A JPMorgan Chase executive told a gay employee to separate his “gay job” from his “day job” and warned him that “DEI is not going to save you” before the bank forced him to resign, a new discrimination lawsuit alleges.
Brian Larson, a former senior associate in JPMorgan’s rotational Chase Associate Program, claimed that supervisor Peter Bergman repeatedly made disparaging remarks about his sexual orientation and his leadership role in the bank’s Pride employee group, according to the complaint filed last week in Manhattan federal court.
Larson alleged that Bergman called him into an unplanned Zoom meeting in late June 2022 and told him he was spending too much time on his work with Pride, according to the complaint.
Bergman allegedly told Larson he needed to “separate [his] gay job from [his] day job” and characterized his Pride work as an “extracurricular” activity, the complaint alleged.
News of the lawsuit was first reported by The Independent.
When Larson asked whether his work for Bergman’s Growth Segments team was suffering, Bergman allegedly replied: “Your work is not suffering now, but I could see it happening.”
Larson alleged that the ordeal caused him to suffer intense anxiety, panic attacks, depression and insomnia, and triggered a resurgence of trichotillomania, “a hair-pulling disorder often triggered by stress” that he had not experienced since childhood, according to the complaint.
“We take these allegations very seriously and after a thorough internal investigation we found no evidence to substantiate Mr. Larson’s claims,” a spokesperson for JPMorgan Chase told The Post on Monday.
The bank said multiple managers identified performance gaps during Larson’s time at the firm and provided coaching aimed at helping him improve.
According to JPM, Larson was given additional time to secure a permanent position after completing the Chase Associate Program and ultimately resigned after failing to land one.
The program is a two-year rotational program in which participants complete three successive eight-to-10-month placements on different project teams, according to the lawsuit.
Larson worked 60 to 70 hours a week for Bergman’s team at the time and performed his Pride work outside those hours, the complaint alleged.
Larson reported Bergman’s “gay job” remark to Chase Associate Program manager Elizabeth Manchin, who allegedly told him that “Pride activities are not extracurricular” and were “a part of how we do business at Chase,” according to the complaint.
Larson also sought advice from his previous supervisor, Ashlee Kelly, who allegedly cautioned him against going to human resources because “it does not always turn out the way you want it to,” the complaint alleged.
Kelly nevertheless told Larson that “he did the right thing” by reporting Bergman’s behavior and that he “would get through this,” according to the complaint.
The clash intensified after JPMorgan’s then-global head of diversity, equity and inclusion, Brian Lamb, sent Larson an email recognizing his commitment to DEI and saying his manager would be instructed to incorporate that work into each of the three categories of his upcoming performance review, the complaint alleged.
Bergman allegedly responded: “I see this email from Brian Lamb, but I want you to know that I am not including any of your Pride activities in your performance review.”
During another meeting over the issue, Bergman allegedly told Larson: “Just because you are gay doesn’t mean you get a leg up.”
Larson complained again to Manchin, who allegedly told him that the situation “was not right,” according to the complaint.
After Larson complained, Bergman allegedly removed him from projects, increased scrutiny of his work and later warned him that his “final placement out of this program is not a sure thing” and that “DEI is not going to save you,” according to the complaint.
Bergman subsequently gave Larson “on track” ratings in all three performance categories and wrote, “I wish Brian [Larson] demonstrated the same passion for the Students Group Growth Segment that he does for his LGBTQ community,” the complaint alleged.
Larson received “exceeds expectations” ratings across the board during his first rotation and was told he was again exceeding expectations during his third, according to the complaint.
JPMorgan HR investigated Larson’s complaints but told him it found “no credible evidence that Mr. Bergman discriminated against [Mr. Larson],” the complaint said.
Larson later applied for dozens of jobs inside JPMorgan without securing a permanent role, according to the filing.
In October 2023, HR questioned Larson over roughly $40 in Uber expenses tied to Pride Month events, telling him they “raised questions about his trustworthiness and honesty,” before later finding no policy violation, the complaint alleged.
Four days later, HR allegedly told Larson his “time with CAP had run out” and instructed him to resign through an online portal while sharing his screen, warning that he would otherwise be fired and have the termination placed on his record, according to the complaint.
The lawsuit accuses JPMorgan of discrimination and retaliation and seeks lost earnings, compensatory and punitive damages and other relief.
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