A former Fox Sports hairstylist has accused multiple people at the broadcasting company including Skip Bayless of sexual misconduct, among other allegations in the workplace, it’s been reported. In a document filed in Los Angeles on Friday, Jan. 3, seen by PEOPLE and published by Front Office Sports, Noushin Faraji — who worked for the company on a part-time basis from approximately 2012 to 2016 and then on a full-time basis from around 2016 to August 2024 — accused Bayless of offering her $1.5 million to have sex with her, among other “inappropriate comments.”
The 42-page long complaint also stated that Bayless — who worked at Fox on his show Skip and Shannon: Undisputed from 2016 to August 2024 — “grabbed” Faraji’s hands and “began kissing them” before allegedly offering the amount for sex, around the same time as she learned she might have cancer in July 2021.
The complaint stated that Bayless had previously requested that Faraji give him a haircut once a week. It claims, “Initially, during the haircuts, Mr. Bayless would discuss his life, his work at Fox, and other innocuous matters. However, soon after the weekly haircuts started, Mr. Bayless began finding excuses to touch Ms. Faraji.”
“He would give her lingering hugs after each haircut, putting his body against her own, pressing against her breasts. He then began to kiss her on her cheeks. Ms. Faraji was uncomfortable by the physical contact and would make excuses to leave right after the haircuts (e.g., ‘I need to pick up my son from school.’),” the complaint stated.
It added, “In approximately summer 2017, while Ms. Faraji was giving Mr. Bayless a haircut, he told her that she was ‘voluptuous.’ As English is her second language and she was not familiar with the word, Ms. Faraji asked what that meant. Mr. Bayless seemed amused and told her to ‘figure it out,’ ” per the documents.
The complaint claimed, “Ms. Faraji later asked a coworker what the word meant and was mortified. Mr. Bayless then started being more aggressive and direct in his advances. Ms. Faraji continuously declined, stating that she did not date at work as she is a single mom and needed her job.”
Per the documents, as of April 2022, Faraji claimed she received texts from Bayless saying he didn’t need his hair or makeup done after she refused to have sex with him. He also reportedly accused Faraji of having sex with his former Undisputed co-host Shannon Sharpe, per the suit.
Along with Bayless, Fox, Fox Sports, Fox Sports 1 and 2, Fox Sports executive Charlie Dixon and Fox Sports 1 host Joy Taylor are also listed as defendants in the suit. The documents filed by Faraji accused Dixon of “grabbing her buttocks” at Taylor’s birthday party at Pearl’s Rooftop in West Hollywood on Jan. 14, 2017.
The complaint stated, “As Ms. Faraji was standing near the bar, facing the crowd, Mr. Dixon approached her. He asked the bartender for a drink and then placed his arm on Ms. Faraji’s lower back. He asked how she was doing, if she was having fun and if she wanted a tequila shot.”
“Ms. Faraji felt very uncomfortable by his unsolicited touching and responded: ‘No, thank you.’ Mr. Dixon then moved his hand lower and started rubbing her body and grabbing her buttocks. Ms. Faraji was mortified but quickly thought to fake an incoming call to escape from the situation,” it added.
Faraji alleged in the complaint that she was told to “get over it” by Taylor when she told her about the incident. Taylor was said to have claimed Dixon could take both their jobs away. The complaint also stated that an anonymous female talent member had told Faraji that Dixon said that she “would need to have sex with him if she wanted to renew her contract,” which she refused.
Among the multiple allegations, Faraji — who is seeking unspecified monetary damages and a jury trial — also claimed she was “mocked” by Bobby Diaz (who puts the microphone on talent) on May 10, 2019, for her pronunciation of English words, as well as being sexualized for the way she was eating fruit.
In the complaint, the plaintiff — who was said to have taken her complaints to Human Resources many times — claimed she was also targeted because of her ethnicity on multiple occasions during her years at Fox.
Faraji, who stopped working at Fox after Undisputed’s cancellation in August 2024, is also suing the company for failure to pay minimum wages, failure to pay overtime wages, unfair unlawful or fraudulent business practices and more under the class action complaint. Her individual complaint includes suing for sexual battery, working in a hostile environment, failure to prevent harassment and wrongful termination, among other allegations.
A Fox Sports spokesperson said of the suit in a statement obtained by PEOPLE, “We take these allegations seriously and have no further comment at this time given this pending litigation.” A representative for Bayless and Faraji’s attorney didn’t immediately respond when contacted by PEOPLE for comment.
