Kandi Burrus, according to The Jasmine Brand, filed a countersuit against former employee Johnnie Winston. Johnnie Winston is currently suing Kandi and her company, Kandy Koated Entertainment, for back pay and overtime wages.
Kandi’s countersuit claims Johnnie is slandering her name and professional reputation, using fellow RHOA cast member Phaedra Parks for screen time on the hit reality show.
The Jasmine Brand writes:
theJasmineBRAND.com exclusively reports, Real Housewives of Atlanta star Kandi Burruss has headed back to court in her legal battle with her former employee. The reality star, singer and producer is slapping him with a countersuit, accusing him of defaming her during filming of the hit reality show. She is also demanding damages for the harm he caused her reputation.
Here’s the latest: Kandi has filed docs explaining she will be counter-suing her former employee Johnnie Winston. The reality star explains her former employee is attempting to intentionally malign her reputation and harm her good name through false and malicious accusations. She believes it is also an attempt to garner free publicity and national attention by creating a false story line to stay relevant on ‘The Real Housewives of Atlanta”.
She points out his unsubstantiated attacks against her coincide with the filming of the latest season of RHOA, which secured him airtime and free publicity for himself on the show.
The article later explains the background of Johnnie Winston’s original lawsuit:
Here’s the backstory: The reality star’s former manager, event planner and production coordinator, Johnnie Winston III, sued Kandi Burruss-Tucker and her Kandi Koated Entertainment company. Winston explained he worked for the reality star until his termination in February 2016.
He accused her of failing to pay the required minimum wage, overtime pay for his time working in the studio, planning special events, running errands and preparing meals for events and attending meetings.
His job included performing handyman duties at her studio, the Kandi Factory. He ran personal errands and helped assist her with a play entitled ‘A Mother’s Love”. He was required to work 7 days a week and 10-12 hours a day. He sued for the entire pay and overtime wages due along with liquidated damages equal to amount owed in back pay and benefits.
Kandi denied allegations that she violated labor laws and screwed over her alleged ex-employee, and demanded the suit be tossed.
Kandi argues Winston was an independent contractor when he worked with her and was paid for his services over the years. She explained her company’s policies, practices and procedures all are in conformity of the law. She demanded his suit be tossed and wanted him to pay her legal bills.
Good! She should sue Fraudra and Poorsha too!
Agreed.
So we’re supposed to forget the fact that Kandi and Todd were sued by the contractors they hired for OLG because they were writing fraudulent checks? LOL.
He filed last year and as usual Kandi waited till tell show aired, got some support on her side and then decided to countersue. It’s like she can’t do sh-t without backup of some sort.
I don’t think he was doing all this for camera time. That doesn’t even make sense. I believe he really thinks he wasn’t paid properly.
I love that Kandi is no longer taking any mess from people.
If anybody should be suing it should be Phaedra suing Mama Joyce for defamation and trying to get more camera time off her name. The mere fact that she tried questioning Phaedra’s lawyer about her divorce, and then announced to the world that Phaedra should be in a jail cell next to Apollo should be enough to get her bitter a-s sued.