Authors: Faith Bleasdale
The monthly managing directors
” meeting was held over lunch on the top floor of SFH’s building. They had a three-course meal and discussed any matters of urgency, company policy and any new issues that arose. They also reviewed each department and often ended up patting each other on the back.
The meeting this Thursday was to be different. Helena from Human Resources was joining them to discuss three urgent staff issues, which were also matters of potential scandal for the firm.
Helena was frazzled. She hated attending these meetings. The managing directors intimidated her, but then, they intimidated all of HR. She tried to ask her boss if perhaps someone more senior should attend, but her boss, who equally hated such meetings, told her that she was responsible for the departments in question, therefore she had to go. She had prepared the files meticulously and she knew that the probability would be that these three people would have to be fired. Helena had her own views, although she knew she would never have the confidence to voice them.
Virginia Bateman had broken the rules, but nothing had gone wrong and Helena felt she was not the risk to the company that she was being made out to be. She had met her when she had first started looking for a new job, she had heard how hard Isabelle Holland was to work for, and from what she knew of Isabelle she tended to believe Virginia. She felt that Virginia had made one mistake and as the repercussions hadn
’t been high, they should give her a warning and let her take her new job if it was offered. She had proved herself a capable salesperson.
Ella Franke was a huge problem. Everyone in Human Resources had been upset. They all saw Ella
’s appointment as a triumph. Unfortunately, they had hired her without being thorough and they were paying the price. She had proved to be good at her job, but she didn’t have a degree. She had lied and somehow faked a degree certificate. She could represent a huge scandal for the company. Helena felt sorry for Ella, but she knew that they couldn’t keep her in their employment.
Clara Hart was also a problem. She had slept with one of her desk
’s major clients, showing unprofessional behaviour and bad judgement. However, her family was a client of the bank and upsetting them was a consideration. Helena thought it was time she went to work in a less stressful environment.
Helena walked in as everyone was sitting around the table, drinking aperitifs and studying the menus. She sat down and waited until they had ordered their lunch. She wasn
’t given a menu. She didn’t mind: she couldn’t have eaten anyway. The twenty-one men sitting before her in their immaculate suits with their immaculate haircuts intimidated her so much that food would have choked her. They all looked at her expectantly. Her heart was pounding and she felt sick. She could not understand why she was in such a state.
She outlined each case without stumbling, then sat back while the discussion ensued.
“Well, let me start with my opinion of Virginia’s situation as she is directly under my wing, although also yours, Tim, as you are co-head of Sales. I thought the same as Helena, that it was a mistake, and then I found out she might soon be working as a salesperson with Phillip, which would mean she would get the exams she needed and be able to take orders. But after speaking to Isabelle Holland who manages Emerging Markets, I discovered that Virginia was unrepentant about what she’d done, felt that she had done nothing wrong and was a bit of a loose cannon. If anything had gone wrong with the order we could have been sued, ridiculed for letting a secretary deal with clients and perhaps even ruined. I know it seems far-fetched, but one person can bring down a bank. Look at Nick Leeson,” David Marker said.
Helena almost fell off her chair at the comparison between timid Virginia and Nick Leeson. However, she lacked the nerve to say anything.
Tim spoke next. “I quite agree, David. We cannot put our clients at risk, and I’d be surprised if Phillip wanted to hire her after hearing that anyway. We need professionals in this business and you’re right, one mistake with a client could cause us irreparable damage. Which brings me to Clara. She compromised our reputation by sleeping with a client. Phillip, I know the Hart account is important to us, but I don’t think that she’d run to Daddy with the reason she was sacked, and even if she did, then he wouldn’t be in any position to cause trouble, would he?”
Phillip took over.
“No, not at all. We cannot afford people who do not embrace the company culture and the company rules. I wouldn’t employ Virginia now. She’s trouble and I’m glad I found out before we hired her. As for Miss Hart, well, you can’t sleep with clients in this business. I can’t bear the disregard for company policy. It should not be tolerated. I propose we offer her confidentiality from revealing the reason for her sacking to her family in return for her not rocking the boat with us. I think you’re right, Tim, she wouldn’t want them to know. Gosh, who would? As for the last girl, well, there’s no doubt, is there, Jeff?”
Jeff felt ill. His ulcer had been playing up over Ella. He liked her and he respected her. She had lied to him, but he didn
’t want to lose her. He had always felt fatherly towards Ella from the moment she had joined the desk. Her ability to do the job was rare, and Jeff had recognised it almost immediately. However, he knew that he didn’t have any choice.
“
Yes, Ella, well, as you say, there’s no defence. She lied to us to get a job, and although she was incredibly good at that job, she didn’t have the qualification she claimed. We don’t even know if she is who she claims she is. There is no alternative but to let her go.”
Simon Havant, a senior managing director spoke.
