Teddi Mellencamp Slams Ex-Employee Accusing Her of Treating White Workers Better, Screaming at Her

Former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Teddi Mellencamp fired back at her former employee, an El Salvador immigrant, who claimed she was an awful boss who treated her white employees better than her, In Touch can exclusively report.

According to court documents obtained by In Touch, Teddi, 43, denied all allegations of wrongdoing in the lawsuit brought by her ex-employee Julia Umana.

Back in February, Julia, 71, filed the bombshell suit accusing the reality star of racial discrimination. Teddi argued, “[Julia’s] recovery, if any, must be reduced proportionately to the extent that any damages alleged by [Julia] is caused and contributed to by [Julia’s] own action.” Further, she said all actions taken regarding her were based on “legitimate, non-discriminatory, non-retaliatory” reasons.

In addition, Teddi argued her acts were not extreme, outrageous, intentional or reckless and denied Julia suffered severe emotional distress. She asked that the complaint be thrown out and Julia not be awarded a dime.

As In Touch previously reported, in the suit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, also accused Teddi of failure to pay overtime wages, failure to pay minimum wages, failure to provide rest and meal breaks, failure to reimburse business expenses and wrongful termination.

An attorney for Julia, 71, said that the lawsuit was filed due to the “blatant abuse of power wielded by Teddi Mellencamp” against Julia “a 71-year-old immigrant from a significantly disadvantaged socio-economic background.”

Her lawyer added, “Exploiting Ms. Umana’s vulnerability, Teddi systematically violated wage and hour laws, engaged in race-based discrimination and harassment and subjected her to a hostile work environment.

Teddi leveraged her perceived status to manipulate and mistreat Ms. Umana, knowing she had limited means to fight back.”

Julia claimed she started working for Teddi in November 2021 as a household worker, who primarily helped with Teddi’s youngest child, Dove.

She said she was also responsible for cooking for Teddi’s husband, Edwin Arroyave. The employee also said the work environment was tense.

Her suit alleged, “Teddi also monitored Ms. Umana’s whereabouts via home security audio and video recordings to ensure she was at the Encino home or otherwise performing work. Teddi also frequently screamed at Ms. Umana: ‘WHEN I ASK FOR SOMETHING, I NEED IT DONE RIGHT AWAY.'”

Julia claimed Teddi was rarely home.

She claimed, “Teddi was rarely home. Most days, Teddi was gone before the sun rose and did not return until after dark. Teddi’s absences were sometimes due to her frequent equestrian activities or work commitments. But even after Teddi was no longer tied to the demands of her public career as a cast member of the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, the pattern did not change. She would leave for weeks at a time, leaving Ms. Umana to shoulder the burden of taking care of Dove and maintaining the household during her days of work.”

“As an El Salvadoran woman, Ms. Umana noted a stark contrast between the way Teddi treated her versus the way Teddi treated her white colleagues,” the suit read.

The lawsuit added, “Teddi frequently accused Ms. Umana and the other employees of Hispanic descent of stealing and interrogated them about purportedly committing theft — even though Teddi had security cameras installed inside the home and surely could have referred to the security footage to alleviate any alleged suspicions of theft.”

She said she considered resigning to escape Teddi’s “discriminatory and harassing behavior, but before she could do so, Teddi wrongfully terminated her for complaining about unpaid wages.”

Julia sued demanding over $1 million in damages. As In Touch previously reported, Teddi is in the middle of a Stage 4 cancer battle.

She is battling melanoma that metastasized to her lungs and brains, according to People. The reality star is also in the middle of a divorce with her estranged husband Edwin, 48.