Jennifer Tomsen, shareholder, left, and Anna Robshaw, associate, right, of Greenberg Traurig. Courtesy photos
Title VII discrimination claims premised on protected characteristics such as the race or gender of the plaintiff are familiar, but less common are “associational discrimination” claims asserting that the discrimination resulted from the plaintiff’s relationship with others.
Associational discrimination claims often arise from cross-racial relationships in dating or marriage. Such claims have also been made by employees who advocated for persons in a protected category or protested a company policy that the employee believed unfairly targeted or impacted those persons. Recent events such as protest movements and the rise of the social phenomenon of “allyship” (supportive association with another person or group) raise the question of whether such support by allies could form the basis of an associational discrimination claim should an ally experience an adverse employment action.
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