Being asked to work in the control room of The Ellen DeGeneres Show is a coveted position in Hollywood, but scores of men and women who work behind the scenes say the workplace is rife with sexual harassment and misconduct by senior executive producers.

Specific charges have been leveled against Kevin Leman, the show’s executive producer and head writer, according to a recent BuzzFeed story. Leman is accused of asking an ex-employee for a hand job or to perform oral sex at a work party in 2013, touching a production assistant’s penis, and groping a production assistant in a car in 2017.

Several former Ellen staffers accused Leman of making sexual and vulgar comments to employees that were “masked in sarcasm,” such as pointing out colleagues’ bulges or asking if they were “top or bottom.”

Many of his targets, according to colleagues, were lower-level and younger employees who felt they lacked the authority to speak up.

“He’d probably do it in front of 10 people and they’d laugh because ‘it’s just Kevin being Kevin,’ but if you’re in a position of power at a company, you don’t just get to touch me like that,” a former employee told the publication.

When confronted with the charges, Leman told Insider that the article was “filled with false claims that misrepresent me, my actions and all that I stand for.” He denied any “any kind of sexual impropriety,” and stated:

“I started at the ‘Ellen Show’ as a PA more than 17 years ago and have devoted my career to work my way to the position I now hold. While my job as head writer is to come up with jokes — and, during that process, we can occasionally push the envelope — I’m horrified that some of my attempts at humor may have caused offense.”

“I have always aimed to treat everyone on the staff with kindness, inclusivity and respect,” the producer added. “In my whole time on the show, to my knowledge, I’ve never had a single HR or inter-personal complaint made about me, and I am devastated beyond belief that this kind of malicious and misleading article could be published.”

Others claim they were improperly touched by producer Ed Glavin, who is said to be leaving The Ellen Show.

One former employee even admitted to having the perplexing experience of desperately needing validation at work owing to the toxic and stressful environment, even if it was offered in an unwelcome manner. “Even though I was being abused [at work] constantly, Ed putting his arm around you in the control room was like the nicest experience you had all day, as messed up as that sounds,” she told BuzzFeed News. “But you had been crying last night and now your segment is going well … and then you feel like you got credit for something from the executive producer directly. … That friendly banter accompanied by a friendly hand.”

According to the site, Glavin “led with intimidation and fear,” with five ex-employees stating that he did so in part by pressing a button at his desk to close his office door.

Reports also stated that Glavin’s usage of the shower close to his office made staff uncomfortable.

“You’d be going into his office for an important meeting and the shower door is open and you’re like, that’s a little weird,” one former colleague said. “The shower is right when you walk in on the right. Before you even see his desk, you see his shower.”

Jonathan Norman, co-executive producer, has been accused of attempting to perform oral sex on one male employee, an accusation Norman is “100 percent categorically denying.” The other identified producers have yet to reply to the charges.

BuzzFeed News interviewed 36 former workers, several of whom independently confirmed episodes of harassment, sexual misconduct, and violence perpetrated by senior producers such as Leman. Out of fear of retaliation, all of the ex-employees, many of whom had freely left the program, requested anonymity.

As more complaints have surfaced, many have looked to DeGeneres to take responsibility as the show’s host. She apologized in her letter to colleagues, noting that her program was somewhere she believed “everyone would be treated with respect.”” According to a few former employees, including one at Warner Bros., the Ellen parent company not only “turns a blind eye” to such allegations because the show is so profitable, but DeGeneres herself “doesn’t want to know” what happens behind the camera and top-level staff try to “insulate” her from any unsettling details.

Warner Bros. declined to comment on specific charges, citing an ongoing internal inquiry started in response to a previous BuzzFeed News report in which current and former workers claimed racism, fear, and intimidation at work.

However, in a statement released on Thursday, the studio stated that it “hoped to determine the validity and extent of publicly reported allegations and to understand the full breadth of the show’s day-to-day culture.”

“It was important to both Warner Bros. and Ellen that as many people as possible attached to the program could be heard,” Warner Bros. noted. “The Ellen DeGeneres Show is, and has always strived to be, a place that brings positivity to the world. And though not all of the allegations were corroborated, we are disappointed that the primary findings of the investigation indicated some deficiencies related to the show’s day-to-day management.”

“We have identified several staffing changes, along with appropriate measures to address the issues that have been raised, and are taking the first steps to implement them,” the statement read in part. “Warner Bros. and Ellen DeGeneres are all committed to ensuring a workplace based on respect and inclusion. We are confident this course of action will lead us to the right way forward for the show.”

Former workers have portrayed “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” as a hostile place to work, where guests and collaborators were ordered not to talk to or stare at the show’s star, as Insider’s Libby Torres reported.

Warner Bros. previously stated their commitment to investigating any allegations of workplace misconduct.

“It was important to both Warner Bros. and Ellen that as many people as possible attached to the program could be heard. The Ellen DeGeneres Show is, and has always strived to be, a place that brings positivity to the world,” the statement read. “And though not all of the allegations were corroborated, we are disappointed that the primary findings of the investigation indicated some deficiencies related to the show’s day-to-day management. We have identified several staffing changes, along with appropriate measures to address the issues that have been raised, and are taking the first steps to implement them.”

“We are confident this course of action will lead us to the right way forward for the show,” they concluded.