The Ohio Civil Rights Commission is supposed to investigate discrimination claims. Now it’s being hit with those complaints from within

The Ohio Civil Rights Commission, which is supposed to protect people from illegal discrimination, is facing complaints from within about retaliation, bullying and discrimination by the director.

Nearly every top executive staff member has left or been fired since Angela Phelps-White took over as agency director in March 2020. The sole holdover filed a complaint against her, saying she retaliated against him for speaking up about poor management.

A state investigation found the retaliation complaint unsubstantiated but noted the agency “is not functioning at maximum capacity.”

In addition to that complaint, four current or former agency employees have filed lawsuits over workplace conditions.

“For more than two years, I have been subjected to and work in an environment where there is bullying, harassment, disrespect and secrecy,” said Darlene Sweeney-Newbern in her 2023 resignation letter.

Sweeney-Newbern, who served as director of regional operations, filed a federal lawsuit against the commission, alleging that she was frozen out of key meetings and information and given extra work such as untangling overpaid overtime issues that led to budget problems. She believes the treatment came in retaliation for participating in an Equal Employment Opportunity investigation.

In January, Civil Rights Investigator Eddie Marcus filed a complaint in the Ohio Court of Claims accusing the commission of not paying him and his co-workers overtime that they’ve been pressured to work.

Marcus is seeking to make it a class action lawsuit.

Earlier this year, the commission paid $650,000 to settle two other lawsuits filed by two former commission employees who accused Phelps-White of job discrimination.

Phelps-White answered written questions and Valerie Lemmie, chair of the commission, spoke for the agency. Lemmie described the executive staff turnover as a byproduct of a leadership change.

“I would say that the ability of the commission to do its job has not been compromised,” Lemmie said. “I have confidence that Angela will be able to do the work that is required. She has the support of the board, and she has the support of our staff.”

New leadership at Ohio Civil Rights Commission

G. Michael Payton retired as commission executive director after nearly two decades at the helm. The commission hired Phelps-White to replace him in 2020.

In short order, some employees complained that her style was inappropriate, demeaning and toxic.

In 2022, the commission chairwoman at the time, Lori Barreras, started an internal investigation.

Employees told Barreras about low morale, lack of communication, unreasonable workloads, personnel clashes and a lack of confidence in Phelps-White. They said the director made inappropriate remarks about LGBTQ+ people and dressed down employees in front of others.

“It is terrible working for Angela,” one worker told Barreras.

After interviewing the former human resources manager, Barreras noted: “He believes Angela is the worst nightmare for the commission.”

Following Barreras’ investigation, the commission hired attorney Christina Corl to conduct another internal investigation. In a January 2023 report, Corl described how employees alleged that Phelps-White yells profanity, retaliates against employees who challenge her and operates the agency with paranoia.

Corl found some of the claims against Phelps-White to be substantiated and that employees reported being overwhelmed by unreasonable workloads.

In Corl’s report, Phelps-White described how she has been trying to be a change agent to improve operations, modernize the commission and push employees to be accountable for their job performance.

Phelps-White’s personnel file lacks any disciplinary records or written performance reviews.

Skyrocketing claims, bigger workloads

The number of employment discrimination claims being investigated by the commission is skyrocketing − thanks to a sweeping change in state law made five years ago.

Legislators and Gov. Mike DeWine agreed to cut the time employees have to bring a claim from six years to two years and require that all claims start at the civil rights commission. The Employment Law Uniformity Act took effect in April 2021.

The number of claims sent to the commission increased by more than 140%, from 3,220 in 2020 to 7,779 in 2024.

Marcus said in his lawsuit that he faced a “drastic increase” in workload after the law changed.

Vince Curry, a housing discrimination investigator based in Akron, said the dysfunction and the higher caseload mean investigations take longer.

“I think it’s all interconnected. The dysfunction at the commission impacts our clients,” said Curry, of Fair Housing Advocates Association.

Lemmie disagreed, saying 90% of the commission jobs are filled, and a new $1.5 million case management system has helped with the workload. The administration added employee training and overtime as well, she said.

“We are doing our best to work with Angela and her team,” Lemmie said.

What is the Ohio Civil Rights Commission?

The state has a long history of prohibiting discrimination, starting in 1884 with the Ohio Public Accommodations Law that outlawed racial discrimination in public facilities.

The laws were expanded again in 1959, 1965 and 1976 to protect discrimination based on race, color, sex, disability, age, religion, national origin, ancestry, military status and family status in housing and credit in marital status. State law does not prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

Of the discrimination complaints handled by the Ohio Civil Rights Commission, about 25% relate to disability, 25% to race and 12% to age.

Laura Bischoff is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.