Citibank employee fired over....outfit

[lefty]

:wow

http://www.villagevoice.com/slideshow/too-hot-for-citibank--30014985/2

[easjer]

It's hard to say what was really happening from those pictures. Many of them looked like work appropriate outfits to me, but those were posed pics taken by her lawyer.

The bottom line would be whether or not they meet citibank's code of conduct (or whatever guidelines they have for staff), and whether or not they followed appropriate procedure in disciplinary actions if she was not meeting their established rules for work attire.

And certainly, in some of those clothes, the way she is sitting, standing, or leaning could potentially make them inappropriate.

[RandomGuy]

[stupid website doesn't allow hotlinking]

http://www.villagevoice.com/2010-06-01/news/is-this-woman-too-hot-to-work-in-a-bank/


Everything about Debrahlee Lorenzana is hot. Even her name sizzles. At five-foot-six and 125 pounds, with soft eyes and flawless bronze skin, she is J.Lo curves meets Jessica Simpson rack meets Audrey Hepburn elegance—a head-turning beauty.


Carrie Schechter
More photos of Debrahlee Lorenzana here.
In many ways, the story of her life has been about getting attention from men—both the wanted and the unwanted kind. But when she got fired last summer from her job as a banker at a Citibank branch in Midtown—her bosses cited her work performance—she got even hotter. She sued Citigroup, claiming that she was fired solely because her bosses thought she was too hot.

This is the way Debbie Lorenzana tells it: Her bosses told her they couldn't concentrate on their work because her appearance was too distracting. They ordered her to stop wearing turtlenecks. She was also forbidden to wear pencil skirts, three-inch heels, or fitted business suits. Lorenzana, a 33-year-old single mom, pointed out female colleagues whose clothing was far more revealing than hers: "They said their body shapes were different from mine, and I drew too much attention," she says.

As Lorenzana's lawsuit puts it, her bosses told her that "as a result of the shape of her figure, such clothes were purportedly 'too distracting' for her male colleagues and supervisors to bear."

"Men are kind of drawn to her," says Tanisha Ritter, a friend and former colleague who also works as a banker and praises Lorenzana's work habits. "I've seen men turn into complete idiots around her. But it's not her fault that they act this way, and it shouldn't be her problem."

Because Citibank made Lorenzana sign a mandatory-arbitration clause as a condition of her employment, the case will never end up before a jury or judge. An arbitrator will decide. Citibank officials won't comment on the suit.

Her attorney, Jack Tuckner, who calls himself a "sex-positive" women's-rights lawyer, is the first one to say his client is a babe. But so what? For him, it all boils down to self-control. "It's like saying," Tuckner argues, "that we can't think anymore 'cause our penises are standing up—and we cannot think about you except in a sexual manner—and we can't look at you without wanting to have sexual intercourse with you. And it's up to you, gorgeous woman, to lessen your appeal so that we can focus!"

This isn't your typical sexual-harassment lawsuit, if there is such a thing. For one thing, such suits often claim that women are coerced into looking more sexy or are subjected to being pawed. Lorenzana claims that her bosses basically told her she was just too attractive. And when she raised hell and refused to do anything about it—as if there was anything she really could do about it—she lost her job.

Debbie Lorenzana—whose mother is Puerto Rican and father is Italian—came to New York from Puerto Rico 12 years ago. She was 21 and pregnant, and had a degree as an emergency medical technician from a technical college in Manatí, a small city on the northern coast. The father, she says, didn't want to have anything to do with her or the baby. So she moved back to the States, where she had lived in her mid-teens (pinballing between relatives' houses and group homes), and took care of her elderly grandparents in Connecticut. After her son was born, she moved to Queens to stay with a friend. Then she got her first job in finance: working as a sales representative at the Municipal Credit Union, in 2002. She moved to Jersey City and worked long hours. She was successful.

In April 2003, the Municipal Credit Union named her its sales rep of the month. On the other hand, she says, a manager once called her into his office to ask her opinion of a photograph. The picture he called up on his computer was of his penis. She complained about the incident. In her June 2003 resignation letter—written just two months after she was honored as a top employee—she wrote, "Due to the complaint I made regarding sexual harassment, my work environment has become hostile, painful, and unbearable."

