A Central Park maintenance worker has filed a lawsuit claiming he was wrongly fired after being accused of sleeping on the job, which he says was linked to his sleep apnea condition, according to the New York Post.
Gregory Holder, 60, worked with the Central Park Conservancy for eight years and says he was dismissed in August 2025 despite informing his employer about his medical condition months earlier. He claims he had an excellent work record with multiple promotions before the incident.
Holder says he suffers from sleep apnea, a disorder that causes breathing to stop during sleep and leads to tiredness during the day. He says the condition was medically diagnosed and supported by a doctor’s note, which he submitted to his employer in early 2025.
According to him, the organisation did not hold any meeting to discuss possible work adjustments after receiving his medical information. His lawyer said the employer should have responded with reasonable support once they were aware of his disability.
“They have to identify accommodations that will enable that employee to continue performing his work,” his lawyer said.
Holder also claims he was never formally warned about serious issues before being fired. He was later told he was dismissed for allegedly sleeping on the job and missing a meeting, which he denies.
“It just happened so abruptly… I didn’t even get an opportunity to explain,” he said.
The Central Park Conservancy, which maintains the park, has declined to comment on the matter.
Holder said he started his career with The Doe Fund at Brooklyn Bridge Park before joining Central Park, where he rose to a supervisory role managing 25 workers and earning about 110,000 dollars a year. He described the job as meaningful and said he deeply loved working in the park.
“I was doing God’s work,” he said.
He also said his health has improved since his diagnosis and that he has lost 80 pounds. “The funny thing is, I feel great, but I’m not working,” he said.