Meghan Markle’s return to the UK may make it difficult for the Duchess of Sussex to find household staff willing to work for her, sources exclusively told Page Six.
“When Meghan was previously living in the UK, the way she interviewed household staff was extremely rude,” one source alleged. “Applicants would come in to interview for housekeeping or maid positions and were basically forbidden from speaking to her.”
According to the insider, applicants were allegedly told to hand over their résumés and stand silently while Markle, 45, looked them over.
“They would hand over their résumé, then be told to stand off to the side of the room, not speak and not make eye contact while Meghan sat there and reviewed it,” the source claimed.
“She wouldn’t ask them questions or have any kind of actual conversation with them. She would take her time reading through the résumé, look the person up and down and then simply tell them they could leave.”
The source claimed that those experiences became well known within household staffing circles.
“This happened with enough people that word absolutely got around among household staff,” the insider told Page Six. “People remember how they were treated, and there are a lot of people who simply would not want to put themselves in that position and work for her now.”
Meanwhile, a second source claimed that stories about the Duchess of Sussex have circulated for years among people who work in private households.
“There’s definitely concern among household staff about Harry and Meghan coming back to the UK,” the insider said. “Word has gotten around over the years about what Meghan can be like to work for, and she has a reputation for being very dismissive and rude to staff.”
The source claimed that Markle’s reputation has left a bad impression for future hiring prospects.
“A lot of people in those circles talk, so stories travel,” the source said. “And there are definitely people who would have no interest in working for her because of what they’ve heard.”
“The assumption is that now that Meghan and Harry are back, Meghan will probably be looking to hire household staff again, but I don’t think she’s going to have people lining up for those jobs,” the source alleged. “There’s a lot of apprehension about what working in that household would actually be like.”
However, a source close to Markle vehemently denied the allegations, telling Page Six that the “Suits” alum and her husband “have always treated their staff with respect and professionalism.”
“The suggestion that Meghan interviewed anyone in a rude manner is categorically untrue,” the insider added.
Reps for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex did not respond to Page Six’s requests for comment.
As previously reported, several of Markle’s Montecito, California, neighbors are ready for a little more peace and quiet amid news that the Sussexes are moving back to the UK.
Markle and her husband, Prince Harry, 41, have called the posh Santa Barbara County community home since 2020 after stepping back as senior members of the royal family and relocating to California.
“When we first heard Harry and Meghan were moving to Montecito, there were definitely some concerns,” a local resident told Page Six. “There had already been so much negative press and attention surrounding them and the royal family, and I think people worried about what kind of spotlight that could bring to such a quiet community.”
Our insider noted that now that Prince Harry and Markle are moving back to the UK, they “couldn’t be more thrilled.”
While Montecito is home to plenty of other high-profile residents, including Oprah Winfrey and Rob Lowe, the local said that Harry and Meghan brought an unusual level of press and media attention to the normally quiet community.
Page Six confirmed on Aug. 19 that Harry and Markle planned to return to the UK with their children — Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5 — at the end of the month for an “extended period.”
Their return to Harry’s home country comes six years after the couple’s dramatic departure from royal life, which became widely known as “Megxit.”
Harry and Meghan are expected to remain “non-working members” of the royal family and will continue pursuing their business ventures while living in Britain.
