Not only did former David Jones CEO Mark McInnes behaviour cost him millions in forgone income, it now seems likely to cost him and David Jones much more in a lawsuit lodged today by the woman he allegedly sexually harassed.

Kristy Fraser-Kirk, 25, a junior publicist who is suing McInnes and the company for about $37 million, said the alleged harassment had been devastating.  In her own words:

"I’m a young woman standing here today simply because I said it wasn’t OK, because I said that this should never happen to me or to anyone,"

"I just wanted to be treated with respect."

In a landmark claim lodged today in the Federal Court, Ms Fraser-Kirk is seeking 5 per cent of the profits made by David Jones and 5 per cent of Mr McInnes’s salary while he worked for the company. If successful she will donate the money to a charity that helps victims of sexual harassment and bullying.

Ms Fraser-Kirk alleges she informed David Jones management about Mr McInnes’s unwelcome advances on several occasions, and on one occasion was told: "Next time that happens, you just need to be very clear and say ‘no Mark’ and he’ll back off."  She alleges that he made unwelcome comments of a sexual nature and unwelcome sexual advances towards her at a lunch function on May 23, including:

• "McInnes urges Fraser-Kirk to try a dessert by saying the dessert was like a f— in the mouth,"
• allegedly placed his hand under her clothes, touching her bra strap
• repeatedly asked her to accompany him to his Bondi home "where the clear implication [was] that such as visit would be for the purpose of sexual intercourse"

She claims she made it clear his conduct was unwelcome and had attempted to use distracting banter to deflect the sexually suggestive conversation.

She claims that his behaviour happened in front of other David Jones employees, including senior managers.  He allegedly sent her several texts the next day repeating his request for her to accompany him home. 

On June 7, they attended another function at which Ms Fraser-Kirk alleges Mr McInnes repeated his desire for her to go home with him before trying to kiss her on the mouth while putting his arm around her. 

She claims she suffered offence, humiliation, distress and anxiety and damage to her personal and professional reputation.  Her statement of claim is very interesting, covering grounds such as false and misleading conduct by David Jones under the Trade Practices Act and Fair Trading Act, breach of her contract of employment, as well as under the sex discrimination, human rights and fair work legislation.  What seems to have pissed her off more than anything is the company’s attempts to downplay McInness’ behaviour, suggesting it was a one off, of a minor nature, that Fraser-Kirk had misread his signals, and that she was frivolously pursuing her claims to try to get some money out of it.  To counter these, her statement describes a series of instances involving McInness which she claims describe a pattern of misconduct which the company and its board would have been well aware of.

Good on her I say! 

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