Former executive sues Goldman Sachs after being fired for having been ..

A former Goldman Sachs executive sued the bank for discrimination on Wednesday, claiming he had been fired after reporting repeated cases of homophobia and discrimination.

William Jarrad Littleton, a former vice president and bank employee for eight years, claims that he was fired after complaining of multiple discrimination cases that he described as gay, according to the lawsuit filed in the Supreme Court of New York State.

In a statement to ABC News, Goldman Sachs officials described the lawsuit as "baseless".

In one example cited in the lawsuit, Littleton alleges that he was kept away from a call from his client because "he looked too cheerful".

In another case, he alleges that his supervisor asked him: "What's wrong with you? Do you act that way because you're gay?"

Littleton's lawsuit states that he was "brutally fired by people who he said had discriminated", after filing a complaint with the Goldman Employee Relations Department, despite several previous years of litigation. what he called excellent performance evaluations. He also states that his annual remuneration then dropped by about 20%, which resulted in other vice presidents having surpassed him, although he did not. did not specify this amount.

The ousted executive also said he was an openly gay leader at the bank.

"Littleton's experiences demonstrate that Goldman Sachs in particular has failed to take on this important responsibility," said David E. Gottlieb, Littleton's lawyer, in a statement to ABC News. "We intend to send a message to all New York companies, and particularly to Goldman, that this type of treatment with regard to LGBTQ + employees will not be tolerated. "

A spokesman for Goldman Sachs called the claims "unfounded".

"Goldman Sachs has a sustained and proven commitment to diversity and we are proud of the company's vibrant and diverse LGBTQ community," Wall Street officials wrote in a statement to ABC News.

& # 39; "We strongly encourage all our employees to work with themselves because it makes us better, this trial is without merit and we intend to defend ourselves."