employee was retained. Sanchez says the company never told her the results of her complaint.
Then came what Sanchez describes as disparate treatment. In September 2023, Live Nation authorized a 15-minute workplace celebration that included Jello shots. Sanchez attended along with the two other male managers on the venue's three-person management team and other staff, including a male van driver responsible for transporting customers. Only Sanchez received a written reprimand for violating the company's alcohol policy.
Eight months later, she was terminated.
After her termination, Live Nation replaced Sanchez with three people—two under 40 and one man. All were less qualified for the position, she says. The company also revised and reissued her termination notice, falsely claiming she had voluntarily resigned, according to the lawsuit. Sanchez says she did not resign.
Live Nation then sent Sanchez a cease-and-desist letter warning that she could not come to the property on threat of arrest, and notified the Grant County Sheriff's Office. According to the lawsuit, Live Nation had never taken such action against any formerly terminated employee.
The move harmed Sanchez's long-term relationship with sheriff's deputies she had worked with for years on venue security. It also damaged her standing in the community, where she is an educator.
Her former colleagues noticed. Around 100 employees wrote a petition to Live Nation's corporate president objecting to the termination of the woman they called "Gorge Mother."
Sanchez is seeking damages under federal civil rights law and Washington state anti-discrimination statutes. Her claims include wrongful termination based on age, race, gender and national origin, as well as retaliation for reporting sexual harassment and supporting other employees who made sexual harassment complaints. She has requested a jury trial.
The case highlights risks HR leaders face when corporate oversight is remote and managers handle complex employee relations issues without dedicated HR support. It also raises questions about language access policies and the importance of consistent discipline.
Live Nation has not yet responded to the allegations in court.
