A former participant on "American Idol" has sued the production companies behind the show, alleging that she was underpaid and set up in an audition that went viral.
According to a lawsuit filed on Friday by former participant Normandy Vamos, she and other contestants were treated as employees but not paid, working 15 hour days with little to no breaks. Vamos alleged that her final audition was partially set up for viral fame in a class action lawsuit that includes up to 400 former participants.
In the lawsuit, Vamos said that after a series of successful auditions, participants were invited to stay in a Los Angeles hotel during "Hollywood Week." At that point, Vamos' attorneys allege, the show should have classified the participants as employees and not volunteers under California law, as the episodes had the potential to be re-aired.
The contestants remained in the hotel for 15 hours a day on stand-by, for up to 8 days on end, waiting to be called for auditions without any pay, according to the lawsuit. The wage theft lawsuit also alleges that contestants were made to sign "work-for-hire" contracts that signed away their copyrights and license rights to performances.
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