Neiman Marcus has hired an independent investigator to look into accusations that the company’s CEO discriminated in key hiring and promotions, saying that the company’s CEO has hired primarily “gay or European men” and ” The newspaper reported that the group was reportedly staffed by “white and Asian women.”
Investigators, an anonymous outside law firm, found “evidence” that the luxury chain’s Belgian-born chief executive, Geoffroy van Raemdonck, and other recruiters “engaged in the conduct described in the complaint.” “There was nothing,” the company said in a statement. Please email the post.
explosive blog post An anonymous group of Neiman Marcus employees said nearly 30 senior vice presidents have been hired or promoted since 2018 under Van Raemdonck, with the majority citing “bias” and a pattern of not promoting from within. This seems to be reflected.
“Currently, Mr. Geoffroy’s direct reports consist only of white and Asian women and gay men,” the group wrote in a Dec. 11 blog post. telegraph, an anonymous blogging platform. “He likes gay men and European men. Just like him.”
“What does diversity, equity, and inclusion mean to Neiman Marcus?” the employee added. “Is it for everyone, or only for groups that Geoffroy deems important?”
This is the latest controversy to condemn Mr van Raemdonk. Van Raemdonk had faced criticism for receiving large bonuses during the pandemic even as the company furloughed and furloughed thousands of employees. Van Laemdonk raised eyebrows last year when she and her husband, Alvise Orsini, sold the luxury mansion in Dallas where Neiman is based and moved to New York City.
The iconic 117-year-old retailer, which also owns the upscale Bergdorf Goodman store in New York, vigorously refuted the discrimination claims.
In a statement to the Post, Neiman said the company’s “13 straight men make up nearly 30 percent of senior hires and promotions.” The statement added that Neiman “promoted 16 leaders from within, including four white straight men.” One Asian man and one black woman. ”
The company also said it had “hired and promoted nine consecutive white men.” Three consecutive minority men. 1 Hispanic female. ”
“This has nothing to do with the supposed pattern of bias described in the web post,” the company said.
According to the company’s latest ESG report, women make up 67% of Neiman’s overall workforce and 61% of positions above vice president. The report also shows that 79% of executives at the vice president level and above are white. 3% are black. 2% are Hispanic and 15% are Asian.
Neiman Marcus declined to name hires or promotions in response to questions from the Post, citing “confidentiality of employees and their personnel information.”
The employees behind the blog post countered that Neiman’s hiring and promotion executive numbers are “confused” and “opaque” because they do not include employee names. “Names have been included to ensure complete transparency,” the group said in an email.
Since this blog post was published, Chief Legal Officer Hannah Kim, one of Van Raemdonk’s five direct reports, resigned in late December after two and a half years on the job. She was replaced on February 1 by her assistant, Tom Mattei, whose company profile does not indicate whether he is straight. Van Raemdonk’s other direct reports include two white women and two gay men, according to the company’s website.
“When will straight men in the United States be welcomed into the most senior levels of Neiman Marcus? And will black leaders be the same?” the employee wrote in a blog post.
Employees also claim that very few people in senior positions at the company have organizational knowledge of the business. They are very different from the former executives, many of whom had been with the retailer for decades.
“He never valued anyone who had been with the company longer than him,” employees wrote of Mr. van Raemdonk.
A group of current employees told the Post in an email exchange that began over the summer. The number is “less than five” and includes two women. In her blog post, she writes that her analysis is based on her public announcements and her own institutional memory.
The group’s investigation included 17 press releases and news articles about personnel changes over the past six years reviewed by the Post. At least four of the nine male employees depicted in the documents, seven of whom are white, identify as gay, the Post reported.
“While this list is not exhaustive, it is very close and is a robust data set,” the employees wrote, listing the names of leaders at senior vice president level and above who have been hired or promoted in the past five years. ing.
Legal experts say Neiman’s reaction to the blog post is not unusual.
“In situations like this, it’s not uncommon for companies to hire outside counsel to investigate,” said Carolyn Richmond, a Fox Rothschild labor law attorney with no special knowledge of the Neiman Marcus situation. he says.
The risk, legal experts say, is that employees could file complaints with U.S. agencies such as the National Labor Relations Board or the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. If federal authorities determine that hiring or promotion practices are biased in response to worker complaints, they can issue hefty fines.
The employees who alleged discrimination did not request the data from Human Resources because it “could lead to retaliation,” the blog post said.
In August, insiders filed a complaint with EthicsPoint., This was the company’s anonymous platform for employees to report concerns. The Post reviewed EthicsPoint’s complaint at the time. The workers said Neiman directed them to resubmit their complaints on another platform, AllVoices.
But in addition to requiring users to disclose their phone numbers, AllVoices last March asked Neiman executive Eric Severson to produce a podcast on its website.
“Due to the sensitivity of the topic and fear of retribution, we do not want to be tracked,” the employees said in a blog post.
Neiman Marcus also approved. severson podcastHowever, the executive said in a statement that he has “no personal or business relationship” with AllVoices. Niemann also said AllVoices “ensures that no one at NMG knows the email addresses, IP addresses, or identities of employees.”
In late 2020, Neiman employees used EthicsPoint to maintain “Cadillac” health plans for themselves and their executives, even as Van Leemdonk cut salaries and benefits across the company. The Post exclusively reported.
Neiman declined to comment at the time, but responded to EthicsPoint’s complaint: Benefit plan. ”
Neiman Marcus cut its workforce by nearly 5% a year ago as luxury goods sales began to decline. As the Post first reported, the company is in talks with Saks Fifth Avenue to sell itself to a luxury goods rival. If the deal goes through, Van Raemdonck will earn millions of dollars, sources told the Post.
