UK charity to shut down amid allegations
Last week, hundreds of male business leaders happily attended London's Presidents Club Charity Dinner, an annual, men-only fundraiser.
Now they, and government attendees, were rushing to explain, defend themselves against or brush off a report in the Financial Times that multiple hostesses at the event were harassed, groped and insulted. One company, WPP Plc, said it would end its association with the event and a world-renowned hospital that had benefited from the fundraiser said it would return all donations. In the government ranks, parliamentarian Justine Greening, who angrily quit Prime Minister Theresa May's cabinet this month, called on the companies that had attended the event to publish their gender pay gaps. Junior minister Anne Milton agreed and said they should report "by the end of this week.''
During a clamorous session of the House of Commons, Milton told angry lawmakers that "There is an association between rich, wealthy people and this sort of behavior. It is quite extraordinary to me that in the 21st century allegations of this kind are still emerging. People need to know there is a line and where it is. This is also about attitude."
Milton was asked about the report that a charity auction for lunch with Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson was part of the event. "The foreign secretary knew nothing of his inclusion in any auction and in no way endorsed the event," Milton said. Johnson's spokesman did not respond to a request for comment.
The allegations come as the #MeToo and #TimesUp campaigns have unleashed a groundswell of popular resistance to egregious behavior by men in industries from movie-making to archaeology. In response, companies are firming up their anti-harassment training and seeking to distance themselves from practices and traditions that are out of touch with a mushrooming international reckoning with the objectification of women.
That didn't change the tone at the dinner, according to the FT, which said it had two reporters working as hostesses and others in the dining room. According to the story, 360 figures from British business, politics and finance attended the dinner and were served by 130 hostesses, who had been told to wear skimpy outfits with matching underwear and high heels. At an after-party, many of the hostesses were groped, sexually harassed and propositioned, the FT reported.
"We are ending our association with the event," a WPP spokesman said in an emailed statement. WPP, the world's biggest advertising group, said it has traditionally sponsored a table at the Presidents Club dinner to support the event's fundraising for children's charities such as the Great Ormond Street Hospital. The company and its attendees weren't aware of the alleged incidents at the event, WPP said. The Great Ormond Street Hospital, which treats seriously ill children, said in a statement that it was "shocked" by the reported behavior at the dinner and that it would return any previous donations it had received from the event.
The Bank of England also responded since one of the gifts on auction was a tour of the bank and tea with Governor Mark Carney.