Alleged written policy prorated pay while six of eight female MDs exited in one year
A former Managing Director at RBC Capital Markets claims the bank penalized women who took maternity leave and systematically pushed out senior female executives.
Jennifer Caruso-Jones filed suit November 13 in Manhattan federal court alleging the investment banking arm of Canada's largest bank maintained what she calls a "pregnancy tax" throughout her 14-year tenure, cutting bonuses for new mothers while protecting pay for employees on other types of leave.
The 54-year-old banker says RBC's written maternity policy explicitly stated that bonuses would be "prorated based on the length of leave" for women taking up to 16 weeks off. When she returned from maternity leave in 2019, her compensation dropped more than 30 percent despite receiving glowing performance reviews. The disability leave policy, she notes, had no such provision.
Caruso-Jones says she wasn't alone. Several other female Managing Directors saw their bonuses cut after having children, according to the filing. One colleague in her group had her pay docked after each of three maternity leaves before leaving in or around January 2023. That year, six of the bank's eight female MDs departed. In 2023, women held just eight of 141 MD positions at the firm.
The numbers at hiring were similarly lopsided. Since 2020, only three of 42 new Managing Directors were women, the suit says.
The treatment intensified after Caruso-Jones took a four-month disability leave in 2022 for work-related stress-based asthma and claustrophobia, she claims. When she returned in May 2023, she found herself cut out of client meetings, business communications and hiring decisions.
Her supervisor John Kolz suggested she consider "the next stage of her career" and think about "something [she] loved to do," framing the conversation around her four-year-old child, commute and health, according to the filing. Another manager, Joe Passaro, allegedly said he wanted to hire "a young guy, who has no family ties, that is fine with going out every night for drinks."
Kolz later told her she "was not part of Joe's vision" and that "they" wanted an amicable departure, the suit states. A female MD in human resources acknowledged the bank was trying to push her out, Caruso-Jones says.
She was terminated in October 2023 after being offered roughly 40 to 42 percent of her earned bonus. RBC then told industry contacts she had "retired," she claims, a characterization she says has damaged her reputation and derailed job prospects at two other investment banks.
Interestingly, an RBC employee told Caruso-Jones on May 1, 2025, that the firm had recently updated its maternity leave policy to provide non-discriminatory benefits for new parents. The bank also hired a full-time staff member to manage maternity leave matters.
The case raises claims under federal and state civil rights laws. RBC has not yet responded to the allegations, and no court ruling has been issued.
The suit comes as financial services firms face growing scrutiny over gender equity at senior levels and the treatment of working parents.
