A doctor formerly employed by NYU Medical Center is suing her ex-boss, who she alleges repeatedly sexually harassed her, forced her to have sex with him, and eventually fired her when she refused to have sex with him.
According to court documents filed yesterday, Dr. Irina Mikolaenko reported to a Dr. David Zagzag, the chief of NYU’s neuropathology division, starting in 2012. Mikolaenko claims she had been warned that Zagzag, who is married, was a "womanizer" who "wanted female employees to wear sexually provocative clothes" and who on one occasion had fired a female employee who wouldn't have sex with him.
Mikolaenko has accused Zagzag of repeatedly sexually harassing her, claiming he told her that if she didn't sleep with him he would give her poor performance reviews. He allegedly began propositioning her on a daily basis, telling her she looked "good" and "sexy" and pressing his body against her at work. Mikolaenko says she gave in to Zagzag's demands out of fear that she would lose her job, and had sex with him multiple times.
Court documents say that on several occasions starting in August 2014, Zagzag cornered her in her office, "touched [her], tried to kiss her, pulled down his zipper, exposed his penis, and propositioned plaintiff for sex, as if she was his property, and as if he controlled her." Zagzag allegedly told Mikolaenko that he wore a white lab coat to "cover his erection" when he saw her. He also allegedly forced her to have sex with him right before her meeting with the department chair, telling her, "If you want to have a good evaluation, we need to have sex so that I can feel better discussing you with the Chair."
Mikolaenko says that in early 2015 she told Zagzag she refused to have sex with him again; she was fired about a week later, according to court documents. She is suing both him and NYU, alleging that she suffered extreme emotional distress, anxiety, and panic attacks from the repeated harassment.
NYU claims Mikolaenko was fired on unrelated charges. They issued the following statement:
“Dr. Irina Mikolaenko was terminated on February 8, 2015, from NYU School of Medicine for misconduct and inappropriate behavior. We have fully investigated her claims, and have found there to be absolutely no truth or merit to her outlandish allegations. It is really a shame that anyone can file totally meritless claims and is then reported as if it is fact. NYU Langone will vigorously support and defend Dr. Zagzag and the School of Medicine against her manufactured accusations.”
Zagzag's wife, who is a nurse, told the NY Post she had not heard of the lawsuit.
