(Bloomberg) -- A Deutsche Bank AG executive, fired over allegations he sexually harassed female colleagues, said in a lawsuit that he was the one who suffered discrimination.
Konrad Joy, the chief operating officer in the global risk department before being fired in 2013, told a London employment tribunal that the bank accepted accusations against him that were false or exaggerated without a proper investigation.
The conduct of those involved in the process amounted to harassment, Joy, a Deutsche Bank employee for 24 years, said in a witness statement. I do not believe a female managing director in my position would have been dealt with in this biased and prejudiced way.
Joy, who is suing for gender discrimination, is seeking his job back and compensation of more than 20 million pounds ($32 million), Deutsche Bank said in court documents. That makes it one of the largest U.K. employment tribunal claims in recent years. Damages in employment cases are normally capped at about 70,000 pounds, unless there is evidence of discrimination based on race, religion or gender.
Deutsche Bank said in court documents that 11 junior colleagues, including personal assistants in their 20s, made allegations about Joy, including that he made numerous comments about the size of female employees breasts, invited two women to have a threesome and discussed pornographic films openly in the office.
The bank said that Joy was dismissed following an internal disciplinary panels review of the allegations. He earned about 1 million pounds a year, Deutsche Bank said in a court filing.
HARASSING, BULLYING
Joy was fairly dismissed for gross misconduct and was not subjected to any unlawful discrimination or harassment, the bank said in court documents. On the contrary, he himself was guilty of sexually harassing and bullying numerous members of more junior staff, and was rightly dismissed following a thorough and fair disciplinary process and appeal.
Kathryn Hanes, a spokeswoman for Deutsche Bank in London, said the lender found Joys continued employment to be inconsistent with our values.
Testifying at the tribunal yesterday, Joy said female colleagues willingly shared intimate details about their private lives with him. There was more of a ladette culture than a sophisticated work culture, he told the panel of three judges.
I had no desire to probe into these peoples lives, he told the court. I think its completely normal to come into the office and ask people if they have had a nice weekend.
Joy said in his witness statement that some of the women who complained about him had instigated conversations about personal issues, including one who discussed a desire to have cosmetic surgery to enlarge her breasts and another who said she was having an affair.
'SHOCKING, UNTRUE'
When my comments are taken out of context, my language may seem extreme, which it was not, he said in the statement. He said the allegations were shocking, untrue and slanderous.
Joy declined to immediately comment during a break in the hearing. Witnesses arent permitted to talk about their evidence while they appear at an employment tribunal. He is representing himself without a lawyer.
Joy joined Deutsche Bank directly after leaving school in 1989 and worked there with an unblemished record, according to his witness statement.
He hasnt been able to find work because of rumors about why he was dismissed, according to his statement. He said the banks treatment of him affected his health and left him feeling this overwhelming sense of shock and horror.
There was no fair or balanced investigation, no attempt to seek out anything other than false and condemnatory accounts, he said in the statement.
The case is scheduled to last for 25 days.
Read more:
Deutsche Bank Said Set to Weigh Punishing Top Staff on Libor UBS and Deutsche Bank Top Investment Banks Picks, JPMorgan Says Goldman Boy's Club' Accused of Sexualizing, Ignoring Women
