Lessons from the Cuomo Downfall

It’s been compared to Shakespearean tragedy: the dizzying plunge of Andrew Cuomo from the Emmy-winning “America’s governor” during the darkest days of COVID-19 to a disgraced, unemployed has-been, subject of several criminal and civil investigations, living in his sister’s guest room. The damning August 3, 2021 report from the New York Attorney General, finding that Cuomo had sexually harassed nine State employees and then retaliated against at least one of them, led swiftly to Cuomo’s resignation on August 23, 2021. (Not only did Cuomo lose his job, but his Emmy, awarded for his daily COVID-19 briefings during the height of the pandemic, was revoked the next day.)

The AG’s 165-page report, based on interviews of 179 people, including Cuomo, and review of more than 74,000 documents, emails, texts, and pictures, provides some important lessons for all employers.

1. Take training seriously. Despite the fact that Cuomo had signed legislation in 2018 requiring New York employers to have effective anti-harassment policies and provide interactive harassment prevention training to all employees annually, the AG’s investigation revealed that many State employees were not aware of reporting protocols and that there had been “poor enforcement of sexual harassment training.” Apparently, employees were allowed to avoid training by having a co-worker sign for them, and the report noted that “it appears the levels of compliance with the sexual harassment training requirement among senior staff remained sparse.”

2. Follow your policies! The AG’s report described repeated instances where the State’s policies on reporting and investigating harassment were ignored: “We find that the problem did not rest with the Executive Chamber’s written policies, which were robust and consistent with the requirements of New York State law, but in the Executive Chamber’s failure to follow them.”

3. Workplace culture matters. The AG’s report also found that, “[o]ver the course of our investigation, most witnesses not in the Governor’s inner circle provided a consistent narrative as to the office culture of the Executive Chamber, describing it as ‘toxic’ and full of bullying-type behavior, where unflinching loyalty to the Governor and his senior staff was highly valued.” Indeed, many current and former employees described “a pattern and culture of bullying, intimidation, and retaliation that appeared to not only to be condoned but expected and even promoted as an effective management technique and as evidence of strength and commitment.”

What this means to you: Demonstrate your organization’s commitment to a harassment-free, respect-filled workplace by providing your workforce with the best in interactive, instructor-led harassment prevention training.

The key learning points of all Fair Measures training programs are easily remembered because we make our trainings fully interactive. We use videos, case studies, polls questions and extensive Q&A to help participants learn about laws and company practices for harassment prevention to help them create and maintain a respect-filled workplace for all. Find out more about our national employment law training programs or book a workshop by calling 800-458-2778 or by emailing us.