New Lawsuit Charges Goldman Sachs With Pregnancy Discrimination

Businessweek reports today that the Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has been charged with employment discrimination by a former vice president who alleges that she was pushed onto the “mommy-track” and eventually fired after she chose to work part-time following her pregnancy. The lawsuit -- Hanna v. Goldman, 10-cv-02637, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan) -- alleges violations of the Family Medical Leave Act, as well as gender and pregnancy discrimination. By way of background, Charlotte Hanna joined Goldman in 1998 as an associate and rose to vice president while at Goldman Sachs University, an internal training program, according to the complaint. After deciding to work part-time when she became pregnant with her first child, she said she was channeled into lesser positions that compromised her earnings and prospects for better jobs. According to the lawsuit, “[t]he ‘off-ramp’ was a direct path to a mommy-track that ultimately derailed Ms. Hanna’s career.” Hanna, who is unemployed, said she was demoted, lost her office and pushed into a job in operations in the training program, according to the complaint. She said she was fired before her return from her second maternity leave in 2008.