She moved on to other jobs in the financial-services industry. After a stint selling health insurance to immigrants at Metropolitan Hospital in Queens, the hospital cited her in November 2003 for "providing world-class customer service" and for being the number one enroller in the office.

In August 2006, the district managers at Bank of America gave her a Customer Higher Standards Award on diploma paper, on which they wrote: "Debrahlee: You deserve to be recognized for going above and beyond."

She says she loved to work, and eventually was earning close to $70,000 a year. "My ex-boyfriend says it's my Spic pride," she says. "As long as I have two hands and two legs, and can still walk, I will always work, so my son will have a roof over his head and food."

And she will be well-dressed. Lorenzana is, by her own admission, a shopaholic. She shops for her work clothes at Zara, but when she has money, she says, she spends it on designer clothes. She has five closets full of Burberry, Hermès, Louis Vuitton, and Roberto Cavalli. In her son's closet, there's a row of tiny Lacoste, Dolce & Gabbana, and Ralph Lauren T-shirts. She says her love of fine clothes is a result of her growing up poor—she recalls running a high school marathon barefoot because she couldn't afford sneakers.

Yes, she is attractive.

[FatBeaner]

i'd bank her.

the only reason to go into a bank nowadays is to see the hot teller(s)...

quid pro quo...give her a raise...she's giving us one.

[FatBeaner]

:toast

[JudynTX]

This is the way Debbie Lorenzana tells it: Her bosses told her they couldn't concentrate on their work because her appearance was too distracting. They ordered her to stop wearing turtlenecks. She was also forbidden to wear pencil skirts, three-inch heels, or fitted business suits. Lorenzana, a 33-year-old single mom, pointed out female colleagues whose clothing was far more revealing than hers: "They said their body shapes were different from mine, and I drew too much attention," she says.


In other words, they were getting a boner and couldn't do anything about it. :lol :lol

[Sportcamper]

She is pretty hot….She should try to get job as a Los Angeles weather girl…That’s how they dress for the weather report on KCAL 9…(See Jackie Johnson)…

[JudynTX]

Mjj7jRxlm14

[Cry Havoc]

She's extremely attractive, but she's also nothing out of this world. I don't think I'd have difficulty talking to her so much that it would distract me from work.

EDIT: "They ordered her to stop wearing turtlenecks."

WTF? Since when are turtlenecks considered revealing or provocative clothing??

[FatBeaner]

i purposely give hot girls little to no attention.

i figure i'll beat them to the punch...

[pawe]

She looks hot wearing the turtle neck. Its probably the desire or curiosity to see what's underneath.
I dont know but the 3 banks that I go to all have "hot" bankers specifically the new accounts. I think I read before that beautiful women tend to make men dumb and banks need for it to happen for business.

[bus driver]

:hitit:


being fired for being too hot......:rolleyes

[TDMVPDPOY]

fck she has huge hooters....

[Tony Sinclair]

I'd make a deposit!!

[Jacob1983]

She definitely wins hottest person to ever work at a bank in my opinion. Stupid that she was fired. I bet the bank where she worked has lost a lot of customers and business since she got fired. The people that probably complained were her fellow female co-workers. They were obviously jealous of this gal's extreme sexiness and wanted her gone.

I bet a lot of people have made deposits.

[desflood]

This is... odd. Every once in a while you hear about a situation like this: Some average-looking, immature 22-year-old sues some company claiming, "They fired me because I'm too hot to work there," when in reality they were fired because they dressed in an innapropriate manner and were too stupid to take direction. This seems to be different. This woman really is gorgeous, seemingly somewhat intelligent and (judging by the pictures) dresses in a completely appropriate manner for her line of work. First impressions of the interview indicate that she is not immature or overly self-centered like so many other women. Of course, she could have us all fooled, but the whole scenerio is somehow very Harrison Bergeron.

[pawe]

This woman really is gorgeous, seemingly somewhat intelligent and (judging by the pictures) dresses in a completely appropriate manner for her line of work. First impressions of the interview indicate that she is not immature or overly self-centered like so many other women.

