DECISION AND ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANT’S MOTION TO COMPEL ARBITRATION Plaintiff Ayesha Whyte brought this action alleging race and gender discrimination, retaliation, and equal pay violations against her former employer WeWork Companies, Inc. (“WeWork”) in the Supreme Court of the State of New York. (Dkt. No. 1, Notice of Removal, Ex. 2, Complaint.) WeWork promptly filed a notice of removal, invoking this court’s diversity jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. §1332. (Dkt. No. 1.) WeWork now moves this Court, pursuant to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure as well as the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”), 9 U.S.C. §§3, 4, for an order: (i) compelling Plaintiff to arbitrate her claims pursuant to the arbitration agreement she entered into with WeWork; (ii) enjoining Plaintiff’s pursuit of her claims in any forum other than arbitration; and (iii) requiring Plaintiff and her counsel, jointly and severally, to reimburse WeWork for its costs and fees costs in defending against Plaintiff’s court action. For the reasons set forth below, that motion is GRANTED in part, and DENIED in part. BACKGROUND A. Factual Background The following facts are taken from the complaint and documents that were submitted in connection with Defendant’s motion to compel arbitration and for a permanent injunction. See UBS Securities v. Leitner, No. 17-cv-1365, 2017 WL 5054739, at *1 n.1 (S.D.N.Y. May 12, 2017) (citing Mullins v. City of New York, 626 F.3d 47, 52 (2d Cir. 2010)). On August 21, 2018, Whyte, an African-American attorney with experience in employee relations and human resources, signed a written offer of employment from WeWork to become a Director of Employee Relations in WeWork’s New York office (the “Offer Letter”). (See Dkt. No. 10, Rhodes Decl., Ex. B.) As a condition of her employment, Whyte agreed to be bound by WeWork’s Employee Dispute Resolution Program. (Id. Ex. A; the “EDRP” or “Arbitration Agreement.”) The EDRP requires Whyte to submit all “Covered Claims” to arbitration before JAMS, including: “Any past, current or future controversy or claim, both accrued and unaccrued, between You and the Company, that arise[s] out of or relates in any way to your employment relationship with [WeWork], the term and conditions of your employment, or the termination thereof, including without limitation all employment related claims…regarding employment discrimination, civil rights, human rights, conditions of employment, or termination…(each a ‘Covered Claim’).” (Id. at §3.) There are a number of claims excluded from the definition of Covered Claims, including claims related to workers’ compensation, unemployment benefits, and employee benefits plans. The definition of Covered Claims also includes a catchall carve-out for “claims that are legally prohibited from being subject to mandatory arbitration.” (Id.) The Arbitration Agreement includes two choice of law provisions. First, the section summarizing the EDRP states that “the Federal Arbitration Act shall govern the interpretation, enforcement, and all proceedings pursuant to this Agreement.” (Id. at §1.) Another section entitled “Other Important Information” states that the Agreement itself “shall be governed and shall be interpreted in accordance with the laws of the State of New York.” (Id. at §6.) Whyte alleges that WeWork failed to deliver on several of its commitments in the Offer Letter, first forcing her to work in the company’s Washington, D.C. office instead of relocating her to New York, then installing her in different position than the one she had accepted, and finally by slashing her starting salary by 20 percent . (See Compl.
12-13; see also Dkt. No. 14, Whyte Decl. Ex. 1, at 2.) The relationship went downhill from there, with Whyte noticing several instances of discrimination along race and gender lines, including unequal pay. (See, e.g., Compl. 8(a)-(g).) When she raised her concerns with WeWork’s human resources department, WeWork retaliated, withholding equity grants from Whyte that were awarded to similar employees, and freezing her out of important projects within her own department. (Id.
