Sex ‘worth more than degree’ on Wall Street
SEX was worth more than a university degree at the toxic ‘boys club’ of Goldman Sachs, a former female employee has claimed in a shocking new memoir. Jamie Fiore Higgins rose to the level of managing director in Goldman’s New York offices after 17 years but quit in 2016. She said she experienced harassment, abuse and bullying by male colleagues. In one of her most shocking allegations, she claims a man grabbed her by the throat and pinned her against a wall, screaming: ‘If I could, I’d rip your f***ing face off.’ Ms Higgins, who earned a pre-bonus salary of $875,000, said she was told she got her promotion ‘because of [her] vagina’. The same male colleague purportedly said: ‘At Goldman, sex will propel you further than an Ivy League diploma.’
The book, Bully Market: My Story Of Money And Misogyny At Goldman Sachs, describes a culture of rife infidelity and drug-fuelled parties outside the office. It also alleges that male traders kept ‘f***ability’ rankings of women in the office. Ms Higgins is not the first woman to accuse the bank of misogyny. This week news outlet Bloomberg reported that Goldman allegedly paid more than $12 m to an executive to bury claims of a sexist culture. Goldman disputes the story and claims the report contained ‘factual errors’. The bank is also facing a lawsuit, which has 1,200 plaintiffs who allege widespread bias against women.
The bank denies wrongdoing.