Ask ReproJobs: What can I do about a bad CEO?
Dear ReproJobs:
Our Executive Director is reactive and verbally abusive. She regularly violates HR standards by attempting to bypass organizational policies to give jobs to friends. She has tried and continues to try to force staff to work with a rape apologist and has herself made highly problematic comments about rape. Meanwhile, our HR department reports to her, and mainly serves to protect the org from its own employees. She seems to regard the staff as her enemies and puts the org at risk with her behavior. What can be done? If your answer is unionize, how specifically can a union take on one powerful bad actor?
-- Fed Up
Dear Fed Up,
This sounds like an awful and unfortunately all-too-common situation. Your Executive Director sounds like they’re putting the entire organization at risk with their toxic behavior and dismal management. That’s exactly the opposite of what you want in an organizational leader, and we’re so sorry you and your coworkers are dealing with this bullshit.
We’ll list a few things you could try in order of least risky to most risky. First: do you know if your coworkers feel the same way? Have you had conversations about it, outside of work? If not, now is the time to take your colleagues out to lunch or dinner, hopefully far from the office, and find a way to ask them what their experience with the Executive Director has been like. You need allies who can help you make your case.
Once you’ve talked to coworkers you can trust to keep things confidential, make sure everyone starts taking diligent notes—not on work computers—documenting everything that’s going on: what is said in meetings, exact the dates and times, printing and saving emails, noting exactly when complaints are made to HR and what does or doesn’t happen as a result, etc. Some people go as far as recording meetings on their phone, but depending on where you live that might be illegal, so check in on that before you hit record.
You and your coworkers have some decisions to make. How much risk are you willing to take? Are you willing to get reprimanded? To lose your jobs? To be bad mouthed by this CEO to other employers? All of these things (and others we’re sure you can think of) are consequences for speaking out. Only you can figure out what makes sense for you given the balance of how bad things are at work versus if you think you can find another job easily to pay your bills. With that in mind, a potential next step is to take your notes, along with the documentation your coworkers have too, to the Advisory Board, to foundation or individual donors, or even to the media. You might consider whoever could be a trusted partner with you on this. Is there one particular board member who you know has survived a similarly toxic workplace in the past? Does any staff member have a connection to a major donor or a local journalist? Think together about who could be most strategic in helping you make the case to the powers that be that your Executive Director is significantly harming the organization. Often, statements from several (or all) staff members, including documentation of the ED’s wrongdoing, can be the kickstart a board member needs to convince their board colleagues that something rotten is going on. You may want to consider a ladder of escalating tactics: first, making the case to one or more board members. If that doesn’t work, go to your largest donors. If that doesn’t work, turn to the media. All of these tactics come with risks, the biggest among them being losing your job.
If going to the board, donors, or media sounds too bold, you might also consider speaking to an employment attorney. They’ll also want all of your documentation, and might be able to advise you if anything illegal is going on, and help you file a complaint with the EEOC. If you’re not sure where to start, email us and we can connect you to a lawyer who can do an initial consultation for free.
You mention unionizing—and that is absolutely one way to go—but it is a long process that can take years, especially if you have hostile management, and it sounds like you might need more immediate results. With the right union, you can absolutely take on terrible bosses (see what the FM Union is doing, for example), but this takes time and persistence. You and your coworkers might decide to start the unionizing process while you’re in the midst of all this, depending on how much you want to take on at work right now.
This is really hard work that may be all risk and no reward. If none of this sounds right to you: look for another job and get the hell out. It’s wonderful that you want to fix the organization, but at the end of the day, your well-being is more important than the Executive Director’s misbehavior. Protect yourself and your coworkers. And if all the staff quit, that sends quite a message as well. Good luck.
Love,
ReproJobs