“Not now, Stacey!” BNP banker wins discrimination claim

A female banker who earned vastly less than a male colleague on the same level has had her gender discrimination claim upheld by the Employment Tribunal. The panel also commented that a witch’s hat left on her desk by colleagues was “an inherently sexist act”, while her manager’s repeated dismissal of her questions was “demeaning” and “belittling”. Will the regulator act upon its stated interest in non-financial misconduct? asks Denis O’Connor.

Denis O’Connoris a fellow of both the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales and the Chartered Institute of Securities and Investment. He was a member of the British Bankers’ Association Money Laundering Committee from 2003-10 and a member of the Joint Money Laundering Steering Group’s board and editorial panel between 2010 and 2016. He has been a frequent speaker at industry conferences on financial crime issues, both in the United Kingdom and abroad.

Stacey Macken, a banker at the London branch ofFrench bank BNP Paribas, recently won a pay discrimination claim against her employers in a case that the Financial Conduct Authority may deem to be an example of non-financial misconduct. The bank recruited Macken on an annual salary of £120,000, however shortly afterwards a male banker was hired with the same job title and position description yet with a salary of £160,000 per year. Over the next five years, Macken’s bonuses totalled £33,000, while her colleague received £237,000 in bonuses. The tribunal also ruled that BNP managers victimised Macken by reducing her bonuses because she had complained about the pay discrepancy compared to her colleague. [1]