SAN FRANCISCO — Celebrity fitness trainer Mario Godiva has filed a lawsuit against luxury fitness company Equinox, alleging race discrimination, disability discrimination and wrongful termination after nearly 16 years with the company, according to a press release issued by attorney Chambord Benton-Hayes and the plaintiff.
According to the press release, the lawsuit was filed Wednesday in San Francisco Superior Court against Equinox, alleging race discrimination, disability discrimination and wrongful termination following nearly 16 years of employment.
The press release identifies Godiva as a nationally recognized celebrity fitness trainer whose clients, media appearances and loyal following were actively leveraged by Equinox to build its brand. According to the press release, Godiva, who is Black, was recruited by Equinox in April 2010 and became one of a small number of instructors certified to teach across all four of the company’s studio categories.
The press release states that despite Godiva’s prominence and media visibility, he was paid less than white colleagues with similar or lesser experience throughout his tenure. According to the press release, Godiva began at $8 per hour and $50 per class, received no raise during his first four years, and reached a final class rate of $75 only in October 2024 — still below what white instructors were earning, the lawsuit alleges.
The press release also details a series of incidents the lawsuit characterizes as discriminatory and retaliatory. According to the press release, a gym member directed a racial slur at Godiva during a class in 2015, and his subsequent complaints to management and human resources were met with no adequate investigation or corrective action.
The press release further alleges that while Godiva was hospitalized in 2022 — intubated in the ICU and later diagnosed with cryptococcal meningitis — his manager sent him 27 text messages, including warnings about potential termination, and Equinox’s leave vendor sent him at least 33 emails. According to the press release, the company’s human resources department emailed him a threat of “voluntary resignation” while he remained hospitalized, demanding that he complete a 34-page leave-of-absence form.
The press release states that upon his return, Godiva was reduced from four classes to one, with his manager citing “business decisions” while reassigning his prime-time class to herself. According to the press release, after transferring to Equinox’s San Francisco facility in 2023, a prime-time Thursday cycle class he took over was stripped from him after three weeks and given to a newly hired, less qualified white instructor, despite attendance having increased under Godiva’s instruction.
According to the press release, Godiva was terminated Feb. 13, 2026, following a member complaint about a class in which he allegedly deviated from the “True Barre” curriculum. The lawsuit characterizes the termination as pretextual, noting that the stated deviation — squats and core work — is expressly included in the official True Barre manual, and that Godiva was informed of his termination less than six hours after the complaint was raised.
The press release notes that Equinox has faced prior jury verdicts involving similar allegations. According to the press release, a jury previously awarded trainer Röbynn Europe $11.25 million — including $10 million in punitive damages — in a race and gender discrimination case, and awarded trainer Lajos “Lali” Hugyetz $32.2 million in a disability discrimination case, including $24 million in punitive damages.
Chambord Benton-Hayes and co-counsel Angel Alexander, both of Oakland-based Benton Employment Law, are representing Godiva. According to the press release, the lawsuit seeks compensatory and punitive damages, back pay, attorneys’ fees and a jury trial.
The filing comes amid broader scrutiny of workplace discrimination practices in the fitness industry. The outcome of this case may carry implications for how major gym chains handle complaints from Black and disabled employees, particularly those who serve visible, public-facing roles while allegedly experiencing disparate treatment behind the scenes.
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