A scathing letter accusing some former Macquarie Bank staffers of severe workplace bullying, rampant sexist conduct, and even an incidence of “upskirting” has been revealed, a week after former clients informed the bank and Australia’s financial services regulator of their concerns.
The Sydney Morning Herald has reported on the letter, which alleges a 2014 incident in which a male staffer took an inappropriate photograph of a female manager. The letter claims that no official disciplinary action was taken against the staffer, outside of him being moved across the office.
In an alleged 2013 incident, another staffer cut the ponytail off a female assistant and placed it on the desk in front of her. That same employee was also alleged to have stalked a female employee in 2010. It’s claimed that in both cases, insufficient disciplinary action was taken despite staff complaints to Macquarie Bank itself.
The letter, sent by Macpherson Kelley Lawyers to the bank and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, also claims that Macquarie Bank chose not to take disciplinary action against an adviser accused of “predatory” behaviour towards a female colleague on account of how much money he brought in.
Inappropriate conduct allegedly took other forms too, with the letter slamming “a workplace defined by behaviour such as rampant drug taking leading to reckless trading after lunches.”
The alleged incidents were perpetrated by individuals who no longer work at Macquarie Bank. In response to the letter, the firm told the Sydney Morning Herald that “the allegations were either never put to Macquarie, or those that were made were reviewed and appropriate action was taken.”
The letter comes amid a planned class-action suit against Macquarie Bank, which accuses several of its former staffers of providing dodgy advice regarding a mining firm’s stocks in 2012.
