"Special treatment" is a strange view of not getting "fired". The emails clearly state no cause for that action. That Sternberg's sponsor died would have been the "crime".
It is when you should have been fired, or just let go due to circumstances, but got to stay because the boss was afraid you'd pull the "protected group" card. It's right there, the guy was willing to put his reputation on the line as a sponsor just to keep him from pulling the victim card. That's how afraid the institution was of the new ID PC.