UK watchdog met with BNP Paribas’ HR team over handling of sexual discrimination complaint
FRENCH Bank BNP Paribas came under active scrutiny from the UK’s financial watchdog over its alleged mishandling of complaints from one of its brokers that she was subject to years of sexual discrimination and bullying at the firm’s London offices.
The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) held a series of meeting with senior members of BNP Paribas HR team over its handling of the sexual discrimination case, according to The Telegraph.
The FCA’s intervention came after ex-BNP Paribas broker Stacey Macken won a £2m payout, after she told a tribunal she suffered years of bullying and was paid less than male colleagues.
The tribunal heard drunk male colleagues placed a witch’s hat on Macken’s seat and the experienced broker said she was repeatedly shouted down with the motto “not now Stacey” after it became a catchphrase in the office, due to being said so often by her boss.
The broker, who earned a salary of £125,000 a year, was told crude sexual stories by senior colleagues, including one story of a man who engaged in prostitution role play with his wife.
The watchdog’s meetings with BNP Paribas HR team came after the bank repeatedly brushed aside Macken’s complaints.
Macken was also victimised by her bosses for raising complaints about the treatment she was subjected to at the bank, the tribunal heard.
BNP Paribas has been approached for comment.