Bank executive accuses HSBC of tolerating "culture of sexism"

A senior manager at HSBC has been accused of being on “a mission to destroy” his colleague after she ended their affair.

Madeleine Luckham claims that Robert Clegg subjected her to a campaign of sexual harassment, alleging that the bank tolerated a “pervasive culture of sexism” in the workplace.

She made the stinging accusation at an employment tribunal in which she claims that Mr Clegg sexually harassed her after she called an end to their relationship.

Ms Luckhan, 38, told the East London Employment Tribunal: "I had raised Rob's sinister behaviour in my grievance and my grievance interview. The touching and flirting in public.

“The point is that he was on a mission to destroy me. He had made it abundantly clear that I was both professionally and personally worthless.

"He had objectified me and every other woman around us. He was destroying my reputation and spreading lies about me.”

Ms Luckham, who was Global Head of Product Delivery at HSBC Digital, said Mr Clegg’s behaviour was part of a pattern by male employees at the bank.

She told the tribunal: "At HSBC women only have a voice if there is a stronger male voice behind them.

"There is a pervasive culture of sexism at HSBC in which women are objectified by their male colleagues, ignored when complaints are raised by them and frozen out of the business when they are perceived as 'difficult.'"

Ms Luckham, from Teddington in south west London, said that when she ended their affair over concerns at the impact it might have on Mr Clegg’s children, he began to harass her - leering at her beasts and touching her in public.

Ms Luckham, who earned £550 a day as a contractor, claims she was promised a permanent job on a £130,000 salary, but that this failed to materialise after they broke up and claims Mr Clegg, the global head of HSBC staff digitalisation, turned against her.

She told the tribunal that they split up after a six month affair on April 10, 2018, but that she first had doubts the previous Christmas after a trip to New York, when she realised she would 'break the hearts' of his four young children.

Ms Luckham said that in the aftermath of their breakup, Mr Clegg “would leer at my chest, my lips, touch me uninvited in public where I could not react without playing to his narrative”.

She added: “I had no choice but to capitulate. He was my only lifeline."

Claiming that a number of women at the bank had nicknamed Mr Clegg ‘Weinstein’, after the Hollywood producer accused of preying on actresses, she added: "I felt violated. It was torture."

Ms Luckham claims that on May 1 that year she discovered that the permanent role she had accepted in writing with a £130k base salary, was no longer available.

But the tribunal was also told Ms Luckham was given until May 21 to apply for the role but did not do so.

She claims that a few days later Mr Clegg, 48, the Global Head of HSBC staff digitisation, indicated that she should leave HSBC because he could not afford to do so himself.

Ms Luckham told the tribunal: "I was quite shocked that someone leaving came up at all so I took this to mean 'it cannot be me, I have four kids, I have a wife that does not work and there is potentially going to be a costly divorce'.'"

However, the tribunal heard Mr Clegg later texted her "I do not want anyone to leave HSBC. You are my friend and I want to fully support you."

Mr Clegg, 48, from Newbury in Berkshire, told the tribunal he ended the affair in January 2018 during a joint work trip to Hong Kong where Ms Luckham had made snide comments about him in a bid to embarrass him.

He said he had told her "we're done" and had started seeing a counsellor with his wife to try and save their marriage.

Both HSBC and Mr Clegg deny sex discrimination against Ms Luckham. The hearing continues.