As a result of fresh allegations that a second woman was reportedly raped by two male coworkers, two of the largest corporations in the UK, Aviva and Phoenix, withdrew from the Confederation of British Industry, raising more serious concerns about the organization’s survival.
Another unfortunate development is that the CBI president, Brian McBride, who serves as a non-executive director of the investment management behemoth abrdn, is reportedly thinking about leaving the organization. According to Sky, abrdn only made the decision to re-join the trade association at McBride’s request.
Following reports in the Guardian that the woman claimed the alleged rape occurred while she was working at a CBI office abroad and after a night out, Avivia and Phoenix have decided to leave the CBI.
She said she had no memory of the rape, but she went into great detail to describe the physical signs that made her think she had been raped. When she was later shown a graphic photo of herself at the workplace, she recognized it as belonging to one of the coworkers who had allegedly sexually assaulted her because she appeared asleep and had a penis in her mouth.
The woman believes the photo was shot at the same time of the alleged rape, and according to The Guardian, a second source has confirmed its contents. I don’t blame the CBI for being raped, she told the publication. After a night of drinking, people took advantage of me since I was so young.
“I hold the CBI accountable for a culture that encouraged employees to feel confident. that they could act in this manner without feeling any guilt or fear of repercussions afterwards. that they could experience some sense of pride while working. That there wasn’t anyone in HR that I knew and could trust with whom I could speak.
This is a CBI employee’s second allegation that she was raped by a staff member. The first rape accusation was made by a woman who said that a manager had attacked her at a boat party in the summer of 2019 and that she had reported the incident to human resources. Nothing was done.
The large insurance company Aviva released the following statement: “Given the very severe charges made and the CBI’s handling of the process and reaction, we feel the CBI is no longer able to fulfill its basic function—to be a representative voice of business in the UK. Due to this regret, we have unfortunately canceled our membership.
A similar statement was made by Phoenix, a retirement savings organization: “Further to the allegations reported this morning, we have taken the decision to resign our membership of the CBI with immediate effect.”
Following a wave of alleged sexual misconduct at the trade lobbying group, Aviva and Phoenix are the first companies to resign their membership, which will be a major blow to its reputation. Others have stated they will make up their choices at the conclusion of the independent investigation, including M&S and Rolls-Royce. But this most recent rape accusation might be the final straw.
“One allegation of rape, along with other claims of misconduct, is bad enough, but two?,” one member exclaimed. I doubt the CBI will withstand this most recent accusation.
The City of London police have been informed of the specifics of the new rape allegation.
The allegations against the director-general, Tony Danker, last month marked the beginning of a wave of sexual harassment claims made against employees.
This spurred the CBI to hire independent attorneys, Fox Williams, to conduct an investigation, but it also let a dozen or so more women make serious accusations against other employees.
Danker was fired last week without receiving any compensation as a result of the findings of that investigation, but he has since asserted that he had been “thrown under the bus” and that the allegations against him were unfounded. He is rumored to be thinking of suing the CBI.
Three additional employees have been let go.
In addition to this most recent allegation, the Guardian also notes that a different woman working in the CBI’s London office claimed she was pursued by a male coworker in 2018.
What will the CBI do next? It claims to speak for seven million people and represent 190,000 members of British industry. The cost of membership varies based on size but might reach £50,000 annually. The fish rots from the head down, as the phrase goes. It’s difficult to imagine how the organization will move past this awful incident. There are reportedly yet more complaints to come.