Morgan Stanley has fired former Congressman Harold Ford, Jr. for alleged misconduct.
The decision came after an investigation into his behavior by the company’s human resources department, as first reported Thursday by the Huffington Post.
“He has been terminated for conduct inconsistent with our values and in violation of our policies,” a Morgan Stanley spokeswoman said in a statement.
Ford served five terms in the House of Representatives as a Democrat from Tennessee. He has worked at Morgan Stanley since 2011 as a managing director and senior client relationship manager.
The Huffington Post spoke with a woman interviewed by Morgan Stanley’s HR department who says Ford “engaged in harassment, intimidation, and forcibly grabbed her” during a professional meeting in Manhattan several years ago. The woman is not a company employee.
Ford denied the allegations in a statement.
“This simply did not happen,” he said. “I have never forcibly grabbed any woman or man in my life. Having drinks and dinner for work is part of my job, and all of my outreach to the news reporter making these false allegations was professional and at the direction of my firm for business purposes. I support and have tremendous respect for the brave women now speaking out in this important national dialogue. False claims like this undermine the real silence breakers. I will now be bringing legal action against the reporter who has made these false claims about me as well as Morgan Stanley for improper termination.”
Ford also regularly appears on MSNBC as an analyst.
“We are looking into the report about Harold Ford Jr. During that time he won’t be a guest on MSNBC,” an MSNBC spokesperson said.
Before joining Morgan Stanley, Ford spent four years at Merrill Lynch, which merged with Bank of America following the 2008 financial crisis.
Bank of America did not respond to a request for comment.
In recent months, accusations of sexual misconduct and assault have toppled many powerful men in media, entertainment and politics.
