Chicago Housing Authority staff accused CHA’s former general counsel Ellen Harris of creating a “hostile” and “toxic” work environment leading up to her resignation in August 2024, according to public records obtained by the Tribune.
CHA’s head of human resources said in a July 2024 memo to former CHA CEO Tracey Scott that his office and the Office of the Inspector General had received complaints over a 12- to 18-month period about Harris’s “leadership and management style.”
The memo said concerns included “vacancies were purposely not being backfilled, high turnover, employee burnout, hostile work environment, lack of flexibility in work schedules, being disrespected by Chief Harris, and an overall toxic work culture.” Some of the complaints also alleged “instances where Chief Harris publicly berated staff.”
The documents obtained by the Tribune shed light on some of the current staff upheaval at CHA, which has seen numerous high-ranking officials resign and one terminated in recent months. Harris also oversaw the department that was recently flagged by the OIG for failing to enforce tenant lease agreements, resulting in over $10 million being owed to CHA in past due rent.
When reached for comment, Harris told the Tribune, “The nature of my departure is that I resigned. That’s it.” She did not respond further.
CHA did not respond to the Tribune’s questions and instead provided a statement.
“While we cannot provide additional comment on the specific nature of these personnel matters, we remain committed to evolving as an organization by assessing our structure, addressing inefficiencies and making strategic decisions that enhance our ability to serve residents now and in the future,” the statement said.
Scott, who was Harris’s manager, told the Tribune the “documents pretty much speak for themselves” and declined to comment further.
Harris served as general counsel for about two years. Her separation agreement, another record obtained by the Tribune, shows that she was paid about three months beyond her last day.
Harris received a written notice from Scott in March 2024 that cited “strategic leadership” and “other communication and risk management” as “areas of concern.”
In the memo from HR to Scott, the head of HR said his office met with Harris three times to work through issues related to job vacancies, flexible work schedules and collaborating with her team.
“We were not successful in pushing through any of the 3 topics of concern,” he said.
He cited that Harris thought her staff “did not have enough work to do” and that “she didn’t feel they would be responsible or accountable while working at home”; she “would not budge” on filling the vacancies in her department because she said she was “‘still assessing’” the workload for her team; and, in response to staff complaints related to their “work functions,” she said she “was not going to change and either the staff could do what she said or leave the authority.”
The HR chief reported in the memo that certain vacancies had not been filled in six months, with several candidates for open positions declining interviews and job offers due to the lack of telework options in Harris’s department. CHA’s other departments do have remote work options. As of June 2024, the general counsel’s department had nine vacancies in an office of 38 employees.
Following a July 8, 2024, discussion between CHA’s board chair, Scott and Harris that was related to some of the concerns in Harris’ office, HR drafted an email to Harris’s staff permitting remote work; Harris declined to send the email that month.
The agency has hired 12 staff members in CHA’s office of the general counsel since April 2024, CHA said in its statement. Newly hired attorneys will assist with eviction litigation in addition to legal matters related to the agency’s primary housing voucher program, said Elizabeth Silas, acting general counsel, during CHA’s January board meeting. Silas said that two more positions are posted to handle “policy matters” and to assist with “the backlog” of eviction issues.
The OIG also produced its own report following an exit interview with an employee in Harris’s department, a copy of which was obtained through a Tribune records request. Kathryn Richards, CHA’s inspector general, said in the redacted report that she had the conversation as part of an OIG effort to conduct exit interviews with departing employees.
The employee interviewed said her work environment had become “so difficult due to the extreme workload and abusive behavior” of Harris. The employee said she was doing the jobs of three people at one point in 2024, and the turnover in the department was “the highest its [sic] ever been” due to Harris’s behavior toward employees.
In one incident described in the OIG report, Harris “yelled” at an employee “I don’t like surprises!” and “Who approved that?” after Harris had said she expected all workers to attend the end-of-year CHA staff luncheon and the employee said he couldn’t go due to a pre-planned vacation.
“The incident shook the entire team,” the report says.
In another example, following a farewell lunch for a departing employee, Harris asked the departing employee to make a note for a future meeting she would not be at, and Harris “began screaming” in front of the staff when the departing employee asked another worker to take down the information.
“How dare you come unprepared!” Harris said, according to the report.
The OIG report and memo from the head of HR to Scott both cite employees’ fears to speak up about the work environment in Harris’s office. Some expressed concerns, according to the memo, over “their inability to have a proper due process regarding their complaints considering the designated Ethics Officer reports directly to Chief Harris.”
CHA said the agency is “undergoing a significant transition” and is actively hiring for 15 open position across the agency.
“Through these efforts, we are reinforcing our capacity to serve and fostering a strong, effective and inclusive workplace culture that supports both our employees and mission.”
