It has been announced that Matt Lauer has been dismissed from the Today Show on NBC in the US after an employee filed a complaint about his alleged "inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace".

Co-host Savannah Guthrie made the announcement at the start of Wednesday's show, on which Lauer was an anchor for over twenty years. She said she was informed of his dismissal just moments before going on air.

Guthrie also stated that NBC News chairman Andrew Lack said in a memo to staff that it was the first complaint made against Lauer in his career at the network. 

However he added: "we were also presented with reason to believe this may not have been an isolated incident."

"This is a sad morning at Today and NBC News," Guthrie said at the start of the show.

"As I'm sure you can understand, we are devastated. I'm heartbroken for Matt. He is beloved by many, many people here.

"I am heartbroken for the brave colleague who came forward to tell her story, and any other women who have their own stories to tell."

Hoda Kotb joined Guthrie in Lauer’s usual seat, calling it a "tough morning."

"It’s hard to reconcile with what we are hearing with the man who we know, who walks in this building every single day," Kotb said. "We were both woken up with the news, kind of pre-dawn, and we’re trying to process it and trying to make sense of it – and it’ll take some time for that."

Guthrie promised viewers that NBC would be "transparent" in covering Lauer’s termination.

President Donald Trump responded to the news on Twitter, writing, "Wow, Matt Lauer was just fired from NBC for ‘inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace.’ But when will the top executives at NBC & Comcast be fired for putting out so much Fake News. Check out Andy Lack’s past!"

Lauer was believed to be on a multi-million dollar deal that he recently re-signed a few years ago.