Ex-WeWork CEO is Accused of Some Pretty Shameful Things

Ex-WeWork CEO Adam Neumann, who was recently ousted for the company, is being accused of gender discrimination and smoking marijuana in front of a pregnant staffer.

The ex-CEO’s former chief of staff is suing The We Company for allegedly sustaining a substantial gender pay gap, among other accusations.

According to the lawsuit, Neumann asked the former employee about her plans to get pregnant during a 2013 job interview and repeatedly called her maternity leave a “vacation.”

The complaint, which was filed Thursday, alleges that former WeWork employee Medina Bardhi received significantly lower pay than her male peers.

The lawsuit states that new male hire for the chief of staff position with the “same job scope and role” as Bardhi’s “was offered an annual salary of $400,000 with a $175,000 signing bonus payable in January 2017, far more than double the annual salary of $150,000 that Ms. Bardhi was being paid in the same job.”

The complaint also alleges Bardhi was “forced” to tell her boss about her pregnancy “because she knew she had to explain why she could no longer accompany Mr. Neumann on business travel, particularly due to his penchant for bringing marijuana on chartered flights and smoking it throughout the flight while in the enclosed cabin.”

The suit also alleges that Neuman smoked marijuana on a private flight in front of Bardhi a week before she told him she was pregnant.

A WeWork spokesperson said in a statement, “WeWork intends to vigorously defend itself against this claim. We have zero tolerance for discrimination of any kind. We are committed to moving the company forward and building a company and culture that our employees can be proud of.”

“It is astonishing that WeWork could reward Adam Neumann’s blatant sexist behavior with a staggering and unprecedented golden parachute worth over a reported $1 Billion,” said Douglas Wigdor, Bardhi’s lawyer.