Laid-off Richmond workers criticize Mayor Stoney: “We had no training”

RICHMOND, Va. – Former Richmond finance employees who started their jobs just a few months ago said they were confused and angry after being laid off this week under what they said were unfair circumstances.

Janice Bishop, Deshawnda Johnson and Jasmine Osborne all worked in the finance department’s business unit despite being hired as regulatory auditors. They began work in June, May and February, respectively.

Bishop and Osborne were hired through a city job fair, and Johnson transferred from the utility department.

Their duties included processing meal tax, personal property tax and business license applications, but they said they faced chaotic working conditions and outdated systems.

“It was the worst experience coming here,” Bishop said. “(I) wasn’t trained for the position. I kept asking to be trained.”

“I was completely baffled by the disorganization and lack of training in this system,” Osborne said. “Just seeing the amount of paperwork that was just there and that had no rhyme or reason. You just got a bin full of papers and they said, ‘Okay, let’s get this processed.'”

The employees came at a time when the finance department was already facing criticism from restaurant owners across Richmond who complained about meal tax issues and unknown, unannounced late fees totaling tens of thousands of dollars.

Richmond: Restaurant owner owes thousands in meal taxes: ‘This is scary’

“Since you have an insider’s view of all this, do you think citizens out there should be able to trust that their taxes are correct?” asked reporter Tyler Layne.

“Absolutely not,” they replied.

“Do you feel like you have received the right training and processes?” asked Layne.

“Absolutely not,” they answered again.

“There’s something wrong with the city of Richmond,” Osborne said. “If your employees aren’t trained well enough to help businesses, they’re going to lose out.”

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Not only did they say they lacked the right tools to succeed, but they also claimed the work environment was toxic and hostile.

They stated that two weeks ago, without explanation, their desks and cabinets were searched and personal belongings confiscated.

“It’s a management and leadership problem, but the big problem is that everyone is new. We’ve had customers come up and say, ‘What? There’s no one I know here anymore,'” Bishop said.

These workers are also no longer with the city.

On Tuesday, finance director Sheila White told them, along with at least two other employees, that they were being laid off. The workers claimed no explanation was given.

“Why did they let me go yesterday? I have no idea. They wouldn’t give me a reason,” Bishop said.

Their termination letter, which they showed to CBS 6, stated that the city had the right to fire them without cause because it happened during their probationary period and that they could not appeal the termination to the Human Resources Committee.

The workers were members of the SEIU Virginia 512 union and said they were not allowed union representation at the time of their firing.

LaNoral Thomas, the union’s president, said she was “disappointed with the City of Richmond and its anti-union tactics as five union members were fired without due process and denied union representation.”

The employees stated that they had never been subjected to any disciplinary action prior to their dismissal.

“I’m also a great worker. I came from another department. I didn’t get any warnings, there were no complaints,” said Johnson.

Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney responds

CBS 6 Mayor Levar Stoney shared his concerns during a press conference at City Hall on Wednesday.

“You believe the city should address the Treasury Department’s problems from the top down, not the bottom up. What is your response?” asked Layne.

“That’s exactly what we do,” Stoney replied. “Our director at the Treasury is a problem solver, and I’m grateful to Sheila White for the work she does. Let me tell you why. For years, there were some who saw the fires in the Treasury, and instead of putting them out or running into the fire, they looked the other way. I’m grateful for the work she does because she’s willing to run into the fire for the solution.”

Stoney called White the best director of the last decade and said this was not a leadership problem.

During a forum earlier this week, all candidates for City Council publicly stated that they do not support White for finance director, including current council members Ann-Frances Lambert, Ellen Robertson, Cynthia Newbille and Nicole Jones.

But Stoney dismissed her stance, saying it was about “trying to win an election.”

“Some of these council members have been on the council for eight years or more and have never said a word. But now when you ask them that question at an event, what do they do? They capitulate,” Stoney said.

Stoney insisted he was behind the recent financial layoffs.

“But do you think those lower-level employees deserve to lose their jobs?” asked Layne.

“If you don’t meet the quality standards, you won’t work here,” Stoney replied.

When CBS 6 met Bishop, Johnson and Osborne for an interview on Thursday afternoon, they had already watched the mayor’s press conference via live stream.

They said his comments had “deeply hurt” them.

“I think Mayor Stoney should take responsibility when he speaks about situations and circumstances,” Johnson said. “Now we have someone standing at a podium pointing fingers at people who didn’t have the right tools to do our jobs.”

“If the mayor thinks I deserve to be fired because I didn’t know how to do my job, then he needs to look at who he hired and who he elected because they don’t know how to do their job either, and that’s who I’m going to look to for answers,” Osborne said.

“For the mayor to say we deserve to be fired, he has to explain to us why we deserve it,” Bishop said.

In March, the city entered into an agreement with consultant Anne Seward through December of this year to develop policy and procedural solutions at the Department of Finance.

According to the city’s contract with Seward, obtained through a public records request, Seward is to work with White on-site to assess the efficiency of operations and service delivery and provide “specific written findings and recommendations” for implementation.

CBS 6 requested all written findings and recommendations from Seward, but as of August 5, the city stated that none were available.

Seward receives $200 an hour for her services.

CBS 6 wants to share the community’s voices on this important issue. Email your thoughts to the CBS 6 Newsroom.