A British multi-millionaire financier being sued by a former employee for discrimination has denied in court that a dumb blonde joke he made was demeaning, Sky News reported.
Mark Lowe is accused of humiliating City executive Jordan Wimmer while she worked for his hedge fund firm Nomos Capital.
At the central London Employment Tribunal, Wimmer's attorney Julian Wilson accused Lowe of continuing to make jokes about blonde women even though his client - who is blonde herself - was sensitive to them, Sky News reported.
In a statement 59-year-old Lowe admitted he had referred to Wimmer as "decorative" and a "dumb blonde."
However, he said he made these comments in a "jok(ing) manner" and they were taken in the manner intended, the Web site reported.
The tribunal heard that on one occasion the financier sent an email to his team, which included 29-year-old Wimmer, about a blonde woman being "mentally incapable of distinguishing cornflakes from a puzzle."
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