Ronald Rubin, Florida’s top banking regulator, was placed on administrative leave Friday while state officials investigate a sexual harassment claim filed against him by an employee.
The details of the complaint were made public in documents posted on the website of the Florida Department of Financial Services, where Rubin serves as commissioner of the Office of Financial Regulation.
“Due to these troubling allegations in a sexual harassment complaint filed by an OFR employee, I am requiring an immediate investigation into the conduct of Commissioner Rubin," Jimmy Patronis, who oversees the Department of Financial Services as chief financial officer of Florida, said in a statement. "Every person deserves to feel safe and respected in their work environment. That standard is non-negotiable. Commissioner Rubin has been placed on administrative leave. I have directed my Office of the Inspector General to begin a preliminary investigation, and I will seek additional input from the Cabinet.”
Rubin declined to comment for this article.
Rubin has served as Florida banking commissioner for just three months. He previously worked as a staff member for the House Financial Services Committee and as an enforcement attorney for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Details of the complaint and Rubin’s placement on administrative leave were first
An Office of Financial Regulation employee claimed that Rubin invited her out to lunch last month, but then suggested a detour “to his condo so that he could show me the renovations that had been done,”
Rubin allegedly asked her to remove her shoes because the condo was being renovated and then gave her a tour, the complaint said. The employee described it in the complaint as an “uncomfortable situation.”
Afterward, the two had lunch at a restaurant nearby, and Rubin again allegedly suggested a detour to his condo on the way back to the office to deal with painters who were supposed to arrive, the complaint said.
The next day, when the two were back in the office, Rubin allegedly invited the employee to attend a conference in Washington, D.C., which Rubin would also be attending, according to the complaint. When she declined, Rubin extended an offer to borrow his D.C. apartment, according to the complaint.
“He said, ‘Well if you ever get the chance to go up there, just let me know and I will give you the key to my apartment,’ ” the employee said in the complaint.
The employee claimed she actively avoided Rubin after that, at one point staying in her office with the door closed “until he had passed in another attempt to avoid him,” the complaint said.
Florida officials said they were bothered by the accusations.
“I was very concerned to hear the behavior you described to me,” Ryan West, chief of staff for Patronis, wrote in an
Rubin was recommended for administrative leave pending a further look into the complaint.