Yes, from the picture, she looks intelligent, not immature nor overly self-centered. But, she has a kid and she is buying Hermes and Roberto Cavallis for herself and she's only earning 70k. Frivolous lawsuit for this potential gold digger is not surprising.

[Mixability]

wow.

but she's kinda screwed any potential she had for future business positions. who'd hire her without fear of getting sued if they let her go too.

[PM5K]

I get the pencil skirts, but turtlenecks?

[ChumpDumper]

I look forward to the "Women of Citibank" issue of Playboy.

Less so the "Too Hot to Work?" reality show coming soon to Bravo.

[Mixability]

I say she's just hot...

and some jealous girl complained, since she was getting all the attention.

[the agent]

I see a reality show. $$

[rjv]

playboy spread in 3, 2, 1.....

[mrsmaalox]

She's very attractive, but I agree some natural, un-staged photos would be easier to judge.

Maybe she would just unknowingly lightly brush her breasts on men or accidently drop a pencil when one was around. :lol

Or maybe the men are just too easily distracted. I wonder if any of them got reprimanded for not doing their jobs efficiently?

[Wild Cobra]

You've only been discussing and relying on her words and accusation. The only definitive statement I've seen from Citibank is this:

Citi Public Affairs contacted Forbes with the following updated statement: "Ms. Lorenzana has chosen to make numerous unfounded accusations and inaccurate statements against Citibank and several of our employees. While we will not discuss the details of her case, we can say that her termination was solely performance-based and not at all related to her appearance or attire. We are confident that when all of the facts and documentation are presented, the claim will be dismissed."
Debrahlee Lorenzana: Is the ex-Citibank employee Victim or Villain? (http://blogs.forbes.com/work-in-progress/2010/06/02/debrahlee-lorenzana-is-the-ex-citibank-employee-victim-or-villian/?boxes=Homepagechannels)

[Kumar]

is it an independent arbitrator? :lol

i mean, this isn't on the level of a woman dressing like a slut and then crying rape, but it's on the road to that...

she needs to realize work is not her fashion show.
your there to work and do what your manager tells you to do.

if her manager says i think you're dressing inappropriately, fix it.

then she needs to fix it. if you don't like it, gtfo, and stop crying to human resources...

[Mavs_man_41]

lol typical whore, gonna get her 15 minutes of fame and use it to get a spread in playboy, and boom she's rich. i'll be damned if i pay money for her spread, ill jut get them off the internet :lol

[Scola]

I'm not entirely buying her story, I think there's more to it that isn't being mentioned.

[Mavs_man_41]

I'm not entirely buying her story, I think there's more to it that isn't being mentioned.

who's the redhead with the ridiculous tits?

[Viva Las Espuelas]

She's not that hot. Attractive yes but not hot to distract me. Maybe a double take. But those snake skin CFMP's=:tu
who knows. She's probably a huge flirt. I wouldn't be surprised if Gloria Alred is representing her.

[Oh, Gee!!]

This is what she is claiming was the reason for her termination. She could have been incompetent

[Shelly]

The thing I don't get is why her lawyer allowed her pose for the Village Voice in sexy outfits along with the 'work' outfits? Someone pointed out on another website that in the interview, she was saying things that would make most lawyers cringe.

I agree...I see Playboy or Maxim in her future.

[SASPURS09]

Typical whore, nothing to see here

[Viva Las Espuelas]

This is what she is claiming was the reason for her termination. She could have been incompetent


Typical whore, nothing to see here

Those.

[tlongII]

I'd hit it.

She's a celebrity now.

[baseline bum]

Penthouse or Hustler would be better.

[Cant_Be_Faded]

http://images.nymag.com/images/2/daily/2010/06/20100602_dlorenzana_250x420.jpg

so fine. 1000000/10

Meh.

[DMX7]

I've been fired for being too hot. It's wrong and it needs to stop.

[lefty]

http://img268.imageshack.us/img268/8119/toohotforcitibank487740.jpg

[Barfunk]

she says "I'm no Angelina Jolie. I'm no Eva Mendes" She's right. She is hotter imo.

[scott]

She probably got fired for spending all her time at work posing for photos.

