Allegations have surfaced inside the Lee County Property Appraiser’s Office in Florida regarding discrimination and workplace bullying, a local TV station reported. An investigation began in August when an employee filed a complaint.
The employee alleges the chief deputy, Jim Sherron, was threatening staff, which prompted an internal investigation. Property Appraiser Ken Wilkinson, according to WBBH-TV, Channel 2, in Fort Myers, said “the matter is strictly a personnel matter.”
Wilkinson told the station that the investigation was completed and the office is moving forward after what he called “a difference in management between two people.”
For the investigation, the property appraiser’s office hired an outside attorney costing more than $4,000. The attorney reviewed claims that Sherron, Wilkinson’s second in command, was threatening, discriminatory and demeaning to the complainant and others in the office.
According to the station, results of the investigation found that Sherron did not break discrimination law, but he may have to go through a management review to determine appropriateness, and his actions could qualify as bullying within the office. Ultimately, the property appraiser said this issue could be brought up on Sherron’s annual review.