A Miss USA who gave up the title and crown to focus on her mental health reportedly accused the pageant's boss of failing to take an incident of sexual harassment seriously and creating a toxic work environment.
In a letter, Noelia Voigt alleged the treatment began "soon after winning the title of Miss USA 2023," NBC News reported.
"There is a toxic work environment within the Miss USA organization that, at best, is poor management and, at worst, is bullying and harassment," she said, the outlet reported.
On Monday, Voigt's cited her mental health as the reason for her resignation. Two days later, Miss Teen USA UmaSofia Srivastava, 17, announced she, too, was leaving, writing her "personal values no longer fully align with the direction of the organization," NBC News reported.
In Voigt's letter of resignation, she said Miss USA CEO and president Laylah Rose consistently failed to communicate — and that when she did, she was "often cold and unnecessarily aggressive," the news outlet reported.
"It's incredibly jarring to be trying to do my job and constantly be threatened with disciplinary action, including taking away my salary, for things that were never discussed with me and, if it related to a public-facing post for example, were causing no issue other than not meeting her personal preference," Voigt wrote.
In a statement Wednesday, Rose said "the well-being of all individuals associated with Miss USA is my top priority."
"All along, my personal goal as the head of this organization has been to inspire women to always create new dreams, have the courage to explore it all, and continue to preserve integrity along the way. I hold myself to these same high standards and I take these allegations seriously," Rose said.
In Voigt's letter, she wrote of an alleged incident of sexual harassment at a Christmas event in Florida, asserting she was left alone in a car with a man who "made several inappropriate statements to me about his desire to enter into a relationship with me."
Voigt claimed that when Rose was made aware of the situation, she told Voigt, "We cannot prevent people saying things to you at public appearances, it is, unfortunately, part of the role you're in as a public figure," NBC News reported.
Rose is also accused in the letter of badmouthing Voigt to others in the organization and painting her as "uninterested" in her job, and that her mental and physical health had been impacted.
"I am now diagnosed with Anxiety and have to take two medications daily to manage the symptoms due to consistently being on edge, worrying about what Laylah will pop up with and choose to harass me about daily," the letter stated. "Every statement you have ever put out about MUO's morals and integrity directly contradicts what is happening within the USA organization."
Claudia Michelle, a former social media manager who also announced her resignation last week, echoed the complaints about Miss USA management, NBC News reported.
"Leaders in women's empowerment organizations need to be held accountable," Michelle told the outlet. "How do you not take the mental health of the face of your brand seriously?"
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.