Shocking response of UC Irvine professor after he was accused of traumatizing female student with seedy charcuterie remark

A UC Irvine professor accused of being a seedy sex pest has claimed his accusers are just upset at being 'lackluster' students.  

Bruce Blumberg, 70, was briefly suspended with pay during an investigation into allegations made against him by a woman in his biology lab.

She alleged Blumberg called her 'babe' while they were at an international conference in Spain, urged her to visit a sex shop and told her 'I could give you some meat' while they were discussing a charcuterie platter. 

Blumberg denies any wrongdoing, and has since returned to the lab following the investigation.

A spokesperson speaking on behalf of Blumberg told the Los Angeles Times those who spoke out against him were the 'lackluster' students in his class.

'A small subset of former lab members who were disgruntled and unsatisfied with their lackluster achievements, as compared with other higher achievers, sought to blame their failures on a purported toxic lab atmosphere,' the spokesperson said.

'In fact it was a demanding, yet rewarding place to work.'

Blumberg has met with school officials four times since 2010 regarding complaints or rumors involving him.

The UCI report reveals he attended a 'policy compliance meeting' in 2013 following allegations he'd embarked on a consensual relationship with a postdoc student.

His spokesperson said this was 'unsubstantiated gossip.'

Furthermore, the report noted that in 2019 he was the subject of a formal investigation after a student accused him of sexual harassment.

The report said the investigation at the time found he did not violate school policy. The allegations were that he made sexual comments toward an undergrad student and discussed her Instagram posts with her. 

He allegedly was called in for another 'policy compliance meeting' in 2022 to discuss 'language use.'   

The latest allegation centers around a trip Blumberg and a student took to Spain in 2022. 

The female complainant brought her sister with her on the trip, and both were interviewed as part of the investigation.

She allegedly described the trip as 'an absolute nightmare' and felt like she was bracing for Blumberg to 'make a move' while at the conference.

He argues he has always acted professionally, and denies making any inappropriate remarks toward the woman. 

While he was initially placed on involuntary leave with pay in July 2023 amid the ongoing investigation, that was overturned in September.

And by December, he'd reached an agreement with the UCI which will place him on a five-year probationary period with additional workplace restrictions. 

Blumberg accepted a three-month unpaid suspension in exchange for the disciplinary charges against him being dropped.

He was also required to complete two hours of sexual harassment training and was prohibited from following his students on social media, or discussing his personal life with them.

As part of the stipulations, he was told he could no longer host high school students in his lab, nor could he drink alcohol at official functions.

The school vowed not to pursue any subsequent complaints that relate to incidents which took place prior to the suspension as part of the agreement, if the allegations are 'the same type and degree' as those already made and investigated.

'The purpose of this final agreement is to fully and finally resolve the pending matter against Professor Blumberg,' the agreement states. 

He maintains that in spite of the agreement, he did not behave inappropriately toward the female complainant.