Brian Coddington, Communications Director, 509.625.6740
Thursday, June 17, 2021 at 10:48 a.m.
Mayor Nadine Woodward directed City legal and human resources to work with an outside firm to investigate the allegations of discrimination levied in an email by the Neighborhoods, Housing, and Human Services director against the city administrator.
An outside resource will be identified quickly. City legal and human resources will contract with the outside resource, facilitate access to resources and individuals at the request of the outside investigator, and serve as the point of contact.
“The allegations raised in an email yesterday morning are very serious and carry implications for our organization and community,” Woodward said. “We are taking immediate steps to determine the facts and it will require the City to seek outside assistance to conduct that investigation. Employees and the public needs to know that if they raise concerns they will be taken seriously.”
City legal and human resources regularly contract with third-party firms for investigation of personnel matters that include potential conflicts of interest. Findings from the outside investigation will be delivered to City legal and human resources for determination of next steps.
Employees have several ways to report concerning behavior, including notifying a supervisor, contacting human resources, calling an anonymous tip line, and filing a complaint electronically.
