Technology

Greg Surman post, with the following text:

Our beloved, irreplaceable daughter Annie should’ve been celebrating her 30th birthday this week. Instead, we’re left marking that milestone without her -- remembering all that she was and grieving all that should have been.

Annie died by suicide last year, after being fired by MongoDB while she was on disability leave.

Yesterday, we filed a legal complaint against MongoDB, seeking accountability for Annie’s wrongful termination and wrongful death. The complaint alleges as follows:

Annie was on leave receiving intensive mental health treatment when MongoDB demanded her immediate return to work. She asked for an extension to complete her treatment, or at the least a short period to consult with her medical providers about whether and how she might be able to return to work before the treatment was completed. Instead, MongoDB terminated her health insurance and then fired her in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act and the New York State and City Human Rights Laws. Shortly afterward, Annie took her own life.

An extension of Annie’s leave would have cost MongoDB nothing. We made it clear that they did not need to pay her or hold her job open for her. We just asked them not to fire her while she was in such a vulnerable state, as we feared that would result in tragedy. We just wanted a little more time to get her stabilized.

We understand MongoDB may have told some of Annie’s colleagues that she quit. That is not true. MongoDB fired her.

We’re pursuing this case to set the record straight and to help ensure that powerful companies like MongoDB do not continue to violate the rights of their employees