The union that represents Vermont’s state employees has renewed its executive director’s contract only a few months after his staff criticized his leadership.
The Vermont State Employees’ Association board of trustees voted Tuesday to renew Executive Director Steve Howard’s contract for two more years.
Howard’s position with the union was cast into question in October, when Staff Alliance, the union that represents the union’s employees, wrote to the VSEA board airing concerns about Howard’s leadership.
According to the letter, the 16 members of Staff Alliance “voted overwhelmingly to cast a vote of no confidence” in Howard and cited issues with management.
At that time, the VSEA board tabled a motion not to renew Howard’s contract, which was set to expire in mid-2016.
However, at Tuesday’s meeting, the board opted to keep Howard on for two more years. He was named executive director in the summer of 2014.
Howard said Tuesday afternoon he is “tremendously honored” to hold his position.
“I believe very strongly in the cause of the state employees,” he said. “I was a state employee, my mother was a state employee — this is not just a job for me, so I feel gratified that they have this confidence in me.”
Adam Norton, who heads Staff Alliance, said the union’s staff respects the board’s decision.
“And we look forward to focusing on the tasks at hand,” Norton said, referencing ongoing contract negotiations and the VSEA’s push for “adequate staffing” for state employees.
Norton said work continues on resolving some of the concerns Staff Alliance raised in the letter and that he is hopeful the issues will be resolved.
