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June 16, 2020 at 03:11 PM
Morgan Stanley’s New York headquarters (Photo: Bloomberg)
The former head of diversity at Morgan Stanley is suing the firm, saying it discriminated against black women.
Marilyn Booker spent 26 years with Morgan Stanley and was fired late last year. She served as the bank’s first global head of diversity from 1994 to 2011 and then was a managing director within the Wealth Management unit, where she led the Urban Markets Group.
In her lawsuit, Booker says the senior “white male-centric leadership” at the wirehouse would not support her strategy aimed at reducing racial bias and then ended her employment in December, according to a Bloomberg report.
The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in the federal court in Brooklyn, New York, seeks a judgment that prohibits the bank from discriminating against her and other black women. It also asks for unspecified damages.
Morgan Stanley let some 1,500 people go in December, including Booker, as it moved to reduce its staff and cut costs, according to a source familiar with the matter.
‘Appalling’ Hiring Patterns
In the document, Booker says she often raised her concerns tied to “irrefutable and appalling patterns” in the hiring, retention and lack of advancement of black employees at Morgan Stanley, Bloomberg reported.
