Merrill sued for discrimination

The United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sued Merrill Lynch on behalf of an Iranian national who alleges that the bank discriminated against him, according to published reports. Majid Borumand claimed that as a quantitative analyst from 2002-2005, his colleagues at Merrill made derogatory remarks about his national origin and Muslim faith. For example, the EEOC suit reported employees saying, "Quants were like Israelis and traders were like Palestinians." The suit further alleged that Mr. Borumand was instructed not to go out on the trading floor because his country was "a high risk factor and a threat." Mr. Borumand has not been employed since being discharged from Merrill in June 2005. Merrill denied the allegations and also said that Mr. Borumand was hired as a senior programmer, and not an analyst as he has claimed.