“We are on the edge of crisis. If the world finds out we hired someone with a forged degree certificate and kept her for years before we realised, we’d be a laughing stock. If the client the girl slept with decides to spread it around, we’d be seen as a knocking shop. And if the young lady who took an order when she was a secretary tells the press we’re in big trouble. As well as having to sack each one, which saddens me, I think we need to ensure that none of this ever gets to be common knowledge.” He smiled at everyone. Helena smiled back, but inside she was pissed off. Chauvinistic pigs like him made her job so hard.
Peter Seymour, the chairman, and one of the few members of the board from the founding family, spoke. He was very old and his only involvement in the company was the monthly meetings and collecting his huge salary.
“I agree. It all started when we let women into the business. Men never behave this way. You know where you are with men.” Helena was appalled; everyone else coughed with embarrassment.
Giles Thornton was one of the most experienced and well-respected members of the board.
“We have to dismiss all three women. We also need to look at damage limitation, as Simon said. Now, all three signed confidentiality agreements I take it?” He looked at Helena, who nodded her newly grey head. “Good. In that agreement, as I’m sure all you know, it says that no one can talk to the press about SFH while working here or after they leave. If they signed that we can sue anyone who talks. Moreover, I think we emphasise that when we dismiss them. Not that I think they will talk. After all, they were all in the wrong, they can’t claim unfair dismissal – they can’t claim anything. We have acted in the best interests of our shareholders and clients, and if there’s any trouble, we will issue statements to that effect. Now, are we all in agreement that this is the right path to follow?” Twenty men nodded. “Does anyone feel we need to take a vote?” Twenty men shook their heads.
“
Great, fine. Well, Helena, you’d better go and dismiss them. I expect them out of the building before the end of the afternoon. Don’t forget to remind them of the confidentiality clauses. And can you ask the waiter to come in with the main course on your way out? Thank you, Helena.”
Helena left and felt that the next stage would probably cause her hair to fall out.
As
Helen walked back to her office, she clutched the files to her chest and knew that the afternoon would be awful. She got her secretary to call each woman into her office and prepared to deliver the news. Ella said she was too busy but in the end she agreed to come. Clara sounded pissed off and reluctant. Virginia sounded excited and evidently thought she was going to be offered a job. Helena’s boss was sympathetic, but unwilling to get involved in the dirty deed. Helena sighed. As she prepared to see Ella first, Clara next and finally Virginia, for whom she felt incredibly sorry, she hoped that the following week would be better.
All three women reacted differently. Ella sat impassively in front of Helena. She looked as if she might faint when Helena explained that she had deceived them and her deception had been discovered. When she asked Ella for any defence, Ella shook her head. Then Helena explained that they had no alternative but to dismiss her. Ella dropped her head into her hands and nodded. Helena went on to explain about confidentiality. Ella sat silently for ages after Helena finished. When Helena asked her if she was all right, Ella looked at her as if she was an alien.
‘”Sorry” was the only word she uttered as she left the office.
Clara shouted, screamed and swore. Helena explained that she had broken her contract, and Clara said that it was all Tim
’s fault, but when Helena asked her to quantify that statement, she shook her head. She said this was a travesty and a total miscarriage of justice. Helena explained that if she hadn’t slept with the client then she would be in the clear. Clara replied that of course she had slept with the “fucking” client, but it wasn’t her fault. She wouldn’t quantify that either. She was told her career at SFH was over and reminded of the confidentiality clause. Clara screamed some more, called Helena a “corporate bitch” and stormed out of the office.
Virginia shook with fear. She said that Isabelle had said it was going to be fine; she asked about Phillip. Helena said she was sorry, but the rules had been broken and the decision taken at the managing directors
’ meeting. Virginia said she didn’t understand. She cried. Helena tried to comfort her, but she had nothing good to say. She had to remind Virginia not to talk to the press, at which Virginia looked confused. She told her that unfortunately she would have a few problems getting a reference after this incident and Virginia looked even more confused and hurt. Helena figured that Isabelle Holland would probably ensure that Virginia never worked in the City again. Virginia showed little sign of leaving the office and Helena’s heart went out to her. She was a frightened child, not a devious monster plotting to bring about the fall of SFH, which was how she had been painted at the meeting. Eventually Virginia whispered that she was going to clear her desk.
***
Liam asked Ella what she was doing as she walked into the office, grabbed her bag and her coat and left. Ella ignored him. Everyone watched as she left and only Johnny had the faintest idea what was happening. Liam tried to go after her, but Trevor pulled him back. He thought she might have had bad news and probably needed to be alone. Johnny smirked inside. They didn’t know how bad.
***
Clara marched up to her desk still fuming. She sent an e-mail to Tim, copying her whole desk on it. It read:
Tim
,
you
are
low
-
life
scum
.
As
soon
as
everyone
else
in
this
pissy
firm
realises
what
a
small
-
minded
,
small
-
penised
man
you
are
you’ll
he
finished
.
You
were
even
fucking
useless
in
bed
.
