Advertisement

Female executive told ‘ladies’ should cut the cake sues firm for gender discrimination

The CEO of ExlService allegedly “personally directed” senior female staff to serve cake to their subordinates at a party.
The CEO of ExlService allegedly “personally directed” senior female staff to serve cake to their subordinates at a party. Getty Images

A lawyer and ex-executive vice-president of ExlService Holdings is suing her former firm for discrimination on the basis of gender after a series of alleged incidents, including one where she says she and other women were told to serve cake to junior employees because they were “ladies.”

ExlService, a New York-based operations management and data analytics company, is accused of marginalizing and disrespecting Nancy Saltzman as well as other women on its team.

READ MORE: Equal Pay Day — Not making as much as your male coworker? Here’s what you can do

Saltzman, who is being represented in the lawsuit by Sanford Heisler Sharp, worked as general counsel and executive VP from 2014 to 2018, when she was fired. She was the company’s first female executive.

She says she was fired after complaining of “unlawful gender discrimination,” according to a court filing.

Story continues below advertisement

In the filing, she accused ExlService CEO Rohit Kapoor and the other men on the executive committee of stalling her career and undermining her authority.

“For example, CEO Kapoor personally scrutinized Ms. Saltzman’s travel and required her to obtain his express (permission) before travelling to visit her team overseas, which he did not require of equivalent male employees,” the court documents state.

WATCH: Why men need to take a stand for gender equality

Click to play video: 'Why men need to take a stand for gender equality'
Why men need to take a stand for gender equality

Kapoor then allegedly criticized Saltzman for not having a “greater enterprise-wide visibility” and not having “enough interaction with clients.”

For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.

Get breaking National news

For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.
By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

She also alleges executives withheld information and documents from her, making it hard to provide proper legal advice.

The filing also states that before Saltzman was hired, the president of the company, Pavan Bagai, asked if Saltzman was “attractive” and said: “Oh, she wore a short skirt. That’s good!”

Story continues below advertisement

WATCH: Three female leaders discuss the biggest issue facing Canadian Women

Click to play video: 'Equal Pay, Opportunity, Harassment: Three female leaders discuss the biggest issue facing Canadian Women'
Equal Pay, Opportunity, Harassment: Three female leaders discuss the biggest issue facing Canadian Women

But Saltzman says “the breaking point” came during the company’s 19th-anniversary party when Kapoor “personally directed” Saltzman and other senior female staff to serve cake at the event.

“Even after one of the women in attendance pointed out that there were plenty of competent men standing much nearer to CEO Kapoor and to the cake, CEO nonetheless insisted that the ‘ladies’ should cut the cake,” the court filing reads.

READ MORE: Makers of women’s sex toy accuse CES of double standard after award withdrawn

Saltzman called the incident humiliating and said it undermined her authority with the subordinates she was forced to serve.

Saltzman said she brought up the gender discrimination to a board member and explicitly stated she didn’t want to quit.

Story continues below advertisement

But a few weeks later, Kapoor requested her immediate resignation, the court filings state.

Saltzman told the Washington Post she was motivated to file a lawsuit “by the number of young women who reached out to me for mentorship and saw my appointment as a symbol of opportunity.”

“Meaningful change depends on women who are willing to speak up and corporate boards who will listen and take them seriously,” Saltzman told the Post in a statement. “Corporate leaders should be focused on fostering diversity, not silencing those who complain of discrimination.”

WATCH: New report says women CEOs are paid less than men

Click to play video: 'New report says women CEOs are paid less than men'
New report says women CEOs are paid less than men

Saltzman’s lawyer, Russell Kornblith, told Global News that since the lawsuit was made public, others have come forward.

Story continues below advertisement

“We’ve definitely been contacted by other women who experienced similar discrimination and who witnessed the discrimination that Nancy experienced and have offered their help and support,” he said.

Kornblith also pointed out that without Saltzman on the executive team, the company’s leadership is exclusively male.

“This company has a major problem with diversity,” Kornblith said. “In an age where companies are starting to pay attention to diversity and a lot of companies are trumpeting their diversity, EXL is startlingly tone deaf in that regard.”

ExlService did not reply to a request for comment from Global News by the time of publication.

Sponsored content

AdChoices