Lehman Brothers has been slapped with lawsuit by a former executive who claims she was fired for being too outspoken about racial comments allegedly made at a company leadership training session. Investment News reports that Karen McDermott, a former v.p. for internal communications, complained after a speaker at the seminar commented that “white people release the stress hormone cortisol whenever they work with black people.” McDermott, who is white, reportedly expressed her displeasure to her boss and was accused of being too negative – and advised she’d go a lot further if she didn’t engage in assertive behavior more typical of men. Lehman, according to IN, says the suit lacks merit.
