Boss’s affair with someone else is no basis for third party’s bias or harassment suit

The fact that a supervisor may favor a subordinate with whom he is romantically linked doesn’t justify a sex discrimination or harassment lawsuit by someone who isn’t involved in the affair.

Recent case: Marc was terminated from his job after allegedly yelling at a co-worker and using profanity. He sued, alleging among other claims that he had been discriminated against because of his gender and had worked in a sexually hostile environment.

His evidence? That a supervisor was having a sexual affair with another co-worker, a woman who, Marc said, received preferential treatment in the form of better assignments and better reviews.

The court dismissed the claims. It reasoned that merely being the opposite sex of a supervisor’s paramour didn’t mean that the supervisor was discriminating based on sex. The court said the supervisor’s sexual preference was irrelevant. The favoritism wasn’t based on the sex of the paramour, but on the interpersonal nature of the relationship. While that’s unfair, it’s not a violation of Title VII. (Marcus v. Leviton Manufacturing, et al., No. 15-CV-656, ED NY, 2016)

Final note: Of course, such workplace romances may go wrong in all kinds of ways. For example, the subordinate may end up suing over alleged sexual harassment should the affair end badly. She might then allege that it wasn’t consensual, or that her former lover punished her after they broke up or some other combination of claims. It’s best to discourage such relationships, especially when they involve supervisor and subordinate.