City firm 'bypassed' worker from Guyana

A City firm excluded ethnic minorities from a privileged "inner circle" of senior accountants by failing to advertise vacancies to all its staff, an employment tribunal was told yesterday.

A City firm excluded ethnic minorities from a privileged "inner circle" of senior accountants by failing to advertise vacancies to all its staff, an employment tribunal was told yesterday.

Lloyd's Register of Shipping (LRS), which monitors shipping around the world, bypassed Indrajeet Lalbeharry, who was born in Guyana, for promotion to become senior management accountant nine times, without informing him of vacancies, the hearing in Stratford, east London, was told.

The firm's most senior accountants, who earned £50,000 or more and enjoyedprivileges such as their own dining room, did not include a single employee of ethnic origin in the 23 years that Mr Lalbeharry was employed, the hearing was told.

Mr Lalbeharry, from Haringey, north London, who held a position one grade lower than senior accountant, accused LRS of not implementing the Commission for Racial Equality's code of practice. He said: "LRS chose to adopt a continuing policy and practice to deny ethnic minorities opportunities to achieve senior positions by not advertising the posts. The majority of jobs ... were not advertised but communicated by word of mouth to a selected and narrow circle of known individuals."

Mr Lalbeharry said staff who rose to senior management were less qualified and experienced than he was.

The hearing was adjourned until today.