Meet Adila Chowan - the woman who brought down Mark Lamberti
'You’re black, you’re female, you’re employment equity, you’re technically competent. I would like to keep you – but if you want to go, go'
EXTRACT:
A day before he fell on his sword, Lamberti sent Chowan a one-line apology, saying he was sorry for “any hurt my words caused you”.
“It’s incredibly sad that it had to come to this,” Chowan told Times Select, “because, if he had acted rationally, this whole matter could have been resolved.”
Lamberti’s downfall came within weeks of Chowan winning a landmark race and gender discrimination case against him and Associated Motor Holdings – which falls under the umbrella of the Imperial Group.
When Adila Chowan first laid her grievance about Mark Lamberti referring to her as “female employment equity” in front of a room of senior managers, all she wanted was an apology. He told her: “You’re black, you’re female, you’re employment equity, you’re technically competent. I would like to keep you – but if you want to go, go.” These words ended in a racism and sexism grievance and later legal action against Lamberti, ultimately costing him his career. His departure as Imperial CEO, a position he had held since 2014, was announced on Wednesday morning and follows his resignation from the boards of Eskom and Business Leadership South Africa. A day before he fell on his sword, Lamberti sent Chowan a one-line apology, saying he was sorry for “any hurt my words caused you”.“It’s incredibly sad that it had to come to this,” Chowan told Times Select, “because, if he had acted rationally, this whole matter could have been resolved.” Lamberti’s downfall came within weeks of Chowan wi...
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