A JPMorgan Chase boss allegedly told an employee to separate his ‘gay job’ from his ‘day job’, according to a discrimination lawsuit. 

Brian Larson, a former senior associate on JPMorgan’s Chase Associate Program, alleged in a lawsuit that one of his supervisors had criticised his participation in Pride groups within the firm.

After he was hired in 2021, Larson was appointed co-chair of the organisation’s Pride Tri-State group, which provides support to LGBTQ+ employees and promotes an inclusive work environment.

But his involvement in the group allegedly saw his supervisor, Peter Bergman, make remarks including: ‘DEI isn’t going to save you,’ and: ‘Just because you are gay doesn’t mean you get a leg up.’

In the lawsuit, filed last week in Manhattan, New York, it was claimed that Bergman targeted Larson – who, despite receiving high praise in performance reviews, was subsequently removed from projects and given low ratings in his next review.

Larson accused Bergman of calling him into an unplanned Zoom meeting in June 2022, where he allegedly told him he was spending too much time on his work with Pride.

It was there that he allegedly told Larson to ‘separate his gay job from his day job’ and described his work with Pride as ‘extracurricular’.

When Larson asked Bergman if his work was suffering as a result of his involvement in the Pride projects, Bergman allegedly replied: ‘Your work is not suffering now, but I could see it happening.’

The complaint alleged that Larson worked up to 70-hour weeks for Bergman’s team, carrying out his work with Pride outside of those hours.

Larson said he reported the alleged remarks to Chase Associate Program manager Elizabeth Manchin, who, according to the complaint, said that ‘Pride activities are not extracurricular’ but rather ‘a part of how we do business at Chase.’

Larson also spoke to his previous supervisor, Ashlee Kelly, for advice.

But according to the complaint, she allegedly warned him that speaking to HR ‘does not always turn out the way you want it to’.

Nevertheless, Larson did complain, prompting JPMorgan’s then-global head of diversity, equity and inclusion, Brian Lamb, to email him directly.

In the correspondence, he reaffirmed the company’s commitment to DEI and said Bergman would be told to recognise Larson’s Pride work as contributing to each of three categories in his upcoming performance review.

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.’

According to the complaint, Larson felt he was being pushed out of his job, causing panic attacks, severe depression, and a resurgence of trichotillomania – a disorder that causes sufferers to pull out their hair – from which he had not suffered since childhood.

His complaint also says he suffered chronic migraines that caused him to leave his next job at a financial services management consultancy.  

JPMorgan Chase’s HR department investigated Larson’s complaints but told him it found no credible evidence that Bergman had discriminated against him.

‘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 the organisation told The New York Post.

The bank said a number of managers had identified issues with Larson’s performance at work and had tried to help him improve through coaching.

In October 2023, HR questioned Larson over $40 Uber expenses tied to Pride Month events, telling him they ‘raised questions about his trustworthiness and honesty’ before finding no policy violation, the complaint alleged.

Four days later, HR allegedly told Larson his time with the Chase Associate Program had ‘run out’ and instructed him to resign, warning that he would otherwise be fired and have the termination on his record, according to the complaint. 

But the bank says Larson was given additional time to find a job position after completing the Chase Associate Program and, after failing to get one, ultimately resigned.

has contacted JPMorgan Chase for comment.

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