Former Zillow vet sues, alleges misconduct ‘double standard’ 

A former high-profile, longtime Zillow employee has filed a lawsuit alleging the real estate giant refused to promote him further because of his race.

In a Sept. 23 complaint, attorneys for Samuel James Herrera, "a day-one Zillow employee," allege that Herrera earned seven promotions over a 14-year period for his "stellar performance," culminating in the role of general manager of rentals, Eastern region in 2022. 

However, despite regularly exceeding his sales goals, Herrera alleges he was passed over for further leadership roles and held to different standards than white colleagues.

Company 'halted his climb': "Zillow gladly reaped the fruits of Mr. Herrera's hard work and sales success for years but would not countenance a Hispanic man in its mostly White upper echelons," the complaint says.

"When Mr. Herrera's superb sales propelled him to the Director level, Zillow halted his climb up the corporate ladder by denying him further promotional and earning opportunities in favor of less qualified White employees."

The complaint alleges Herrera was then forced out of the company due to his complaints of discrimination.

The filing accuses Zillow of race discrimination and retaliation under the federal Civil Rights Act and the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act.

A double standard? According to the complaint, after a terminated employee accused Herrera of sexual harassment and discrimination, Zillow conducted an extensive investigation, but the company "ignored or perfunctorily investigated multiple sex harassment complaints against Caucasian executives." 

One of those executives was Herrera's supervisor, Shain Jordan, according to the filing, which notes that Jordan was promoted during the time such complaints had been made.

While the investigation ultimately cleared Herrera, he alleges that the feedback he got from his superiors "was filled with stereotypes about Hispanic men," and he was offered two choices: resign or accept a performance improvement plan. 

He chose the latter, and in the following weeks "observed his White colleagues engaging with impunity in the same behaviors for which Zillow had punished him."

When he complained about "a race-based double standard," he was allegedly told his concerns were "petty annoyances, isolated incidents, and casual conversations" and was asked to stop documenting them.

A working dinner results in firing: In February 2024, Herrera allegedly received approval to take another veteran employee to dinner to ask for his advice on a struggling project. The dinner lasted about five hours and cost $724 — an amount the complaint maintains was high but "not extraordinary for Zillow working dinners."

Herrera was subsequently terminated for allegedly violating Zillow's Travel and Expense Policy, although his supervisor "had repeatedly ignored White executives' lavish spending if their sales were strong, as Mr. Herrera's were at this time," the complaint says.

Herrera "was not given an opportunity to reimburse Zillow," the complaint adds.

The lawsuit demands a jury trial and seeks compensatory damages, punitive damages, and attorneys' fees and costs, among other relief.

Real Estate News has reached out to Zillow for comment and will update this story if and when a response is received.