Sex, Age Discrimination Suit Filed Against Bank of New York Mellon

A veteran portfolio officer at Bank of New York Mellon Corp accused the company of sex and age discrimination Friday, charging she was paid less than younger, male employees.

Rochelle Cohen’s suit, filed in federal court for the Southern District of New York, seeks a jury verdict and compensatory and punitive damages as well as wages and other benefits she claims she lost as a result of being fired.

According to the suit filed by the law firm Vladeck, Waldman, Elias & Engelhard, Cohen was dismissed by Bank of New York Mellon last year after 10 years of employment in the Mellon Private Wealth group and told her job had been eliminated.

The suit said Cohen, who had worked in wealth management for 30 years and was previously a broker at several other firms, had over 80 client relationships and over $200 million under management in over 200 accounts when she was fired.

It said she had complained for years that male employees doing similar work were paid more while she was not promoted.

The suit said her legal action was to remedy sex and age discrimination in violation of federal and New York state laws.

BNY Mellon spokesman Ron Gruendl declined to comment on the lawsuit at this time.

The case is: Rochelle Cohen v Bank of New York Mellon Corp, 11CV0456