Foxtons has responded with a strongly-worded statement following allegations of sexual misconduct by staff and drunk driving at work by two national media outlets.

The long list of allegations reported by Bloomberg and repeated by The Times, include sexual harassment of young female staff, drunk driving in company cars and a boozy, aggressive work culture.

Former employees claim they complained to Foxtons’ human resources department and even directly to CEO Guy Gittins, but were not taken seriously.

Groped

One junior called ‘Lucy’ told Bloomberg she was groped, sent explicit messages, experienced her weight being discussed in work WhatsApp chats and being told to start an account on OnlyFans, a pornography site used by sex workers.

She also says she was subjected to unwanted sexual advances by a sales director, and was met with a dismissive response by the agency’s HR team.

Complicit

Bloomberg says it has spoken to 11 current and former Foxtons’ employees, who all said they faced sexual harassment from colleagues, and that senior staff either ignored it or were complicit.

One former staffer claims he approached Gittins directly after a racist slur was used against him at work, but the CEO said he did not believe the man in question would say such a thing.

Solicitors acting for Foxtons told Bloomberg that Gittins “does not accept” that a colleague made this complaint and that he dismissed it.

“He does not tolerate racism and would wish for all such allegations to be the subject of immediate investigation and appropriate disciplinary steps,” the statement said.

We take allegations of harassment and misconduct extremely seriously.”

Bloomberg reports that Foxtons has enhanced sexual harassment training and the company says it has stopped alcohol being consumed at Friday sales meetings.

A Foxtons spokesperson tells The Neg: “We take allegations of harassment and misconduct extremely seriously and thoroughly investigate them.

“We urge all of our employees to use our confidential whistleblowing process so that allegations of wrongdoing can be investigated and required action taken.

Mandatory training

“We conduct mandatory annual training for all 1,400 employees, including the Board, on sexual harassment, respectful workplace behaviour and managing personal relationships at work, alongside clear and tested escalation processes, confidential whistleblowing systems and feedback surveys.

“We are proud of our workforce which reflects London’s vibrant and diverse population, and we are focused on fostering an environment where our people feel able to speak up.”

The company adds that from 2022 to 2024, its six-month leaver rate for females reduced by 30%, and is on track for 2025 for that to reduce by 40%. And the variance in the amount of female leavers vs male leavers has reduced by around 50% from 2023 onwards.

Read more: New ‘sexual harassment at work’ changes going live on Saturday