CBI acknowledges employing ‘harmful’ personnel and neglecting to dismiss employees who sexually harassed coworkers.

The Confederation of British Industry has acknowledged that it made errors in employing “toxic” personnel and not dismissing those who sexually harassed female colleagues. The business lobby group expressed regret for failing to act, concluding that it sent a message to employees that they would not face sanctions for sexual misconduct or violence against women. President Brian McBride pronounced in an open letter that the bosses “made mistakes…that led to terrible consequences”, in response to an independent examination into two allegations of rape at the CBI. The group declared that it would instantly “operate a zero-tolerance approach to sexual harassment and bullying behaviour”, and had terminated several people for failure to maintain expected standards. Following the disturbance from the claims, CBI’s future is uncertain, which has caused a deluge of owners to abandon the organisation, jeopardising its standing as the voice of British business.