Goldman sued by ex-VP over “mommy track”
March 25th, 2010 - 8:43 pm ICT by Pen Men At WorkMarch 25, 2010 (Pen Men at Work): A former vice president of the Goldman Sachs Group Inc has sued the company for alleged bias because she was consigned to a mommy track which led to her firing while she was on maternity leave.
Charlotte Hanna filed the lawsuit in Manhattan on Wednesday. Hanna worked at Goldman Sachs University, an orientation program for new analysts, associates and summer interns.
A Manhattan resident, Hanna claimed that when she returned in 2005 after her first maternity leave, she was demoted by Goldman and it seemed to have become a boys-only club. A week before she was to return from her second maternity leave, in February 2009, she was fired.
The complaint stated that when Hanna decided to take the ‘off-ramp’ provided by the firm to give some time to her children, there was no on-ramp for her to get back to full-time employment. The off-ramp turned out to be the direct path to a mommy track which then wrecked her entire career. Gia Morone, Goldman spokesperson refused to comment on the issue.
This isn’t the first time a major U.S. investment bank is the target of a lawsuit by a former employee. Even in the past, many such cases have occurred with the former workers alleging some form of discrimination. Hanna’s age was unavailable at the beginning.
As Hanna’s complaint goes, she joined Goldman as an associate in 1998 and was promoted to vice president within two years. She was also praised for her work. She took advantage of a Goldman program that allowed her to work part-time after she returned from her first maternity leave in February 2005.
But when she returned, her pay was reduced and she was demoted. She was also excluded from operations and social functions.
According to the complaint, 75 percent of the people selected for termination in her group were the ones who had recently taken maternity leave. The complaint goes on to say that Goldman Sachs sees working mothers as second-class citizens who are better off at home with their children.
Hanna’s lawyer stated that since the economic downturn began, they have seen a lot more gender and pregnancy discrimination cases.
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