J’ACCUSE!

Neiman Marcus CEO Accused of Favoring ‘Gay and European Men’ for Top Jobs

Employees accused Belgian-born CEO Geoffroy van Raemdonck of discriminating against “the typical straight U.S. male” in an anonymous blog post.

Neiman Marcus’ CEO is fighting off claims that he regularly discriminated in hiring or promoting employees to top positions. The retailer hired an outside investigator to probe whether Geoffroy van Raemdonck showed favorable bias toward “mostly gay or European men” and “white and Asian women” for positions reporting directly to him, ultimately finding “no evidence” it had done so, according to the New York Post. The probe was triggered by an anonymous blog post penned by disgruntled Neiman employees on Telegra.ph in December, claiming that the nearly 30 executives who were hired or promoted since 2018 showed a pattern of favoritism on the basis of identity. “Geoffroy hires externally and does not like to promote from within,” the group wrote. “He prefers to hire white and Asian women. And then he favors men who are gay and/or European. Just like him.” They also accused van Raemdonck of discriminating against “the typical straight U.S. male” and against “anyone who has a longer tenure than him.” Neiman Marcus denied the allegations. “Thirteen straight men represent almost over 30 percent of the senior hires and promotion,” the company said, adding that it has promoted “16 leaders from within” including “4 white, straight men; 1 Asian man and 1 black woman.”