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Birmingham Water Works board member sues utility and fellow board members over suspended salaries

Theo

GOSPEL LEGEND. THIS IS WVTM 13. BREAKING NEWS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW, AND THIS BREAKING NEWS: A BOARD MEMBER OF BIRMINGHAM WATERWORKS HAS FILED A LAWSUIT AGAINST THE CHAIRMAN AND FORMER EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR UNPAID WAGES. LUCIAN BLANKENSHIP FILED THE LAWSUIT. THIS MORNING HE CLAIMS THAT CHAIRMAN TRICIA HUFFMAN AND FORMER EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR MICHAEL JOHNSON WITHHOLD HIS SALARY OF OVER $10,000 FOR ALMOST A YEAR, AS WE REPORTED LAST WEEK. HUFFMAN CLAIMS THE REASON HE WASN’T PAID WAS BECAUSE HE DID NOT SIGN THE BOARD’S NEW SELF-GOVERNANCE POLICY. PART OF THIS POLICY STATES THAT BOARD MEMBERS WHO DO NOT AGREE TO TRAINING ON ETHICS AND MEETING RULES CAN HAVE THEIR MONTHLY SALARY WITHHELD. BLANKENSHIP AND BOARD MEMBER GEORGE LUCA

Birmingham Water Works board member sues utility and fellow board members over suspended salaries

A member of the Birmingham Water Works Board has filed suit against the utility as well as his fellow board members, alleging that he has waived his monthly meeting expense allowance since last May. In April 2023, the utility adopted some new self-governance policies. One of them required each board member to sign a pledge to attend ethics and meeting rules training. The policy states that board members who do not agree to the new policy will not receive an expense allowance for attending meetings. According to the board chair, board members Lucien Blankenship and George Munchus have not been paid since they failed to sign the pledge. On Monday, Munchus filed suit against board chair Tereshia Huffman as well as former general manager Michael Johnson. Both Huffman and Johnson are being sued in their official and personal capacities. The suit claims that on July 26, 2023, Huffman ordered Johnson to suspend all future payments of the monthly meeting allowance to Munchus, and that he had not been paid since May of that year, “despite his perfect attendance and participation.” Before filing the suit, Huffman explained that the board was merely enforcing policy. “The action we have taken in this matter is simple: The days of not following Alabama law are over. The violations of Alabama’s ethics policy are over,” Huffman said. “Far too often over the decades, our organization and our community have been harmed by the actions of a few, and it is the hope and efforts of the majority of this board that those days will end.” The suit calls both Huffman and Johnson’s actions “arbitrary, unconstitutional and grossly negligent,” and claims they violate Muchus’ “right to due process under the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments.” Munchus, who reportedly suffered “injuries and damages, including lost wages, mental anguish, emotional distress and humiliation” as a result of his colleagues’ actions, is seeking “the full amount of unpaid session fees due and owing up to the date of judgment, plus an additional amount of the same amount in damages, attorneys’ fees, costs and interest.” A 2015 law set directors’ compensation at $285 per session, with a cap of $1,000 per month. So, depending on how many sessions he attended, Munchus could be missing out on more than $10,000.

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama —

A member of the Birmingham Water Works Board has filed a lawsuit against the utility and his fellow board members, claiming he has waived his monthly meeting allowance since last May.

Back in April 2023, the utility company adopted some new self-governance policies. One of them required each board member to sign a commitment to attend training on ethics and meeting rules.

The policy states that directors who do not agree to the new policy will not receive compensation for attending meetings.

According to the CEO, directors Lucien Blankenship and George Munchus were not paid because they did not sign the engagement letter.

On Monday, Munchus filed suit against CEO Tereshia Huffman and former CEO Michael Johnson. Both Huffman and Johnson are being sued in their official and personal capacities.

The lawsuit alleges that on July 26, 2023, Huffman instructed Johnson to suspend all future payments of Munchus’ monthly session fee and that he has not received any money since May of that year, “despite his perfect attendance and participation.”

Before the lawsuit was brought, Huffman explained that the board was simply enforcing its policies.

“The action we have taken on this matter is simple: The days of not following Alabama law are over. The days of violating Alabama’s ethical guidelines are over,” Huffman said. “Far too often over the decades, our organization and our community have been harmed by the actions of a few, and the majority of this body hopes and strives to see those days end.”

The lawsuit calls Huffman and Johnson’s actions “arbitrary, unconstitutional, and grossly negligent” and allegedly violated Muchus’ “right to a fair trial under the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.”

Munchus, who reportedly suffered “injuries and damages, including loss of wages, mental anguish, emotional distress and humiliation” as a result of his colleagues’ conduct, is seeking “the full amount of the conference fees due and outstanding up to the date of judgment, plus an additional amount of the same amount in damages, attorneys’ fees, costs and interest.”

A 2015 law set director compensation at $285 per meeting, with a cap of $1,000 per month.

Depending on how many meetings he attended, Munchus could be missing out on over $10,000.

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