Dozens of current and former employees of the controversial World Economic Forum (WEF) are attacking what they describe an unbearably “toxic workplace,” often driven by its chief executive Klaus Schwab, in a Wall Street Journal exposé. This comes just weeks after Schwab, founder of the non-profit and organizer of its annual Davos meetings—the “Davos Man” himself—announced his resignation, The report, published on June 29th, recounts several instances of workplace discrimination based on sex or race that have allegedly taken place at the WEF, as well as sexual harassment and generally poor behavior toward employees from the highest levels of the organization’s leadership.
For instance, Schwab allegedly once ordered his HR department to fire most of WEF’s employees who were older than 50, simply because the octogenarian wanted to lower the average age at the company.
Another claim involves a young woman whom Schwab promoted to be the head of initiatives on start-ups, only to push her out as soon as he discovered she was pregnant and would not be able to continue working like before.
The report also notes that the agency had a reputation for ethnic and racial discrimination, especially against black employees, who had often been passed over during promotions, and even called the ‘N-word’ by bosses in a few instances.
But women had the worst of it, the Journal says. According to former staff, mild sexual harassment from top executives was not the exception but the everyday norm at the WEF, which led many employees to dread coming to work. According to one staff member:
It was distressing to witness colleagues visibly withdraw from themselves with the onslaught of harassment at the hands of high-level staff, going from social and cheerful to self-isolating, avoiding eye contact, sharing nightmares for years after.
Schwab himself was said to have been known for making women around him uncomfortable with creepy comments, and new employees were often warned by their more experienced female peers about what to expect. Allegedly, Schwab once told a former board member, WEF’s communication director Barbara Erskine, to lose weight.
Schwab’s repeated indecency when in private with female employees was “a horrible thing as a woman to go through,” claimed one former staffer who worked with the Davos chief in Geneva back in the 2000s. According to her, Schwab once
propped his leg up on her desk with his crotch in front of her face and told her he wished she was Hawaiian because he’d like to see her in a Hawaiian costume.
Naturally, the WEF—the greatest promoter of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) policies within the political and corporate world—has denied the allegations. Regarding this specific story, the organization said it couldn’t have happened because Schwab didn’t even know what a Hawaiian costume was.
