Mazzoni Center mistakenly hires union-busting consulting firm with right wing, nationalist ties

There’s irony in the timing.

On the eve of Labor Day weekend – the holiday celebrating the accomplishments of America’s workforce and the work of labor unions – Steve Glassman, interim CEO of the Mazzoni Center, Philadelphia’s largest LGBT health-care facility, sent an email urging Mazzoni staff to vote against forming a union.

Glassman’s email arrives ahead of a scheduled staff vote on Sept. 13 on whether to join Service Employees International Union. Mazzoni staff has been advocating for recognition of their union by Mazzoni leadership and made a public statement of their intent during a community meeting held by the city’s Office of LGBT Affairs on Aug. 10. On Aug. 11,  SEIU filed an official petition with the National Labor Relations board for recognition of Mazzoni’s union, according to an email sent to SEIU Healthcare PA list serve.

However, perhaps more troubling than the Glassman’s email is the discovery that Creative Solutions and Visions, a consulting firm Mazzoni brass hired to educate employees on the pros and cons of forming a union, has ties to a right-wing hate group. Creative Solutions and Visions advertises itself as a consulting firm for “union avoidance,” and is founded by Keith Peraino, who also serves as CEO. Peraino also owns USA First 4 Ever, which is registered as a fictitious name of Creative Solutions and Visions in Florida.

Within social media content and posts for both Peraino and USA First 4 Ever are defenses of Neo-Nazis, suggestions the recent violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, was staged, advocacy for banning Muslims from the United States, and perhaps most problematic given the nature of Mazzoni’s clientele: repeated homophobic and transphobic comments.

Sample posts from the USA First 4 Ever Twitter handle, the site linked to Keith Peraino, who is also the founder and CEO of Creative Solutions and Visions. | Twitter screenshot

“When the consulting firm was hired to educate staff on labor relations, there was no transparency or on-boarding, according to staff. There was no email saying who these people are or why they’re here,” a Mazzoni staff member said under condition of anonymity. “We’d ask, ‘who are you?’ and ‘why are you here?’ and they just wouldn’t answer.”

One staff member added, “these people just showed up and took over an office.”

R. Perry Monastero, Mazzoni’s director of development and marketing, told PW via email that leadership “received reports that Creative Solutions may have political beliefs that do not align with our organizational goals.  After reviewing the matter, and while we believe that the consultants who were onsite did an excellent job of educating our employees, we made the decision that it was in the best interest of our organization to terminate our contract with Creative Solutions.”

Multiple Mazzoni employees confirmed to PW however, the contract was only terminated after heated exchanges between staff and leadership. Staff members claim the posts were brought to the attention of Mazzoni leadership, including Glassman, and that initial response was a denial of the connection between the labor consulting firm and the right wing group, followed by an assertion that perhaps the social media sites of both Peraino and USA First 4 Ever had been hacked.

Peraino’s Twitter account, which housed some of the inflammatory messaging, has since been deactivated.

An email from Glassman to staff dated Aug. 25 acknowledged the content of the USA First 4 Ever posts, but maintained Peraino was not personally responsible for any social media content, and apologized for not having adequately researched the firm.  Glassman added in the email, “My hope is that this does not detract from the important question that has been posed to staff of whether or not a union addresses the needs of Mazzoni Center at this time.”

The decision to terminate Creative Solutions and Visions was evidently made after the Aug. 25 email, as Glassman also wrote, “I hope you will accept [Creative Solutions Group’s] sincere apology and cooperate with them as they work with you to share information about the National Labor Relations Act during the time they will be on site.”

A request from PW for information about Mazzoni’s vetting and selection process of outside consultants went unaddressed.

In the aftermath of Creative Solutions, Monastero confirmed that Joe Brock from the Labor Relations Institute has since been hired “to provide education with regard to the National Labor Relations Act and unions so that our staff can hear fact-based presentation on what the law allows, what unions are able to accomplish on behalf of workers, and where, in our opinion, misleading information has been shared with members of our staff.”

In efforts to push the reconsideration of forming a union within Mazzoni Center, interim CEO Steve Gassman sent these sheets via email to staff on the eve of Labor Day weekend.

Mazzoni staff is scheduled to vote on unionization Sept. 13, so time will tell if the management’s efforts will be considered evidence of substantive progress or frankly, too little, too late.

Mazzoni: Mired in controversy

This latest incident is just one of many in the past year for the Mazzoni Center, the only LGBT-focused health-care provider in the Philadelphia area. Controversy started since this spring when its former medical director, Dr Robert Winn, was accused of sexual misconduct. Mazzoni staff claimed former CEO, Nurit Shein and its Board of Directors had covered up Winn’s alleged wrongdoing, in addition to engaging in discriminatory and retaliatory management practices.

Following the staging of two staff walkouts in April in a show of no confidence, Winn was fired and Shein and former board president Jimmy Ruiz were summarily asked to resign.

In July, Glassman was appointed as Mazzoni’s interim CEO. Glassman and Mazzoni management say reforms are well underway. Nevertheless, many members of the staff have told PW that interim leadership has not addressed a culture of retaliation and lack of transparency that they say has long plagued the organization.

“[Mazzoni’s] board and senior leadership are largely intact, so the culture of corruption is still intact, says one staff member. “Retaliation is normalized. Some of these people have been here for decades, so they think this is normal behavior. [In my opinion], there’s been no evidence of change in a positive way.”

Earlier this year, Mazzoni staffers staged a series of protests in efforts to remove former CEO Nurit Shein and former board president Jimmy Ruiz. 

In a statement via email to PW, Monastero wrote:

“Steve Glassman has asked the staff to give him an opportunity to fully implement the organizational and cultural changes to which he had already committed himself and the management team in the seven weeks he has been on the job leading this organization. He has the best interests of Mazzoni’s staff in mind and believes that individuals should have an opportunity to negotiate for themselves directly with management, including with the CEO.”

In response to the staff’s efforts to unionize, Monastero wrote, “We believe it is important for our staff to be fully educated about the National Labor Relations Act and unions before making this important decision.”

Monastero also outlined examples of improvements made under the leadership of Glassman that included improved health insurance benefits for employees, plans for an updated compensation and salary study, and the creation of committees to improve inclusion of staff in decision making.

Glassman’s email to the staff also included a chart comparing the benefits offered by Mazzoni versus other non-profits and other large organizations in the Northeast. It read: “Once collective bargaining starts those benefits are fair game for bargaining,” and that, “The SEIU can trade your current benefits to get things that will benefit only them.”

Asked whether Mazzoni leadership opposes unionization, Monastero replied, “Our CEO and senior staff are open to the concept of unions and support the historically important work that unions have accomplished on behalf of workers in this country. However, it is the opinion of management that at this particular time, when reforms are already well underway, that the establishment of a union at Mazzoni Center is not the best choice for the organization.”

One patient, Adam Williams, 34, who started going to Mazzoni four years ago says the health-care center has provided invaluable, high-caliber treatment. “They saved my life,” says Williams, who resides in Center City. “They are the only LGBT health-care provider in the region and they’re the best at what they do. They serve the community in a vital way. I applaud the staff for taking control. I appreciate their fortitude for speaking out.”

Williams, who also came forward with concerns about the hiring of Creative Solutions and Visions now expresses trepidation about the future of the center. “Where do we have to turn if Mazzoni doesn’t continue to represent us? Do I continue to go there? What are my alternatives?”

 

Source: Philadelphia Weekly