HBOS discrimination claim could have been avoided
Adding to the woes of beleaguered Scottish bank HBOS is a sex discrimination case that could cost it 16m. However, according to employment lawyers, the whole thing could have been avoided.
Mona Awad, a Muslim corporate bank manager at the bank, is currently claiming 16m in damages against HBOS for what she describes as a "sexist culture" that was "endemic" within her department.
Obviously, sexual discrimination cases within financial services are not unheard of. The most high profile example recently was the long battle between F&C Asset Management and former legal head Gill Switalski.
The most headline grabbing element of the Awad case is the claims of "humiliation" by two department managers asking "whether I was 'shagging' an employee of our customer".
Jonathan Maude, partner in the employment practice at lawyers Hogan & Hartson, reckons this case is an example of how "banter" can get out of hand and result in a significant monetary claim.
He says that employers need to continually educate staff at all levels as to what constitutes acceptable behaviour.
"Sound management by the company may have prevented this - an apology at an early stage or something similar," he says.
Awad said she approached a director within the bank about he alleged abuse, but nothing was done. One supposedly told her: "Yes we know what he is like. It's just how he is. You can't do anything about it."
