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The SPLC Union announced Monday that they are demanding the removal of SPLC CEO Margaret Huang after 92 percent of members voted no confidence in her.
The vote comes after layoffs rocked the SPLC workforce, especially those dealing with immigration issues.
“Margaret Huang has at best misled and, at worst, deceived donors, the Boards of Directors, and the Union; exposed SPLC to liability; and alienated and disrespected the opinions and expertise of staff,” the union said in a statement Monday. “We need a new CEO to right these wrongs and provide responsible, accountable leadership to this storied civil rights organization.”
The vote took place at the end of August and SPLC leadership has since reaffirmed its support for Huang and the reorganization of the nonprofit.
“The SPLC Board was unanimous in re-affirming its support of the recent reorganization and in its recognition of the leadership of CEO Margaret Huang,” SPLC leadership said in a statement. “We respect the bargaining unit’s right to oppose the changes to the SPLC programs and activities, and we empathize with all employees who were impacted by the staff restructure. These decisions are never easy, but necessary to strengthen our strategic framework and focus so that we can meet the challenges of this decade and beyond.”
Lisa Wright, chair of the SPLC Union, criticized the board for a lack of engagement.
“From the start, the Board’s lack of engagement with our Union has made them complacent and complicit in all harm Huang and her leadership team create,” Wright said. “We believe Baynes-Dunning hired Huang in 2020 to bust our Union. Huang has a proven track record of hostility toward unionization. The layoffs have been riddled with inconsistencies, errors, and confusion. We’ve filed multiple grievances regarding contract violations, some of which we expect to progress to arbitration and possibly litigation.
“SPLC still hasn’t laid out a clear plan for transitioning casework of attorneys they laid off. Union members learned Huang represented to the 501(c)(4) board that layoffs were due to a ‘$13 million deficit’ in the (c)(3) budget while representing to the (c)(3) Board and Union that layoffs were not financially motivated, and were instead for strategic purposes.
“Huang either lied to our Union and the (c)(3) Board, or she lied to the (c)(4) Board. Huang also misrepresented the scope of layoffs to the (c)(3) Board. SPLC tells donors immigration work will continue, despite laying off more than 50 employees doing that work and having no way to continue working with existing community partners.”
- The union is also demanding that SPLC leadership bargain with the union to reverse layoffs and involve the union in finding a new CEO.
