His wife was ill and could not have children. So he asked, if someone would be willing to be a surrogate — he wasn’t forcing anything on anyone.
Many people are willing to be surrogates for money.
He also did not fire anyone for turning down the offer.
He may not have fired anybody, but that’s a technicality, and he definitely made a mess of things. I think there are underlying motives that are suspect. Good riddance to him.