Bullies could be called to account

A new ruling may leave finance employers more susceptible to bullying claims. But one employment lawyer says investment banks and brokers have already cleaned up their act.

A ruling in the House of Lords earlier this week means employers can now be held liable for workplace bullying under anti-harassment laws, reports the Financial Times.

The change means employees will now have a six year window in which to pursue a claim, instead of the three to six month window they had previously under anti-discrimination laws, says the FT.

Rather like sex discrimination, the City of London has a chequered history when it comes to bullying cases. The most lurid in recent times was Steven Horkulak's successful extraction of around 1m from Cantor Fitzgerald following allegations that he'd been subjected to a culture of "bullying and abuse."

Will the six year window lead to a flood of similar allegations? David Dalgarno, a partner in the employment division of law firm McDermott Will & Emery, thinks not.

"Bullying is a particular problem in high stress businesses like financial services," he says. "There was a time when that kind of thing was expected, but banks and brokers have made a big effort to deal with it. A lot of that 1980s macho stuff has gone away."

The window for pursuing a claim may need to be extended another 16 years to make a real difference.