'Abusive, Toxic' Work Culture At American Dream, Ex-Employee Claims In Lawsuit

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ — A senior copywriter at American Dream said she was let go in June after she reported an abusive and toxic work environment in which she was subjected to sexually harassing behavior by high-ranking employees, according to a lawsuit filed last week in the New Jersey Superior Court.

Kristen Kruczowy, who had been employed since February 2021, alleged in the lawsuit that American Dream co-owners Paul and Don Ghermezian, promoted a "discriminatory atmosphere," and they, along with mall supervisor Jason Hammer, intentionally treated women as inferior, and then retaliated against her.

She is now, according to the lawsuit, seeking reinstatement and compensation, and an order for American Dream to take "appropriate corrective action" to stop and prevent retaliation and harassment at the workplace. Her lawsuit lists three counts: disparate treatment and sexual harassment; retaliation or improper reprisal; and disparate treatment due to race, national origin, or ethnicity.

"(American Dream) does not tolerate harassment, discrimination or retaliation of any kind," a mall spokesperson said in a statement. "This is a frivolous lawsuit by a disgruntled former employee who was properly terminated. The company is prepared to defend (against) these allegations and demonstrate that Ms. Kruczowy’s claims are entirely without merit."

One of the allegations Kruczowy detailed is against Paul Ghermezian, who, she said, made sexual advances toward her while at a work event, and asked her to follow him into a luxury suite at the mall's DreamWorks Water Park. "But you'll have to sign a (non-disclosure agreement) because I'm a billionaire," he told her, according to the lawsuit.

After the incident, her department, the lawsuit alleged, was moved to a location behind the water park — a "clear retaliation" for her rejection of Ghermezian.

Hammer, Kruczowy's supervisor, then asked her, on a separate occasion, to join him for a walk and drinks, for what she thought was to be a work meeting. Instead, the lawsuit said, he grabbed and stroked her hand from across the table, and told her she was "special" and "a star" and that he could elevate her career.

Hammer, at a later date, told her her outfit was "very va va voom," and, later, that another outfit she was wearing was "booby-licious," she alleged; he also physically touched her "in a sexual manner" more than once.

In alleged retaliation against Kruczowy for her refusal to submit to his sexual advances, Hammer told her she would not host a podcast for the mall and Coca-Cola, a position that she claimed she was just offered and accepted; he said, the lawsuit alleged, that she needed to "text (him) more."

But despite the retaliation, she "refused to let it deter her career," the lawsuit said, and she formally requested a meeting to discuss the promotion, and the overall corporate culture and abusive tactics at the mall. She reported the sexual advances to Don Ghermezian and the mall's general counsel, attorney Joseph Calascibetta, both of whom, the lawsuit alleged, passed her allegations off as "comical."

Calascibetta, also COO of Triple Five — the developers of American Dream —did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Still, Don Ghermezian directed her to meet with American Dream Senior Vice President Jill Renslow, who allegedly told her she was "unfit" for career progression because she is "half Latin," and that she needs to "tone down how spicy" she is. Kruczowy never received the "promised" promotion, the lawsuit said.

She also reported Hammer's sexual harassment and retaliation to Human Resources Director Dolores Ross, who allegedly "focused on silencing" her altogether, the lawsuit said.

Shortly thereafter, Kruczowy submitted a "Women's History Month" article that celebrates mall CFO Adi Adair, and Renslow, upon receipt, questioned her "championing of women," the lawsuit alleged, and told her she needs to rethink her strategy. Hammer commented on the article as well, telling her that "women like our CFO got to where they are by shutting their mouths and doing what they are told."

She said, in the lawsuit, that she was "flabbergasted" by the rejection of her article supporting women, and that she rewrote the article out of fear of losing her job.

As such, "it became impossible for (Kruczowy) to see a path through the discriminatory practices" at the mall, and the "discriminatory culture" became more apparent at each level of higher management, the lawsuit said.

She was told in June that she not only would not be promoted, but that she was also terminated due to "restructuring" at the mall.

"It was not until after (Kruczowy) continuously reported the unlawful conduct within (American Dream) that she was ripped of promotions, targeted for performance and ultimately terminated," the lawsuit said.