Posted on 08/21/2004 3:03:47 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
SACRAMENTO (AP) - Secretary of State Kevin Shelley, under scrutiny in recent weeks for receiving illegal campaign contributions and directing public contracts and funds to political allies, has been accused by current and former employees of being verbally abusive, according to interviews and recently released records.
The Sacramento Bee reported Saturday that at least three women who worked closely with Shelley have filed complaints about his behavior. The women claimed he attacked them verbally with little or no provocation, and that his behavior has seriously damaged the morale and productivity of his office.
"The environment of Kevin Shelley's office is a pressure cooker," said Dave Burke, who worked as an advance man for Shelley before he was fired in May after just seven weeks on the job. "The main focus of almost all the employees who deal with Kevin directly is to make sure he doesn't go off."
Burke, who said he was fired for defending himself after Shelley verbally abused him during a trip to Washington, DC, criticized other Democrats for looking the other way and allowing Shelley's behavior to continue.
"He's the darling of labor and the son of Jack Shelley (the late San Francisco mayor and congressman), and he treats his people like they're chained to sewing machines," Burke said.
Meanwhile, a former scheduler, a press aide and a computer trainer in Shelley's office have all filed written complaints against him.
Marisol Garcia, the former scheduler, described an incident last October where Shelley slammed a door so violently the walls shook.
Garcia said she and others had been exposed to "dozens and dozens of such incidents" and that she had feared for her safety.
"He is irrational, unpredictable, violent, angry and has no respect for his employees, especially his female employees," Garcia wrote.
In her complaint, former press aide Debbie O'Donoghue wrote that Shelley had phoned her to discuss a potential television interview last fall and became agitated as the conversation progressed.
"His irrational behavior escalated and he started to use profanity," O'Donoghue wrote. "After the conversation," O'Donoghue wrote, "I felt humiliated, embarrassed, upset, abused, demeaned and berated."
In June 2003, computer trainer Cynthia Pace filed a complaint saying that working with Shelley had caused her to fear for her health.
"I dread any contact with him," she wrote. "My health is critical, and his outbursts and anger cause my blood pressure to skyrocket"
Shelley was on vacation and unavailable for comment when contacted by the Bee. But Mark Kyle, his chief deputy, called allegations about Shelley's temper "old news" that doesn't affect how much work the busy office gets done.
"Is he intense?" Kyle said. "Yeah. Is he demanding? Yeah. Do we get a hell of a lot of work done in that agency because he pushes people to perform at a very high level? Yeah."
Shelley is well known around the Capitol for his explosive temper. In 1998, as a state assemblyman, Shelley sought help with anger management after complaints from employees led the Assembly Rules Committee to hire a private lawyer to evaluate his behavior.
Anger management issues..Ouch!
Shades of Doofus.
An a-hole, in other words.
Heavens NO! Not the slamming of the door! What abuse!
Have you ever been an employer? I employ 75. It doesn't happen often but I occaisonally launch into what some, I'm sure, would consider abusive language.
I'm not defending Shelley as I don't know what, if anything else he said. But yelling at employees isn't uncommon in any business and it often times required. As for slamming the door. That's just inexcusable. :-P
You sound like an employer cruising for a lawsuit.
I've been in business since 1987. Over half of my employees have been with me for ten years or more. Nearly every former employee would love to come back; I know that becuase they have asked. I offer a very generous benefits package and competitive wages. My employees surprised me last year with flying lessons for Christmas. I am a great employer who expects an honest day's work for an honest day's pay. The thought of a lawsuit is in your deluded mind only.
But thanks for sharing it.
Perhaps I misunderstood your earlier post, but if you yell at employees, and don't think that slamming the door to make a point is a problem, then proceed at your own risk -- especially as an employer in litigious California.
Perhaps you missed my point indeed. I have very content employees, far more so, apparently, than the crybaby governmental dipwads complaining about a slammed door.
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