The Olsen twins are best remembered as child stars and current businesswomen, but their reputation just might lose its glow because of the current controversy their company is in.
The twins' company, Dualstar Entertainment Group, has been hit by a lawsuit by 40 current and former interns for alleged wage theft after work extended hours, reports Page Six.
The class-action suit, filed by former intern Shahista Lalani as the lead plaintiff in the Manhattan Supreme Court, slams the fashion subsidiaries of the Dualstar Entertainment Group, for failing to have compensated them properly for the tasks that they did for the company as interns. Lalani claimed that she was "doing the work of three interns" and talking to her boss "all day, all night, e-mails at nighttime for the next day, like 10 p.m. at night."
In court documents obtained by E! News, she also maintains working 50 hours every week "inputting data into spreadsheets, making tech sheets, running personal errands for paid employees, organizing materials, photocopying, sewing, pattern cutting, among other related duties."
"You're like an employee, except you're not getting paid," Lalani said. "They're kind of mean to you. Other interns have cried. I'd see a lot of kids crying doing coffee runs, photocopying stuff."
The company, headed by Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen of "Full House" fame, said in its official statement that the mistreatment of interns is not true.
"As an initial matter, Dualstar is an organization that is committed to treating all individuals fairly and in accordance with all applicable laws," the company said in a statement to E! News. The statement also said that, "The allegations in the complaint filed against Dualstar are groundless, and Dualstar will vigorously defend itself against plaintiff's claims in court, not before the media."
The company also added that "Dualstar is confident that once the true facts of this case are revealed, the lawsuit will be dismissed in its entirety."
