A former senior employee of Gelman Library is suing the University and its head librarian, alleging they discriminated against him for having mental disorders.
Mark Langer, 56, served as head of acquisitions at Gelman Library from 2003 to 2006. He was fired in November, one month after taking his second mental health-related leave of absence in one year, according to documents filed by Langer in federal court.
In the complaint, Langer said he suffers from depression, attention deficit disorder and chronic migraines. Langer said the University unfairly discriminated against him when his conditions worsened, despite receiving encouraging reviews from his superiors only months earlier.
Langer is suing the University and University Librarian Jack Siggins on eight counts, including several that cite the Family Medical Leave Act and the D.C. Human Rights Act. FMLA - a District and federal law - protects employees who need to leave jobs for medical reasons.
"Certainly in this instance, the University does not believe that there was any wrongdoing," said Tracy Schario, director of Media Relations. Schario said the University does not comment on ongoing litigation, but in court documents the University denied each claim. Siggins declined to comment on the case when reached at his Gelman office. William Howard, interim vice president and general council for the university, also declined to comment.
Jason Ehrenberg, Langer's attorney, said GW did not handle his client's case properly.
"I have first hand knowledge - because my father was a vice president at Cornell - that other universities will go out of their way to do anything possible not to fire somebody (in similar circumstances)," Ehrenberg said in a phone interview. "Here, it was just, 'Screw you. Let's get somebody else in there who's not crazy and doesn't have these problems.'"
As head of acquisitions, Langer said he was responsible for buying new books and subscribing to new periodicals and electronic databases for the library.
Mark Langer, 56, served as head of acquisitions at Gelman Library from 2003 to 2006. He was fired in November, one month after taking his second mental health-related leave of absence in one year, according to documents filed by Langer in federal court.
In the complaint, Langer said he suffers from depression, attention deficit disorder and chronic migraines. Langer said the University unfairly discriminated against him when his conditions worsened, despite receiving encouraging reviews from his superiors only months earlier.
Langer is suing the University and University Librarian Jack Siggins on eight counts, including several that cite the Family Medical Leave Act and the D.C. Human Rights Act. FMLA - a District and federal law - protects employees who need to leave jobs for medical reasons.
"Certainly in this instance, the University does not believe that there was any wrongdoing," said Tracy Schario, director of Media Relations. Schario said the University does not comment on ongoing litigation, but in court documents the University denied each claim. Siggins declined to comment on the case when reached at his Gelman office. William Howard, interim vice president and general council for the university, also declined to comment.
Jason Ehrenberg, Langer's attorney, said GW did not handle his client's case properly.
"I have first hand knowledge - because my father was a vice president at Cornell - that other universities will go out of their way to do anything possible not to fire somebody (in similar circumstances)," Ehrenberg said in a phone interview. "Here, it was just, 'Screw you. Let's get somebody else in there who's not crazy and doesn't have these problems.'"
As head of acquisitions, Langer said he was responsible for buying new books and subscribing to new periodicals and electronic databases for the library.
