Discrimination lawsuits against Morgan Stanley could start rolling in from brokers laid off in August, say labor lawyers.
The firm got rid of 1,000 low producers according to a strict performance-based system, but women in the retail brokerage have long complained that Morgan Stanley discriminates against them when passing on large accounts, promotions, training, resources and office space, says one labor lawyer. To the extent that these practices limited their productivity, they could claim that the layoffs were discriminatory, says Michelle Caiola, senior trial attorney with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
Jan Tyler, until recently a Morgan broker in Denver, Colo., says she filed her complaint with the EEOC back in April, and a mediation with the company is scheduled for mid-September. But she's ready for a fight. Another woman, who spoke anonymously, filed her own complaint with the EEOC just days after she lost her job at Morgan Stanley. One EEOC lawyer says he's received half a dozen calls from other women seeking legal advice.