(TargetDailyNews.com) – After a report claiming the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has a “toxic” culture at work, the agency’s head is stepping down.
The White House announced FDIC head Martin Gruenberg would be leaving the agency as soon as President Joe Biden names a replacement, which the administration says will be “soon.” Until recently, no Democrats had called for Gruenberg’s head, but that changed on May 20th when Senator Sherrod Brown put out a statement requesting that Gruenberg leave the position. Brown is the senior Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee.
The government hired law firm Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton to investigate the workplace culture at the FDIC after employees claimed they were harassed and subjected to lewd behavior. Cleary’s report, released to the public on May 21st, reviewed 500 employee complaints, and points to claims of stalking, anti-gay bigotry, breaches of employment law, harassment, and stalking.
For example, one female employee claimed she was being stalked by a colleague. Even after she reported his behavior, he still harassed her. Another complaint cited a supervisor allegedly referring to gay men as “little girls.” One female employee says a senior colleague sent her a picture of his genitals.
Congress interrogated Gruenberg for two days last week about the allegations from employees and those reported by the law firm in its document. Republicans have been calling for Gruenberg to resign for some time, but Sherrod Brown’s denunciation was the first such call from the left side of the aisle. Brown said that what he has heard from FDIC employees, combined with the hearings last week and the Cleary report, he was “left with one conclusion:” the FDIC needs major changes.
White House Deputy Press Secretary Sam Michel said President Biden expects the agency to “reflect the values of decency and integrity” to protect employee interests.
The FDIC insures American bank accounts for up to $250,000 in case of bank failure.
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