Top city broker makes race discrimination claim in the Employment Tribunal

hmctsA former top city broker who claims he was subjected to years of racist abuse from his colleagues has made a claim to the Employment Tribunal for racial harassment and unfair dismissal.

Mr Ozman Mirza, who is a British worker of Pakistani national origin, worked for Tradition Securities, a firm providing broking services for both financial and non-financial products, from X until he quit his employment last year and submitted an employment tribunal claim.

The former broker claims that he was subjected to years of racial taunts and abuse from colleagues at the firm, with white colleagues allegedly calling him a “filthy f***ing Indian” and a “curry-muncher”. Mr Mirza also claims that a former colleague also made a Nazi salute at him and that management did nothing to stem what they referred to as workplace “banter”.

Mr Mirza made a formal complaint about his treatment in August 2012 and went off sick from work with work-related stress and anxiety soon after. He was off work sick until March of this year and then “reluctantly” resigned in March 2013 after he claimed that colleagues were trying to steal some of his biggest clients, including the “lucrative” Royal Bank of Scotland. He subsequently issued claims for constructive unfair dismissal, race discrimination, victimization and breach of contract in the Employment Tribunal against Tradition Securities and Futures SA, Tradition Securities Ltd and the head of the Forwards desk at Tradition Securities, Mr Lee Davis.

Both the companies and Mr Davis have denied the allegations put to them.

Mr Davis said in a statement: “I wish to make it absolutely clear that I have never used any form of racist language towards the claimant or any of my colleagues. Nor have I ever heard or witnessed any members of my desk behaving in this manner. Had I done so, I would have reported it.”

The Employment Tribunal continues.