Marilyn Booker, Morgan Stanley’s Former Global Diversity Chief Sues Bank For Racial Discrimination

Marilyn Booker, Morgan Stanley’s Former Global Diversity Chief Sues Bank For Racial Discrimination

Marilyn Booker, the former head of diversity at Morgan Stanley was fired in December after

“pushing for a plan that she said would help promote career advancement for Morgan Stanley’s black employees.”

Marilyn Booker spent most of her time at the company, as the firm’s first global diversity chief.

The former head of diversity at Morgan Stanley served from 1994 to 2010 and then worked in the firm’s wealth management division for most of the past decade. She’s now calling out the firm

“and two of its top executives, including CEO James Gorman, for racial and gender discrimination.”

“Rather than seriously examine its own role in perpetuating inequalities in hiring, pay and promotion, and in fostering toxic workplace cultures and consumer discrimination, Morgan Stanley has instead repeatedly stopped short of any meaningful major overhauls during prior opportunities for change.”

In a statement, a Morgan Stanley spokesperson said the firm denied Booker’s allegations and plans to fight the suit.

“We are steadfast in our commitment to improve the diversity of our employees and have made steady progress, while recognizing that we have further progress to make, we will continue to advance our high priority efforts to achieve a more diverse and inclusive firm.”

Last week, Morgan Stanley announced that it was adding Carol Greene-Vincent and Susan Reid, two black women, to its operating committee. Reid will be the firm’s current global head of diversity.  The company’s CEO said in an internal email,

“The death of George Floyd while in the custody of Minneapolis police and the resulting public outrage had propelled his decision to promote the executives.”

The company will also donate $5 million to the NAACP and spend $25 million on diversity efforts inside the firm.

Booker claims that although the Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman, has made several recent announcements to boost racial inclusion after the death of George Floyd, the bank still has spent years blocking efforts to address inequalities in the firm’s ranks.

What are your thoughts on Marilyn Booker’s allegations against the company? Let us know in the comments!