UNLV economics professor Alan Schlottmann, known for his research on real estate, economic development and the Nevada economy, has filed a lawsuit against the university alleging age discrimination.
In a lawsuit filed this week in Clark County District Court, Schlottmann claimed he was discouraged from applying for the high-profile job of director of UNLV's Center for Business and Economic Research after the position became vacant in January 2010.
The suit says Schlottmann is a fully tenured professor and is "highly qualified" for the CBER job, but was advised by a search committee member "not to apply for the position because of plaintiff’s age in that plaintiff was too old."
Schlottmann, 62, claims it was suggested he retire by the search committee member as well as a higher up in the UNLV College of Business, which since has been renamed the Lee Business School at UNLV.
"Other similarly-situated applicants who were not in the protected age group were initially offered the opportunity for an interview," says the suit, filed by Henderson attorney Christian Gabroy. "Plaintiff was never given the opportunity to appropriately interview for the position, even though he was more qualified than those who applied and were not in the protected age group."
A UNLV spokesman said the university doesn’t comment on litigation.
Besides his work as a UNLV professor since 2000, Schlottmann is known as the executive director of theTheodore Roosevelt Institute, a think tank and a community of scholars and professionals.
It’s based in Las Vegas and Irvine, Calif., and is involved in analysis and studies of taxes, economic development, education, demographics, housing, land use, regulatory policy, retail economics, corporate finance, engineering and public policy, utilities and financial institutions.
Schlottmann regularly provides data and analysis to the state Economic Forum, which forecasts state tax collections. The state Republican Party this year recommended he serve on a panel remapping Nevada’s congressional districts.
Schlottmann also is known for hisresearch on housing affordability issues he conducted for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and as a researcher forUNLV’s Lied Institute for Real Estate Studies.