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“Harsh Reality”: Beyoncé’s Treatment Of 20-Year Employee Sparks Heated Debate
Mairi Cooley, the daughter of Beyoncé’s longtime stage manager Terry Cooley, has come forward with emotional allegations that her father was abruptly fired after more than two decades working alongside the global superstar.
The claims were shared in a TikTok video that has since been taken down, but not before motivating a fierce online debate over loyalty and whether one of the world’s most powerful entertainers failed a man who, according to his daughter, “gave his health and his body” to her career.
Highlights
- A social media user alleged her father Terry was fired after 20+ years working as Beyoncé’s stage manager.
- She claims he received no severance or support after collapsing and undergoing surgery.
- Online debate erupted over whether freelance contractors are owed loyalty beyond their contracts.
In the now-deleted clip, Mairi said her father had worked with Beyoncé since her Destiny’s Child days, serving as stage manager and production manager for over 20 years.
“They cut him loose and fired him after 20-something years of service,” she said through tears.
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The daughter of one of Beyoncé’s stage managers took to social media to protest the firing of her dad
Image credits: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images
According to Mairi, her father’s dedication came at a steep personal cost.
She described Terry as working “22-hour days” while touring. When COVID shut down live events, she said he was paid sporadically. With no tours and inconsistent income, he was forced to drain his savings to keep up with family bills.
Image credits: Beyoncé/YouTube
Things allegedly got so bad that the family had to sell their home and move in with Terry’s mother. However, things were just beginning to get worse.
The breaking point came after Terry collapsed and underwent surgery, then Beyoncé’s team started seeing him as a liability.
Image credits: Beyoncé/YouTube
“They decided that he couldn’t keep up,” Mairi said, alleging that he was fired shortly after.
“Here we are in 2026, and my dad has been out of work for a few years,” she continued. “I worry about my dad because he put his heart and his soul into Beyoncé’s career.”
She said he received no severance and not even “a get-well card” from the singer.
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“Where we’re at now is my dad is suffering financially and he’s suffering emotionally,” she said, adding that he is in “a terrible place.”
Mairi urged followers to “tag Beyoncé and ask her to make things right” and “maybe apologize for disregarding the career that they had.”
The sympathy for Mairi’s dad was immediate, with viewers outraged at him not receiving severance pay
Image credits: Edward Berthelot/Getty Images
One TikTok user suggested, “Tell him to write a book called ‘behind the stage’ or something like that.”
Another wrote, “Beyoncé is a business. They should have retirement packages for employees like him.”
A third asked, “She might not be at fault for his injury but after 20+ years of working together, can she not support someone in a tough spot out of loyalty? Like a billionaire, hello?”
Image credits: beyonce/Instagram
Others framed it as a moral issue.
“Calling 20 years of running Beyoncé’s tour logistics a ‘gig’ is corporate gaslighting,” one person wrote.
“You don’t oversee one of the largest tour operations on earth for two decades managing execution, infrastructure, and operations and get framed as disposable labor.”
“Legal? Sure. Ethical? No,” they added.
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“You don’t build a global empire on someone’s labor for 20 years and send them home empty-handed. Severance isn’t charity.”
One user even compared the situation to Taylor Swift, writing, “Let’s just say Taylor Swift would’ve made sure he was good. She took care of everyone that was involved in her tours.”
Critics, however, argued that as a freelancer, Mairi’s father should have prepared for that possibility
Image credits: Beyoncé/YouTube
“Nobody wants to hear this but it needs to be said,” one commenter wrote. “He was a freelance contractor. Not an employee. Freelancers don’t get severance. That’s the deal when you work 1099.”
“He should have managed his funds and healthcare better being a 1099 employee,” another added.
Image credits: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images
A 1099 refers to a type of US tax form used for independent contractors or freelancers, rather than traditional employees. Freelancers typically do not receive retirement benefits unless they set one up themselves.
“The real issue is 20+ years of high-level income with no financial cushion built underneath it. That’s not Beyoncé’s fault. That’s a financial literacy gap,” a third argued.
“Sorry but feelings don’t matter in the work force,” a user wrote. “Once you’re no longer efficient, the harsh reality is they’re going to find someone who is.”
Some netizens debated whether freelance work should exist as it currently does in the entertainment industry
“Billionaire” Beyonce fired her stage manager of over 20 years over his health issues and did not give any form of severance package to him and now he is struggling financially. Jay Z and Beyonce yall going to HELL pic.twitter.com/aDrC2D58Cw
— 𐌋𐌀𐌊𐌉𐌊𐌉 (@lawolfyki) February 16, 2026
“‘Contract work’ is just how corporations shift risk, suppress wages, and avoid loyalty to the very people who build their success,” one user wrote.
“Work someone into exhaustion. Extract decades of institutional knowledge. Replace them when they break.”
Others rejected that framing.
“Imagine you hired a handyman/construction worker to do work around your home for the last 20 years,” another wrote. “Would he be entitled to severance?”
As of now, Beyoncé has not publicly addressed the allegations. Mairi’s profile shows she has seemingly given up trying to rally the internet to her father’s cause.
“Disgusting.” Netizens blasted the singer for how Mairi’s dad was treated
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