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On Sunday, April 23, Comcast announced that NBC Universal CEO Jeff Shell has stepped down from the company after admitting that he had an extra-marital affair. According to the New York Post, the affair was exposed after a private investigation revealed that Shell was in a relationship with a woman in the company, identified as anchor and Senior International Correspondent Hadley Gamble.
Jeff Shell is currently married to Laura Fay Shell.
However, according to Looper, he had been seeing Hadley Gamble for approximately 11 years. Gamble has not commented on the accusations.
In the wake of the allegations, here's what we know about Jeff Shell and his wife
According to AJC, Laura Fay Shell is best known for work as a planning deputy for Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky until 2005. She has had little media exposure.
Jeff Shell, on the other hand, has apologized for the decade-long affair.
In an official statement, Shell said:
“Today is my last day as CEO of NBCUniversal. I had an inappropriate relationship with a woman in the company, which I deeply regret."
He continued:
“I’m truly sorry I let my Comcast and NBCUniversal colleagues down. They are the most talented people in the business and the opportunity to work with them the last 10 years has been a privilege.”
Jeff Shell became the President of Fox Cable Network Group and Comcast in 2001. After nearly two decades with the company, he became a CEO of the Comcast-owned conglomerate, NBC Universal. Shell did not comment on how the affair has impacted his marriage. Comcast has also refused to disclose any further details about the investigation.
The argument regarding power imbalances in workplace relationships
According to Lexology, even if a workplace relationship is consensual, it can pose an issue when there is a power imbalance. In the case of Shell's supposed affair, he occupied a senior role to Gamble, who was best known for covering issues in the Middle East for CNBC.
Angela Knox, an associate professor of human resources at the University of Sydney’s Business School, spoke to Smartcompany about the risk of a company passively allowing a workplace relationship.
She said:
“Where there’s an imbalance of power and particularly when that can impact things like promotions, performance ratings, pay and bonuses, career opportunities, then that’s really critical."
Smartcompany noted that while workplace relationships are officially legal, they can lead to severe complications for companies. In the case of such a relationship, there is potential for exploitation by senior employees, thus creating the risk of blackmail or coercion. As a result, many companies choose to terminate senior employees who are involved in such relationships, as the company could be held liable for allowing it to persist in light of a harassment case.
