Hunter
04/07/26
The University of Iowa has settled a federal lawsuit filed by a former employee who accused her supervisors of failing to accommodate her disability, which she called “sick building syndrome.”
The Gazette reports Nan Li was hired in April 2023 as an entry-level access consultant in the UI Student Disability Services office, located in the Old Capitol Center. She claimed symptoms including heavy eyes, dry cough, smoky throat, smelling gas, and dizzy head, worsened at her job.
Li reportedly asked her supervisors to allow her to work remotely, but claims her supervisors retaliated by interfering with her application to the accommodation and eventually fired her in April 2024.
Li’s lawsuit sought reinstatement, back pay, benefits, and nearly $400,000 in punitive damages. The settlement, however, agreed to none of those provisions and the UI only agreed to reclassify her employment separation as a resignation instead of termination. Li also agreed to not seek future employment with the UI, its subsidiaries, divisions or affiliates.
The settlement tasks both parties to cover their own legal fees.