Two women City high-flyers 'hounded from bank for not being male or Japanese' sue for £3million!!

Two women City high-flyers 'hounded from bank for not being male or Japanese' sue for £3million

By Daily Mail Reporter

Last updated at 12:39 PM on 03rd November 2009

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Two women City high-flyers who claim they were hounded out of their jobs by sexist Japanese bosses are both suing a leading investment bank for £1.5 million.

Maureen Murphy, 30, alleges that a woman trader at Nomura bank had to endure her breasts being referred to as 'honkers' during a meeting.

She says that a male colleague claimed that women 'belong at home cleaning the floors'.

And another allegedly said that the key to cheating on wives was 'not getting caught'.

Miss Murphy, a senior analyst earning £55,000 a year, and Anna Francis, 37, a director on £250,000 including bonus, had worked in Asian equities sales at Lehman Brothers in Canary Wharf before the bank collapsed in September last year.

The two women moved to Nomura as part of a buyout by the Japanese bank and expected equally prominent roles.

City bankers Maureen Murphy, left, and Anna Francis, right, claim that they were ridiculed by Japanese bosses at Nomura Bank in the City

But they claim sexist Japanese bosses withheld work and fired them because they were female and non-Japanese.

Their barrister Michael Duggan told Central London Employment Tribunal: 'This organisation is institutionally racist and sexist.'

Each woman is suing Nomura for sex and race discrimination and unfair dismissal. Miss Murphy is also alleging sexual harassment.

They are each seeking £1.5 million compensation for loss of earnings and injury to feelings. Nomura strenuously denies the allegations.

In legal papers submitted to the tribunal Miss Murphy, who lives in Islington and is half American, says she was ridiculed at Nomura because of her accent.

Nomura bank in Canary Wharf in London

She also alleges that during a business meeting one male client said to her colleague Melissa Holian: 'Oh, you don't have your honkers out today I see.'

The legal papers add: 'Miss Murphy was initially not sure what he was referring to, but Melissa clarified honkers referred to her breasts.

'She went on to say there was no point in standing up to him as he would smear your reputation in the entire market and that ultimately it was better just to accept it.'

Miss Francis, of Paddington, told the tribunal there was 'obvious hostility' from Nomura staff when her Lehmans team moved to the Japanese bank's City offices.

The trader, who is originally from New Zealand, said that during a conference call with up to 1,000 of her global peers, a male colleague humiliated her by saying 'Don't listen to her. She is just a Kiwi'.

Miss Francis had major existing clients with billions of pounds worth of assets under their control globally such as hedge fund Lansdowne, Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management and Legal & General.

She said that her new Japanese bosses showed 'remarkable disregard' for her clients wishing to retain her as their primary sales contact.

They even ignored one such request after an order for $30 million was placed by a client that had no previous trading history with Nomura, she said.

She was promised a place on a new Asian equities sales team but instead made redundant in December last year.

Miss Francis said: 'I believe that I would not have been treated in this way if I was a male employee and especially if I was a Japanese male employee.'

After being denied clients, one male colleague allegedly admitted that her treatment involved 'every 'ism' in the book' but said that 'this was how it worked at Nomura'.

She was ditched because she was 'too outspoken and female', her former boss allegedly told Miss Murphy.

Nomura spokesman Sal Dirschberger said: 'Nomura maintains that it acted fairly in the dismissal of Anna Francis and Maureen Murphy by reason of redundancy as part of a wider reorganisation following the Lehman Brothers acquisition.

'To suggest they were selected on the basis of their race or sex is wholly unfounded.

.We have over 77 different nationalities in the London office alone and have been named in the Times Top 50 places for women to work in the UK for three consecutive years.'

The case continues.