Four veteran journalists have filed a lawsuit against the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), accusing it of discrimination after being let go from their positions as presenters following the merger of its national and international news channels, BBC News and BBC World News. The well-known journalists to BBC viewers—Martine Croxall, Karen Giannone, Kasia Madeira, and Anita McVeigh—aged between 48 and 55, allege that the public organization discriminated based on gender and age, which the BBC denies.
In written testimonies submitted Wednesday during a preliminary hearing at a tribunal specializing in employment disputes, the journalists condemned what they described as "manipulation" in the hiring process following the reorganization of the BBC's news channels, announced in 2022. The plaintiffs particularly decried “discrimination” and “harassment” over what they perceived as a “hostile, demeaning, and intimidating work environment.”
The four journalists spoke of a “fictitious hiring process” which led to their positions being eliminated, even if the firings were not genuine. They assert that they suffered downgrades in their job positions and salaries post-merger, a situation that "none of their male or younger colleagues experienced." The BBC, on the other hand, emphasizes that the process it implemented was characterized by "rigor and fairness."
At the beginning of 2020, the courts ruled in favor of presenter Samira Ahmed, who had sued the BBC for pay discrimination, having earned six times less than her male counterpart.
