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By Sharon Kimathi, Energy and ESG Editor, Reuters Digital

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Sexual misconduct allegations are making headlines again in Britain and the United States and tarnishing big corporate brands. Former Barclays’ CEO Jes Staley’s ties with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein are back in the spotlight, while British industry group CBI faces more criticism of its “toxic” office culture and treatment of female staff, and NBC fires its chief executive following sexual harassment claims.

Allegations made against British bank Barclays’ former CEO Staley regarding his ties with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein are “very serious”, the lender’s current CEO C.S. Venkatakrishnan said on Thursday.

In a call with reporters after the lender’s first quarter results were published, Venkat said he was not in a position to comment further on the allegations contained in U.S. court filings. Venkat said the allegations were being adjudicated in New York, which he said was the “right and proper place”.

Staley is being sued by his former employer JPMorgan for eight years of pay and to cover two lawsuits stemming from the bank’s work with Epstein, who was a client of the private bank that Staley used to run. In U.S. filings this week, Staley accused JPMorgan of using him as a “public relations shield” and said the allegations lacked legal or factual basis.

Elsewhere, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) hired “culturally toxic” staff with “abhorrent” attitudes towards female colleagues, the business group’s president said after a review into rape allegations and other serious misconduct.

Then-Barclays’ CEO Jes Staley arrives at 10 Downing Street in London, Britain january 11, 2018. REUTERS/Peter Nicholls/File Photo

The CBI – one of Britain’s best known business organizations – has been beset by allegations of serious workplace misconduct since March, which led to the government suspending high-level ties earlier this month and has cast doubt over its future.

The CBI said it had dismissed a small number of staff who had failed to meet high standards of conduct, but declined to give more details for legal reasons.

A host of major British businesses, including NatWest and John Lewis, quit their membership of the organisation last Friday after the Guardian newspaper reported an alleged rape at one of the trade association’s overseas offices. The newspaper last month reported on an alleged rape at a CBI staff party in 2019 which is now being investigated by police, as well as accounts of stalking and drug use.

Earlier this month the CBI’s board fired its director-general, Tony Danker, over a separate issue – unrelated to the rapes or other more serious allegations – but connected to his personal conduct towards some female staff.

But the corporate misconduct towards women is not just limited to British firms. Over in the United States, former NBCUniversal Chief Executive Jeff Shell was fired for sexual harassment after an investigation found evidence that corroborated a female employee’s complaint, Comcast said.

Comcast had said that Shell was leaving the company because of “inappropriate conduct.” A two-decade veteran of the company, Shell acknowledged an “inappropriate relationship” with a woman who worked at Comcast, “which I deeply regret.”

In a regulatory filing, Comcast said it had hired an outside counsel to investigate a complaint against Shell and the probe uncovered evidence of sexual harassment. Because he was fired for cause, Shell will not receive severance pay, said a source familiar with the matter. Shell did not respond to a request for comment on Monday.

People gather at the Magic Kingdom theme park before the “Festival of Fantasy” parade at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, U.S. July 30, 2022. REUTERS/Octavio Jones/File Photo

Responding to the high UK monthly inflation figures for March amid rising inequality in the country, senior economist Rachelle Earwaker at the British charity the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, said: 

“With (the March) rise, the rate of inflation has been over 10% for six months in a row. 

“Many will simply not have the resources to bear another shock like this. To put this in context, we found that nine in 10 families on Universal Credit said they couldn’t afford the essentials in October last year. 

“Since then, inflation has been in double digits for a further five months, with the cost of essentials like food, clothing and utilities soaring.

“According to (the March) data, food prices have risen by 18% in the year to February – their highest rate in over 45 years – and clothes and footwear have risen by 8.1%. 

“These should be flashing warning signs to the Government that tinkering with policies won’t be enough to head off the many escalating crises facing people on low incomes. A much more fundamental shift in our economic and political system is needed to provide the good jobs, social security system and homes we deserve.”

The debate over race-conscious admissions policies comes as many schools are grappling with their racist pasts and striving for greater inclusion of underrepresented racial and ethnic groups.

Interviews with more than a dozen students at the University of North Carolina’s Chapel Hill campus revealed that most valued the benefits of diversity and thought the university should do more to correct its blemished record on race.

The survey comes ahead of the U.S. Supreme Court rulings in a pair of affirmative action cases this spring, which could drastically alter how race is considered in admissions at North Carolina’s flagship university and other colleges.

Workers catch fish using voltage electricity to transfer the native species to another location due to the low water level of the River Onyar, in Girona, Spain, April 26, 2023. REUTERS/Albert Gea

Spanish authorities rescue native fish from a river shriveled by a prolonged drought, whilst China completes work on a nationwide ecological protection “red line” aimed at preserving its ecosystems in today’s ESG Spotlight.

In the northeastern city of Girona, Spain officials used small electric shocks to stun fish in the river Onyar before putting them into plastic bags and transferring them to the Ter river 10 km (six miles) away, which has significantly higher water levels. 

Spain has endured abnormally high temperatures that its meteorological agency attributed to climate change. Spain has had 36-consecutive months of below-average rainfall. Only fish endemic to the river were transferred, while introduced species were euthanized.

A part of a wetland restoration project on the edge of Dianchi Lake, Kunming, Yunnan province, China, October 14, 2021. Picture taken October 14, 2021. REUTERS/David Stanway/File Photo

China has completed work on a nationwide ecological protection “red line” aimed at preserving its ecosystems and reversing some of the damage from rapid urbanization and industrial growth, a government official said.

The red line scheme was first proposed in 2011 in the hope of putting vulnerable ecosystems out of bounds and ending decades of “irrational development” that had encroached upon forests and wetlands. The amount of land protected is in accord with a global biodiversity pact agreed in Montreal late last year to protect 30% of the world’s total land and sea by 2030.

“Gender disparity starts at a very young age. Employers and governments have a role, but individuals can have an impact too”. 

 Lara Fleischer, policy analyst at the Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD)’s WISE Center

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