JPMorgan Chase is facing a federal discrimination lawsuit from a former employee who alleges he was subjected to retaliation after a supervisor criticized his involvement with the bank's LGBTQ+ employee resource group.

Brian Larson, a former senior associate at JPMorgan, filed the lawsuit Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. He alleges that the bank discriminated against him because of his sexual orientation and retaliated after he complained about the treatment.

Larson joined JPMorgan through its Chase Associate Program in 2021 and later became co-chair of PRIDE Tri-State, a regional chapter of the company's LGBTQ+ employee resource group.

According to the lawsuit, one of Larson's supervisors objected to his involvement with the group and told him to keep his “gay job” separate from his regular work. The supervisor allegedly also told Larson that “DEI wasn’t going to save” him.

Larson said he reported the comments to another supervisor and JPMorgan's human resources department. He alleges that his treatment subsequently changed, with his work receiving greater scrutiny, his removal from projects, and declining performance evaluations despite previously receiving strong reviews.

The lawsuit also claims that Larson's PRIDE leadership work was not credited in a performance review even after the bank's diversity leadership had advised that such employee-resource-group work should receive recognition.

Larson further alleges that he applied for roughly 50 internal positions after completing JPMorgan's rotational program and reached the final two candidates in approximately 35 to 40 of those searches but was never offered a position.

JPMorgan's human resources department concluded in December 2022 that there was “no credible evidence” supporting Larson's discrimination allegations, according to the complaint. Larson alleges that the bank later gave him a choice in October 2023 between resigning and being fired.

JPMorgan has denied Larson's allegations and said his departure was related to his job performance.

Larson is seeking compensatory and punitive damages for alleged lost wages, benefits, and emotional distress, along with attorneys' fees and other relief.

The case adds to legal scrutiny involving JPMorgan's treatment of customers and employees, including separate allegations concerning political debanking.