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Two agents have sued their former global commercial real estate employer after being sacked over a workplace scandal, claiming significant reputational damage.
Editor’s note: This story first appeared on HR Leader’s sister brand, REB.
Peter Blade and Greg Pike, two veteran agents, were among several employees terminated by commercial real estate firm JLL on Sunday, 12 October.
The news following reporting from late last week that the company will face legal proceedings from its now-former head of human resources in Australia, New Zealand, and south-east Asia, who says she was let go despite her having given “appropriate advice on the handling” of a sexual harassment investigation.
Since the sacking, Blade and Pike have launched action with the Federal Court and the Fair Work Commission, claiming their reputations had been damaged.
The terminations came after JLL commissioned law firm Clyde & Co to examine specific areas of the business after a harassment scandal in August.
While Pike and Blade said the investigation was yet to be finalised at the time of the sacking, a company-wide email stated that some issues had been identified where “behaviour and leadership fell short”.
In LinkedIn statements, the pair said the company email had caused harm to their reputations.
“Given that my termination occurred only hours earlier, this statement was highly misleading, damaging and indefensible,” they said.
Blade and Pike allege the agency mounted a “witch hunt” that deprived them of procedural fairness.
It has been alleged that the pair were part of a wider cultural problem at the firm, as JLL was hit with claims that ranged from sexual harassment and taking clients to strip clubs and inappropriate WhatsApp messages back in August.
The pair stated that they were not informed of any allegations against them from the report findings before being terminated, nor was the law firm ever involved in interviewing them.
JLL refutes the claim that they were never interviewed, stating instead that the pair refused to cooperate with the investigation.
Blade and Pike have requested that the report be released to the public, as the agency relied on it when announcing its plans for a “cultural reset”.
On LinkedIn, Pike said the treatment he received from JLL had left him with just one course of action.
“I wish to make it absolutely clear that any suggestion of wrongdoing on my part is entirely without foundation,” Pike said.
“I have been left with no alternative but to seek redress through the legal system to restore my reputation and career, both of which have been unjustly decimated.”
Blade and Pike’s legal action marks the second recent case against JLL, following former executive chairman Dan Kernaghan’s lawsuit over his dismissal.
Kernaghan has engaged in legal action against JLL for a breach of contract, breach of statute, defamation, money owed and lost earnings.
Member of JLL’s global executive board Richard Bloxam said that the brand was taking actions following the report, which included addressing cultural issues and procedural failures associated with misconduct.
“We acknowledge there were significant shortcomings in certain areas of our business, especially related to inappropriate behaviours which were further exacerbated by poor executive decision making and lack of compliance with established policies and protocols,” Bloxam said.
“For that, we apologise to our people, our clients, and the Australian business community. “
JLL interim CEO, Australia and New Zealand, Luke Billiau, said the brand would have to rebuild its trust with the wider community.
“We are determined to uphold a safer and more accountable organisation for the long term,” Billiau said.
“We know that trust must be earned, and this work will continue until meaningful change is embedded in everything we do.”
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When a company terminates an employee's job for improper or illegitimate reasons, it is known as an unfair dismissal.
