Discrimination
Malcolm Perry accused of "intransigence" by Dresdner chief Jentszch
An investment banker who is suing a his former employer for £10 million alleging race discrimination risked derailing a major restructuring programme because he was only interested in himself, a tribunal was told today.
Malcom Perry, who was made redundant from Dresdner Kleinwort after the German bank merged its corporate and investment banking units in 2005, was described as “intransigent and resistant to change” by his former boss.
Stefan Jentszch, chief executive of Dresdner Kleinwort, told a London employment tribunal that Mr Perry’s attitude “could have jeopardised the whole merger.”
Dr Jentszch, one of Europe’s most powerful bankers, said Mr Perry repeatedly “put his own position before the bank’s” in the run up to the merger.
Mr Perry, who earned over £2 million a year as a senior investment banker, has accused Dresdner of forcing him out during a plot - led by Dr Jentszch - to make the bank “more German.”
Dresdner, which has admitted unfair dismissal, vigorously denies the claims.
In response to Dr Jentszch’s comments about Mr Perry’s “intransigence” his lawyer referred the tribunal to numerous glowing references Mr Perry had received, including some from his time at Dresdner.
These references, the lawyer said, showed Mr Perry to be a “loyal team player” with “integrity” and “strong management skills”.
They also demonstrated that Mr Perry had held a senior position during a time of significant upheaval at an earlier employer, JP Morgan.
This upheaval, during which JP Morgan merged with rival Chase Manhattan, was similar to the restructuring process at Dresdner, Mr Perry’s lawyer added.
But according to references from his time at JP Morgan, Mr Perry was a “consensus builder” who “refereed turf wars” and was “able to negotiate the highways and byways of a complicated organisation”.
The case continues.
(Published by Times Online, September 19, 2007)
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