Lloyd’s suspends member for ‘inappropriate’ drunken comments

Lloyd’s has already issued suspensions to multiple members in its response to stamping out sexual harassment and bullying.

Lloyd’s chief executive John Neal told the Sunday Times the action had been “extreme but necessary” and related to “a couple of incidents”.

Neal revealed one of those incidents saw a male member suspended for a month after making “inappropriate comments” while drunk on a business trip.

Since the first reports earlier this year revealing the scale of sexism and bullying at Lloyd’s Neal has vowed to kick out sexual harassment from the market. He has introduced a new plan of action and stated that Lloyd’s will ban for life those workers guilty of the most serious offences. He has also taken steps to stamp out drinking alcohol while at work.

News of these latest suspensions comes after a senior Guy Carpenter boss was suspended for disseminating a joke about doughnuts, singling out a female colleague as “enjoying a glazed ring.” The whistleblower who released that email externally was also suspended.

A Lloyd’s spokesperson confirmed it too had suspended the employee, mirroring Guy Carpenter’s actions. They said Lloyd’s was committed to taking further action pending Guy Carpenter’s investigation.

A Lloyd’s spokesperson said: “At Lloyd’s we have been very clear on the standard of behaviours we expect and the actions we will take to ensure that our market, and all of those who work in it, operate to the highest standards.

”We are supportive of the actions taken by Guy Carpenter in dealing with this issue with all the urgency, determination and action that this serious matter deserves. We will ensure Lloyd’s takes appropriate action once the investigation on this matter is complete”.

Two Tokio Marine Kiln executives have also recently resigned following accusations of groping and stalking.

The Bank of England last week said that in the light of these revelations, kicked off by 18 women coming forward in March to report their own experiences of sexual offences in the market, it is working with the FCA to monitor Lloyd’s for demonstrable progress.