A former employee of a Mercedes-Benz dealership in Massapequa, Long Island, has filed a federal discrimination lawsuit, alleging that male staff regularly offered vehicle discounts to female customers in exchange for sex.
In the complaint, Talita Paulino, who worked as a sales consultant at Mercedes-Benz of Massapequa in 2024, claims that a colleague, a “product concierge,” shared videos of sexual encounters between customers and dealership employees. The videos reportedly showed customers engaging in sexual acts to secure discounts on cars. According to Paulino’s complaint, the salesman allegedly said, “Give them a good discount, and they’ll do anything,” and boasted about the number of women who had participated in these transactions.
Paulino further claims that on one occasion, she witnessed her boss fondling a female customer while offering her a special deal on a car. After the encounter, the two drove away together in his personal vehicle. Paulino also accuses the manager of withholding essential information from female sales staff unless they allowed him to touch them “in a sexual manner.”
When Paulino voiced her concerns to a colleague, she was reportedly told, “You just have to ignore it and let them be men.”
Paulino’s attorney, Joshua Paul Frank, emphasized the severity of the situation, stating, “Everybody should work at a place where they are respected and treated with dignity. This obviously goes far beyond that.”
Mercedes-Benz of Massapequa has denied the allegations. In an email to The Independent, attorney Ana Shields, representing the dealership, stated that the claims were “baseless and without merit.” She added that after conducting an internal investigation, the dealership found no evidence to support Paulino’s allegations and intends to defend itself vigorously. The dealership declined further comment due to the ongoing litigation.
Messages sent to Automotive Management Services, Inc. (AMSI), the dealership’s overseeing company, went unanswered. AMSI, which operates the dealership, is owned by Terry Taylor, a billionaire who is the largest private owner of auto dealerships in the U.S.
Paulino began working at the dealership in April 2024, where she alleges she was immediately subjected to inappropriate behavior. In her second week, she claims that her sales manager took her for a ride in a new car and made an inappropriate comment about her liking him. Despite her insistence that she was in a committed relationship, the manager reportedly continued to press her with sexual advances.
As Paulino’s time at the dealership progressed, she alleges that the sales manager routinely made “sexual and perverted remarks” to female employees and began demanding physical affection. Paulino claims that when she refused the manager’s advances, his behavior became hostile, while other women who complied with his demands received more sales opportunities.
According to Paulino, the sales manager’s demands escalated to the point where he insisted she scratch his back to receive sales quotes. Each time she refused, she alleges he responded with hostility and uncooperative behavior.
The lawsuit also highlights disturbing interactions between other employees. Paulino describes an incident where the product concierge, during a break in the dealership cafeteria, joked about management finding a condom in a dealership car. He then allegedly showed videos of sexual encounters with customers inside dealership vehicles and boasted about trading sex for discounts.
Additionally, Paulino claims that the dealership’s male-dominated management belittled female staff and only offered them sales opportunities if they complied with sexual demands.
After enduring months of harassment, Paulino resigned in October 2024, citing “constructive discharge.” She claims the working environment had become intolerable. When she emailed management to notify them of her forced resignation, she received no response.
Paulino is seeking economic and punitive damages, including lost sales opportunities, back pay, emotional distress, and attorney’s fees.
