Morgan Stanley Agrees to $54M Sex Discrimination Settlement

July 12, 2004 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Morgan Stanley has agreed to pay $54 million in damages to settle a sex discrimination suit brought by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

Under the settlement pact, $12 million is slated to go to Allison Schieffelin, the former Morgan Stanley bond seller at the heart of the allegations, the Associated Press reported.

US District Judge Richard Berman said the chairperson of the EEOC and the chief executive of Morgan Stanley had stepped into the settlement talks over the weekend. Berman had scheduled opening statements for today after eight women and four men were chosen as jurors on Friday.

In its 2001 lawsuit, the EEOC alleged a pattern of discrimination at the Wall Street brokerage firm that denied scores of women promotions and gave higher salaries to less productive men (See  Judge Postpones Morgan Stanley Sex Discrimination Suit ).

In addition, Morgan Stanley is to implement “far-reaching” measures to enhance the role of women in its work force, including an outside monitor.

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