[Mavs_man_41]

lol this chick is fucking fine and some of you limp dicks are trying to scoff her :lmao

[Shelly]

Well, she now works at Chase and they're telling her to STFU

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2010/06/07/2010-06-07_bank_to_hottie__zip_it_or_get_fired.html

[PM5K]

Stupid Chase, nobody even knew she worked there until they started in on her.

[TDMVPDPOY]

should get into porn

[bigzak25]

this woman just needs someone to love her.

she'll most likely get what she is seeking in life, which seems to be money and men who want to sleep with her.

but she'll never be happy til she wakes up to what really matters.

i feel for her son.

[bigzak25]

:toast

[Höfner]

MILFaFaFaFaFaFaFaFaFaFaF

[The Reckoning]

she'll most likely get what she is seeking in life, which seems to be money and men who want to sleep with her.

but she'll never be happy til she wakes up to what really matters.




yup. good fling. long term - never.

[Viva Las Espuelas]

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/showbiz/2010/06/07/behar.debrahlee.lorenzana.cnn?hpt=C2

this definitely changes my thoughts about this. she's a jenny on the block. pffffffffft.

"breaken" :lmao

[ShoogarBear]

She's extremely attractive, but she's also nothing out of this world. I don't think I'd have difficulty talking to her so much that it would distract me from work.



I look forward to the "Women of Citibank" issue of Playboy.

Less so the "Too Hot to Work?" reality show coming soon to Bravo.

Yeah, something is fishy here. Is she hot? Yeah. Is she so hot that she should talk about how hot she is all the time? No. WTF, she's talked more about how she hot she is in one article than Salma Hayek has in her whole lifetime.

Oh, and the first half of that news article almost reads like something out of The Onion.

[The Reckoning]

shes pretty hot but the way she cocks her head to the side and has that reptilian look on her face gets kind of old after awhile. im more of a fan of women who get hotter and hotter the longer you look at them.

[Dark Gable]

shes pretty hot but the way she cocks her head to the side and has that reptilian look on her face gets kind of old after awhile. im more of a fan of women who get hotter and hotter the longer you look at them.

Or get hotter the longer you are drinking and go from a 6 to a 10 right before your eyes.

[I. Hustle]

I am glad they don't keep the chicks at wells from dressing like that

[Fabbs]

Concur whole story is not being told by either side.

Her liarwyer seems faily skeevy too, trying too hard to spin in his clients favor like most.

Howard Stern must be all over her.

[Jacob1983]

Her lawyer probably wants to bang her.

[Wild Cobra]

Her lawyer probably wants to bang her.
Think he's representing her pro-boner?

[spyder]

Nice tits she has

[bigzak25]

if she is wearing the same 'approved' attire as other employees, they cannot single her out.

if her manager had a problem with the distracting nature of her figure in the approved attire, then HE should have gone to human resources to review the dress code and implement whatever adjustments needed in the language so that she would have to wear less form fitting clothing, yet a dress code that would be equal for all.

simply put. something to the effect of:

"Employees attire must convey a professional appearance at all times, however skin tight or extremely form fitting attire is prohibited."


i'm reading a citibank dress code (granted not specific to her position it seems) but it is frankly, too vague for her manager to have just cause for termination over her clothing.

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y230/bigzak2525/dresscode.jpg

link to pdf (http://www.online.citibank.co.in/portal/newgen/cards/dsa.pdf)



if they cannot show just cause for her termination attributed to her work performance, and if the dress code at her bank is/was as general as the one above.

then she should win and get her settlement.

case closed.


HOWEVER, she should not have shared that story about showing up with no makeup and her hair disheveled. unless i'm mistaken, her managers comments to her had nothing to do with her makeup or hair, but her form fitting attire.

she chose to respond to his request in an unprofessional way. if that story is one of many instances when she acted unprofessional, and citibank can prove it with documented evidence, then the tables turn and she's sol.

what i find humorous is the fact that there may be many a citibank manager out there, and more importantly to their business, many male customers, that were enjoying the tight fitting clothing in other branches, and are now gonna be in for a rude awakening when the policy is updated to prohibit such, if it hasn't been already...:lol


she should have listened to her current employer's advice and kept quiet.

she wants the attention and it might cost her.

if she wanted justice she would be preaching about what a good job performance record she has, and how she earned it with her work and not her body.