A former Morgan Stanley executive is suing the financial firm over racial discrimination and claims he was fired for being white, according to the complaint reviewed by The Gateway Pundit.
The lawsuit was filed on Tuesday in federal court in the Southern District of New York.
The lawsuit alleges Kevin Meyersburg was terminated as Morgan Stanley’s Head of Executive and Brokerage Solutions and replaced by a black woman with no experience in his niche field in order to meet DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) targets.
“This is an example of DEI run amok,” Meyersburg’s attorney, Louis Pechman, told The Washington Post. “Race cannot be a factor in employment decisions, period. Full stop.”
Meyersburg joined Morgan Stanley in 2020 after its acquisition of E*Trade. He has an impressive track record with more than 25 years of experience in wealth management and his team was outperforming other groups at the firm despite an unstable economy.
Kevin Meyersburg; LinkedIn
Meyersburg was replaced with a black woman with “significantly less experience and qualifications,” the lawsuit alleged.
“Morgan Stanley did not point to any deficiency in Meyersburg’s work performance or otherwise in justifying his termination and replacement. Instead, Morgan Stanley’s decision to terminate Meyersburg, a White male, and replace him with a Black female, was the result of the Firm’s attempt to comply with its Diversity and Inclusion objectives. In other words, Morgan Stanley unlawfully terminated Meyersburg’s employment because of his sex, race, and/or color.” according to the complaint.
Even worse, the black woman chosen to replace Meyersburg was performing so poorly that her entire team was let go.
Meanwhile, Meyersburg built a very successful team of 350 employees, and landed 3,000 new accounts with $5 billion in assets, according to the lawsuit.
“Morgan Stanley terminated Meyersburg’s employment and replaced him with the Wellness Director because of Meyersburg’s sex, race, and/or color as a result of the Firm’s efforts to achieve its D&I initiatives,” Meyersburg and his lawyers claimed in the suit.
According to LinkedIn, Meyersburg started his career in finance and wealth management in 1997.
Meyersburg holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance from Manhattan College and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration and Finance from Fordham University, the complaint said.
He is seeking reinstatement plus back pay and undisclosed punitive damages.
The Washington Post reported:
A former executive with Morgan Stanley is suing the company for discrimination, alleging he was let go and replaced with a Black woman with “significantly less experience and qualifications” as the part of the financial giant’s efforts to meet its diversity, equity and inclusion goals.
Filed Tuesday in federal court in the Southern District of New York, the lawsuit alleges that Kevin Meyersburg was unfairly terminated this spring from his role as managing director and head of executive services after three years with Morgan Stanley, despite “an impressive list of achievements.” According to the lawsuit, the executive who relayed the news to Meyersburg that he was being terminated expressed “concern” about the experience level of his replacement and “could not explain to Meyersburg why the decision had been made.”
As a leader, Meyersburg was “an active supporter” of Morgan Stanley’s DEI efforts, according to the lawsuit. He had helped to run a program on inclusive leadership and was in the process of orchestrating another when he learned of his termination. But when Meyersburg expressed confusion about his firing on a call with another executive, he was told “that it was because of [diversity and inclusion] initiatives,” the complaint states.
Morgan Stanley declined to comment on the lawsuit.
