Howard Stern’s ex-staffers spoke out against his leadership three years before his former assistant accused him of creating a hostile work environment.
Howard Stern’s ex-staffers spoke out against his leadership three years before his former assistant accused him of creating a hostile work environment.
Several of Stern’s former employees — who worked on “The Howard Stern Show” from 1986 to 2005 — revealed the “frightening” truth in the 2023 Vice TV docuseries “Dark Side of the 2000s Shock Jocks.”
Jackie “The Joke Man” Martling, who was a cast member and writer for the show from 1983 to 2001, claimed that most of Stern’s staff “weren’t getting paid well,” despite the host “making countless millions of dollars.”
“It was frightening what was going on,” Martling, now 78, said before adding, “There was so much money coming in. It was crazy the amount of money.”
“You are beyond rich and successful, and you have someone sitting next to you who makes you enjoy that job much more. And you let them go?” Martling said about Stern. “Because he asked for more money? Especially when you’re friends. It boggles the mind.”
During the conversation, Martling slammed Stern for boasting about his loyalty, explaining, “He’s got all his listeners calling me cheap. And he just crows and crows about how he’s the most loyal guy in the world … which, you know, it’s funny.”
Martling (seen above) called working for Stern “frightening.”WireImage
Elsewhere in the documentary, “Stuttering John” Melendez claimed he was making only $20,000 a year.
And after making $75,000 following 15 years on the show, he ultimately left to earn around $350,000 to $400,000 with Jay Leno.
“He couldn’t let me evolve and be happy,” Melendez, now 60, said about Stern.
As for Steve Grillo, who interned on the show from 1991 to 1998, he alleged that he wasn’t paid at all until six years into the job.
“I started getting paid about 30 hours a week, minimum wage, which was like $6.35 at that time,” he explained. “So I got paid for 30 hours and I was working like 60.”
Grillo, now 58, recalled allegedly asking K-Rock Vice President and general manager Tom Chiusano for a raise to help qualify for health insurance — which he refused.
When he reached out to Stern about the situation, the shock jock allegedly told his then-intern, “Yeah, well, that’s just Tom.”
“That’s a horrible way to do it — to not stand up for an employee that’s took care of you for the past eight years,” Grillo condemned.
“You’re making a million dollars an hour and I have to go work at a nightclub in order to survive,” he continued. “And this is the moment I knew I was gonna leave. If that man’s not gonna stick up for me, I’m out. And that’s when I left.”
Stern’s alleged behavior towards his employee resurfaced after Page Six obtained court docs where Leslie Kuhn sued Stern, 72, and his wife, Beth, for allegedly creating a hostile work environment.
Kuhn said she was in charge of managing the staff of the couple’s 20,000-square-foot Southampton mansion in New York.
She claimed that despite being promised an increase in her salary and a bonus by Howard’s production company in December 2025, she was fired in February 2026.
Per the docs, Kuhn alleged she was fired because of “a hostile work environment” and “immense pressures on the household created by irresponsible and untenable animal rescue and fostering operations occurring on-site, and massively disorganized and questionable business operations and accounting practices.”
Kuhn also claimed she was presented with an NDA — which allegedly silenced her from speaking about her employment and her termination — that she said she didn’t sign.
Page Six has reached out to Stern’s rep for comment, but we haven’t heard back.
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