Temporary agency White Glove Staffing Inc. does not have standing to sue Methodist Hospitals of Dallas over alleged discrimination, a federal judge in Texas ruled Thursday in dismissing the agency’s case.

White Glove had sued Methodist after it dropped negotiations for a staffing contract to provide servers, prep cooks, dishwashers and set-up crews.

During contract negotiations, White Glove had supplied a worker as a prep cook who is African American, but Methodist’s food and beverage manager allegedly said the head chef preferred Hispanic workers, according to court records.

Judge Ed Kinkeade in a “memorandum opinion and order” ruled the staffing firm did not have standing to sue for employment discrimination because it did not have an employment relationship.

Kinkeade also found the company did not have standing to sue because the company, itself, does not have a racial identity.

The judge noted that the prep cook, Carolyn Clay, did have standing to sue.

Clay worked at Methodist from May 20 to May 23 in 2016. The hospital had asked for a different worker, but White Glove sent Clay back on May 24, 2016, because she was the only prep cook available on short notice, according to court records. However, the hospital asked her to leave.

Jeff Jennings, Methodists’ food and beverage director, allegedly could not articulate anything specific when asked if Clay had done anything wrong when questioned by White Glove owner Linda White, according to a filing by White Glove.

“Jennings told Linda White that ‘[head] chef prefers Hispanics, they just work out better,’ or words to similar effect,” according to the filing. “Jennings said without chef being on board, defendants could not go forward with any contracts with White Glove.”

Hours after the conversation, negotiations were called off, according to the filing by White Glove. The company expected to supply anywhere from 40 to 75 employees over the course of two years if contract negotiations had finished.