Legal stoushes see UM accused of sexual discrimination and Seven exec Boland seeking exit
Before the court battle between James Warburton and former employer the Seven Network has even been resolved, the media and marketing industry is set for two more big employment cases.
Over the easter break, it was revealed by The Australian that Adam Boland, the former executive producer of Seven’s Sunrise, is also involved in legal action to be released from his contract with the network.
And media agency Universal McCann, now rebadged as UM, is being sued by former GM Jennifer Davidson. According to The Sydney Morning Herald, Davidson’s complaint relates to her being made redundant after maternity leave and allegedly being refused permission to return part time.
Boland is seeking to be released from a two-day-a-week contract with Seven which came into force after he stepped down from the helm of Sunrise and The Morning Show.
Boland had taken both shows to number one in their timeslots.
In his action against Seven, Boland alleges that he had been promised he would be the network’s next director of news and public affairs, but decided to step down when he realised the offer would not be followed through. According to the court documents, Boland now wants to be released from his two days a week contract before it expires late next year.
The Australian points out that Boland was a close colleague of James Warburton who departed as Seven’s sales boss to become CEO of Ten. Seven took him to court arguing that he must serve out a non compete period. A decision on when he can start is due in about a fortnight’s time.
Meanwhile, the legal action by Jennifer Davidson against UM alleges that former regional director Allan Medforth – who is now a partner in media analysis company Kinesis – told her to “sit tight, get married and have babies” after she missed a promotion. The company denies this.
Davidson’s complaint says that Chris Mort, chairman of parent company McCann Worldgroup, which also includes ad agency McCann, sent an email saying the company did not want part time staff. The company says that while the email may have been sent, it did not reflect the company’s practice.
Since the events occurred, the senior team at UM has changed, with Mat Baxter coming in as the new CEO last year.
McCann is still seeing employment dramas, with four creatives abruptly departing last month.
One other case currently making its way through the courts is WPP’s against former Hill & Knowlton executives Michelle Hutton and Anna MacIntosh.
Tim Burrowes founded Mumbrella in 2008. He worked on Mumbrella until 2021. At various points he was editor, content director and editor-at-large.
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This really annoyes me re: Part timers.
So many women have children then want to come back part time. And thats great, priorities change. But the role you did before you left doesnt. If it took 5 days a week to do before it does not all of a sudden become a 3 or 4 day a week role.
Why should the company (and other staff) then be required to carry the burden of picking up the slack?
Will probably get totally shouted down for this comment, but this is a commercial fact of life.
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In my experience as a senior manager, because part time working parents have less time in the office they are far more efficient at time management and prioritization than full-time staff members. From the moment they get to the office till the moment they leave they are generally head down churning through the work. Unfortunately, because of this unfair stigma; and in some cases prejudice, they often feel more pressured than full-time staff. Effectively, the bottom line is they more often than not deliver more for less remuneration.
(Edited by Mumbrella for legal reasons)
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Dear “not sexist, a realist”
Your comments could not be further from the truth.
It’s this exact attitude that make working mums feel inadequate….. and usually one that comes from men or, those baron media wenches who’ll never have a life outside of media!
I’ve worked with plenty of mums who put more effort and pride into their work than those without kids. That’s a fact.
Perhaps one day if you’re fortunate enough to have kids of your own you’ll gain a more in depth understanding and appreciation for those slack working mums out there!
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