In
fact
,
you
just
are
useless
and
ugly
and
a
complete
slime
ball
.
Have
fun
with
your
boring
wife
and
boring
family
.
Oh
,
yeah
,
and
the
hookers
you’re
so
keen
on
.
Everyone
else
will
now
know
what
I
know
.
You
have
the
charisma
of
a
turd
.
She smiled at everyone on her desk, picked up her bag and coat and pressed send. She was at the lift when everyone read her message.
***
Virginia walked to her desk; her legs were shaky. She felt sick. She ignored everyone as she picked up her diary, her pen, her notebook, and thrust them into her bag. She found her coat and tried to get her legs to take her out. Isabelle blocked her path. “That will teach you to try to cross me,” she whispered. Virginia hardly registered her presence as she concentrated on getting herself out of the office. “You will never, ever get a job in the City again,” Isabelle hissed, and laughed quietly as she saw the tears streaming down the little rat’s face.
Ella was seething. She had never felt so angry, not when Tony hit her, not
even when she left Manchester. She was angry with herself and with the firm. They hadn’t given her a chance. Not a chance. OK, so she had done wrong, she had lied and cheated, but she’d been good at her job and she had proved herself. The lie about having a university degree didn’t seem so big in the scheme of things. For the first time in her life, she felt that what had happened to her wasn’t her fault. She wasn’t sure whose fault it was, but it wasn’t hers. If they had just let her get on and do her job, she would have been fine. She had known this might happen – she almost felt that she had been waiting for it since she had first walked through the doors at SFH.
When she fir
st decided to try for this job, fakin her CV and purchasing a dodgy university certificate, she had not thought anyone would take her seriously – they would realise straight away. That was what she had told herself. When they didn’t, she had done everything in her power to ensure she made up for the lie and she became an asset to the company. She felt as if she had been born for her job. She believed that, out of her nightmare, her true destiny had emerged. It gave some reason for the pain she had suffered at the hands of Tony. She often told herself that although she would never wish on anyone what she had gone through, there had been a reason for it. The reason was that she had got a position she would never have dreamt of. She made more money than her parents had from working all their lives. She lived a lifestyle she could barely comprehend. She loved her job.
She couldn
’t figure out how they had found out now, nearly four years later, and she hadn’t been able to ask the Human Resources woman. When she thought about being fired, she could barely remember what had happened in that office. She was suspended in space and someone was controlling her. She didn’t know who. But that someone had stopped her talking, thinking or understanding. She couldn’t function. She couldn’t believe it had come to this. Now she had nothing. Her facade had been destroyed and she was destroyed too. She let herself have one last glance at the building she loved before she turned and walked away.
***
Clara didn’t know what to do. She wanted to kill someone, but that wasn’t really the done thing, was it? She went down to the accounts floor to use the ladies’ and took a line of cocaine.
Fuck, she thought. What the fuck do I do now? She stormed out of the building swearing to herself, leaving a line of glaring visitors watching her. She didn
’t care what they thought. She giggled as she remembered the message she had sent everyone, but then felt sad knowing that Tim would tell everyone
his
version of the truth.
“
Clara slept with one of our top clients,” he would say, “so we had no alternative but to let her go. She sent this malicious note to get back at me. Please ignore it and carry on as usual.” She took comfort in the fact that Sarah would believe her, but she knew that Sarah valued her job too much to do anything about it.
“
You fucked up again,” Clara said aloud.
She stood on the front steps of the building and looked at it. She wanted to feel bitter, but she knew deep down that this was what she deserved. She hadn
’t got the job on her own merit and she had only just begun to do it properly. If she had taken it seriously from the beginning this mess would never have happened. She felt a sour anger towards Tim. Anger so physical, she felt it all over her body. He had got rid of her just like that because she wouldn’t do what he wanted. The only good thing was that he was now out of her life. Unfortunately so was her job. She felt sick at the memory of her lunch with her brother, only last Sunday. He had told her he was proud of her, and she so wanted someone to be proud of her. He wouldn’t be now. She was a worthless whore. She took one last look at the Seymour Forbes Hunt sign, which seemed to gloat at her. She walked away.
***
Virginia was puffy from tears. She had only just made it out of the building, but seeing the gleaming sign, the sign she spoke to every day, the sign that represented her hope, she broke down. She kept thinking about the new failure she could add to her long list.
Isabelle had done this to her. She could have kept the trade quiet as she had said she would. She knew there would have been no repercussions. Then Virginia would have been offered the job in the Private Client division. She knew she would. Instead, her dream had been cruelly snatched from her by a woman she hated. And, evidently, one who hated her. Although Virginia had known that what she did was wrong, it wasn
’t something she was likely to do again. Isabelle knew that Virginia was dependable, so why had she lost her job? She couldn’t understand why someone would do that to her. She started to walk away from the building leaving a trail of her tears on the floor outside, the only evidence that she had ever been there.