So toxic, I quit and was awarded unemployment by MA “for cause" - Executive Director 617MediaGroup Employee Review

Massachusetts granted my unemployment claim for cause when I quit 617 after I provided documentation that met their criteria for a toxic work environment. I even spoke to an employment lawyer to learn about the claims process and she told me she’s worked with a lot of people and heard a lot of stories about workplaces over the years — and that what I described was “not normal” and well outside the bounds of what she typically encounters. And this was not only her opinion — on two other separate occasions I consulted with other employment lawyers about the problems I encountered working at 617 — and they advised me that my only options were to file a complaint with the AG’s office or to leave. They said that the AG’s office was the route to pursue for the kind of workplace violations I described, but advised me that the best thing I could do was to “get out as quickly as possible.” While at 617, I both experienced and witnessed wage theft through misclassification of employees, was paid less than men I hired, and despite being promised wage increases I had to fight for the only salary increase I received, even thought that increase was part of the initial negotiations when I took the job. And while it is the hardest to quantify, the biggest issue is manipulation and coercion of employees. There is rampant lying and misrepresentation of work and experience to current and potential clients. It was a constant problem created by the President, that routinely put employees in very difficult positions, and endangers their professional reputations and credibility ...Not to mention taking credit for other peoples work. If anyone has worked in an environment led by a narcissist (think Trump-style leadership) you know how exhausting the constant gas-lighting, lying, and lack of accountability can be. Working at 617 was a traumatic experience I had to spend a long time recovering from. Frankly, the repeated responses around vacation and comp time are laughable. Most employees barely take any time off at all. I know one former employee who had hoped that working at 617 would offer greater work/life balance and shared that five months into the job that they had worked every weekend. From what I’ve heard since leaving, senior employees have been dropping like flies once they realize how dysfunctional things are. One former employee who reviewed their union contract said that is basically unenforceable as it is written — employees have little real bargaining power and no ability to strike. The refrains about the “fast-paced nature” and “some finding it challenging to live up to those standards” are are an ill-conceived attempt by management to diminish the facts that have been shared in these reviews and just go to show how concerned they are about what former employees will say about their experiences working there. When I gave notice, the first thing the President did was try to bully me in to saying I wouldn't talk about my experiences, before profusely apologizing and telling me I'm one of the smartest people they know and that they were so sorry ...literally moments after trying to intimidate me. Who would feel safe in that environment? That's why I'm posting this now – because on paper the clients, benefits and job protections look good, but the reality is far from that and I hope to spare some other folks what I went through. When I quit I said it was not a “good fit” and what I meant was that my life and my health are more important than my job and those were the things at stake while working at 617.