Former City Manager Tai Jaiyeoba resigned because the City Council had been presented with evidence that he had violated the city’s sexual harassment policy, according to unnamed sources.
WFDD Radio reported this on Thursday, March 7, and the Rhino Times has now confirmed it with its own sources.
There has been much speculation on social media that Jaiyeoba resigned because the City Council had found evidence of an inappropriate relationship with an employee, and in many cases the suspected employee has been named.
Others have speculated that Jaiyeoba’s resignation was related to the domestic disturbance at his home on Dec. 28.
However, it was not evidence of an inappropriate relationship but evidence of a violation of the city’s sexual harassment policy that reportedly resulted in Jaiyeoba resigning by email during the Tuesday, March 5 City Council meeting.
Mayor Nancy Vaughan and councilmembers have repeatedly said that the resignation was not the result of the domestic disturbance incident at Jaiyeoba’s home on Dec. 28.
Jaiyeoba did not attend the Tuesday, March 5 City Council meeting, and it has also been reported that Jaiyeoba did not attend the City Council closed session that lasted from 4 to 5:30 p.m. before the public portion of the meeting.
Jaiyeoba sent his resignation letter by email at 6:12 p.m. after the closed session had ended and the City Council was back in open session.
However, according to members of the City Council, much of the discussion in closed session was on whether to provide Jaiyeoba with a severance package if he resigned, and how much that severance package should be.
At the end of the City Council meeting, about 8 p.m., the City Council voted 5-4 to accept Jaiyeoba’s resignation and provide him with three months of salary and benefits but not executive compensation. Voting against the motion were Mayor Nancy Vaughan and Councilmembers Zack Matheny, Hugh Holston and Tammi Thurm. All four have since said that they were in favor of accepting Jaiyeoba’s resignation but not in favor of giving him a severance package, since he had resigned.
Those voting in favor of the three-month severance package were Councilmembers Yvonne Johnson, Sharon Hightower, Nancy Hoffmann, Goldie Wells and Marikay Abuzuaiter.
The previous four city managers have all resigned and none of them received a severance package.
I think some people were confused about what “intergovernmental relations” meant.
LOL!
Good one.
You need to which side of the butter your are breaded.
Do we have an orgy going on at City Hall? According to my information this the second City Official-Major Dept. Head that has left the City in the past three years. And don’t forget that heinous act of 25 yeat veteran and hero Greensboro Fire Captain Dustin Jones who was fired for his non-violent and non-criminal Facebook Post.
I’m thinking it’s time for Dustin Jones to hire an attorney he has a good basis for a lawsuit
If he had been white he would not have recieved the severance package. We all know everythin with Hightower and Wells is about being black, the black constituent or the MWBE. Abuzuaiter And Johnson are at large and will not buck Hightower and Well and Hoffman is in lala land at Wellsprings.
Do we have an orgy going on at City Hall? According to my information, this the second City Official and/or major Dept. Head that has left the City in the past three years. And don’t forget that heinous act of 25 year veteran and hero Greensboro Fire Captain Dustin Jones who was fired for his non-violent and non-criminal Facebook Post.
Jim Donaldson
I guess it’s time to rename Guilford county to Fulton County. Maybe the council members that voted for the severance package could pitch in and pay it from their pocketbooks. Is it possible they have something to hide. Just speculating.
Some people are more equal than others……….
-Orwell
Well, what can you expect when you hire a Third World “CEO of Greensboro”, as he self-styled himself?
No surprises here. More uncalled for wasted tax dollars.
Wow! Why should he receive a severance package when he resigned? He should have been fired.
I think all he should have gotten was a swift kick in the butt right out the door. He is no different than any other city employee. What did the city employee get that he had inappropriate relationship with? Did they resign and get three months salary also? Or, are they still employed with the city?
Did you read the direct quote in the article that said there was not an inappropriate relationship? He violated the sexual harassment policy. There is a victim and a perpetrator in this example.
Why would the city tax payers ever give someone a severance package when they violated a city policy? Especially one that involves sexual harassment? We have a brain dead city council that just loves to give our tax dollars away. If this had been in the private sector he would have been fired on the spot, given no severance and you could expect a law suit from the other person as this would certainly have been someone who was under his job level or maybe even reported to him.
I will remember the ones that voted for a severance package when it’s time to vote
I am discouraged that 5 WOMEN would vote to provide severance to someone in which they have evidence he violated a sexual harassment policy. The message sent to women who work for the City of Greensboro is the same message sent for decades: keep your head down and take it. Do not report or it may affect your standing with the city. If council had enough evidence to ask for his resignation (which I am assuming they did), then they had enough to not pay him another dime. You could have hired a police officer or bought a few of the leaf cans that this city manager had to borrow money for.
As a female that worked as a police officer for Greensboro for 16 years I have come to expect this kind of behavior to be tolerated. What is most disheartening is that women who constantly champion underrepresented groups from the dais could not see past their own hubris to have a 9-0 vote to send a message. Thank you Nancy Vaughan, Zack Matheny, Hugh Holston, and Tammi Thurm for standing up for all women who work within the city organization.
I was taught a long time ago, you don’t get your nooky where you get your paycheck….
Don’t s#!t where you eat!
Tax payers money paid for this man to quit his job after he was accused of sexual misconduct???? Are you kidding me????? What is wrong with you people?
So that severance was hush money.
The question I have is how long was this going on and how long did the Imperial Council know about it? Also, how long were they going to let it go on?
Looking at the big picture, more tax dollars will be spent on attorneys and compensation for the ladies that recieved the sexual harrassment from the X-city manager. those five council representives that voted for him to recieve the severance package should have to use their own money to pay him, not us taxpayers!
As a woman who works for this City, I am disheartened that Council would vote to provide Tai with a severance package. This is perhaps the most important question that Council and the City must answer (to the public but also to their employees). Hold a press conference- Chuck Watts, Council, City Managers Office. Tell your employees and the community why someone who violated our sexual harassment policy was given a severance. Tell us why your press release muddied the water instead of clearing up the facts. Tell us why the legal office has protected him so much. Chris Wilson said “don’t let someone else’s bad day be your bad day”. Sir, respectfully, this is a bad day/week for all of us. I have lost confidence in my City leadership. Will our policies hold peope accountable or will your votes protect the guilty?
Once again, east greensboro calls the shots on the council.
In the next election cysle, citizens need to ensure they vote AGAINST Nancy Hoffmann and Marikay Abuzuaiter. That the city manager had a sexual relationship with one of his employees is the very bottom of standards of what you would expect from someone in his position. But, he fit the race card when he was hired, so you can blame it on those who thought he was the best one.
Heard Nancy Hoffman isn’t running again from the retirement village. Maybe her district will get an actual representative. And it’s time for Marikay to go too if she can’t understand how the public wouldn’t want to pay someone who quit.
DEI = DIE
You would be horrified if you knew how many men who are directors and department heads in the City sexually harass their employees and/or try to have sexual relationships with them. And if you say anything, nothing ever happens to these men in leadership.
The city needs to do some serious training about how leadership should treat their employees. Not trying to have sex with them and give them special treatment to coerce them into sex would be an excellent start.
It occurs on a daily basis. Years ago GPD did an audit on messages sent through MDT/MCT. Most officers received counseling for their messages that contained the words the auditing program for looking for. Some, including ranking officers (all retired now), received more “discipline” for their extremely inappropriate messages. Nothing changes. I have been on the receiving end of those kind of messages and direct in person comments. I know others have been also.
The five members of the city council who voted severance should as stated above give their personal reasons for the vote. Is what is alleged acceptable to the five of you? All of you have sat on council for years. I used to sit in your meetings as one of my past police assignments. Actions speak louder than words. I expect more from elected officials and any city employee who were aware or continue to be aware of direct sexual harassment or inappropriate relationships. Anyone who is aware of policy violations that could result in termination is complaint. You five city council women are compliant.
*complicit. Not complaint.
These FIVE councilwoman have NO regard for what is right. They judge and protect race, unlike the rest of us who judge by character. They are a disgrace to woman everywhere in this city, state and country. Their statement sends a message to city employees that sexual harassment is OK if you hold a high position with the city. These despicable councilwoman are also the ones TAKING our taxpayer dollars and giving it away without accountability. (IE: Cure for Violence), a failed program. Come election time we need to remind the voters, especially woman voters of the councils protection of an employee who violated city policy due to his position when others have been fired for the same or lessor offense. He does not deserve or owed a severance package.
What is the real reason (if we can’t presume) for the votes from Yvonne Johnson, Sharon Hightower, Goldie Wells, Marikay Abuzuaiter, and Nancy Hoffmann to give this man a “monetary gift” of their appreciation of what he’s done for the city, especially Marikay and Nancy? Maybe there was politics involved in which the east Greensboro gals threatened to not vote on some other critical city projects? In the end, it’s all politics, and it stinks no matter who is in office. . . .the old I’ll scratch your back if you’ll scratch mine, etc. We need new blood in the council next election. Nancy needs to go even though she voted against the monetary gift.