Top Democrat calls for Biden to replace FDIC chairman to fix agency’s ‘toxic culture’
The most powerful Democrat in Congress on banking and financial issues called for President Biden to replace the chairman of the Federalꦉ Deposit Insurance Corp. on Monday, saying the agency is broᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚken and there must be “fundamental ch🍸anges at the FDIC.”
Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, took aim at FDIC Chair Martin Gruenberg following a damning report about the agency’s toxic workplace culture earlier this month.
Gruenberg late Monday announced he would resign once a successor is confirmed.
Gruenberg took some of the bla♍ಞme during testimony at a congressional hearing last week, but maintained that he would be able to turn the agency around.
“After chairing last week’s hearing, reviewing the independent report, and receiving further outreach from FDIC employees to the Banking and Housing Committee, I am left with one conclusion: there must ཧbe fundamental changes at the FDIC,” Brown said Monday.
Up until Monda🥃y, no Democrats had called for Gruenberg’s replacement, although several came very close to doing so in their own statements. Brown’s statement will likely lead to other Democrats to now call for Gruenberg’s removal.
In his statement, Brown did not call for Gruenberg to be fired. He is in the middle of his six-year term as chairman of the FDIC and if Gruenberg were to s♛tep down, Vice Chair Travis Hill, a Republican, would lead the agency. Brown instead called on President Biden to nominate a new chair for the FDIC “without delay,” which the Senate would then confirm.
Republicans have been calling for Gruenberg to step down for some time. At Thursday’s hearing, Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C. and the top Republican on the committee, detailed several stories of female FDIC workers who outlined extreme harassꦦment and st𓃲alking by their coworkers, complaints tha♏t were dismissed by supervisors, according to the report.
“Marty — you’ve heard me say this to you directly — you should resign,” Scott said. “Your employees do not have confidence in you. And this is not a single incident. This span🌠s over a decade-plus of your leadership at the FDIC.”
Scott, who called for Gruenberg to step down in December when the initial allegations were made public, is now calling for the Banking Co♑mmittee to hold a separate hearing on the FDIC’s workplace issues.
Gruenberg has been been involved in various levels of leadership at the FDIC for nearly 20 years, and this is his second full term as FDIC chair. His long tenure at the agency at the highest levels of power has made💙 him largely responsible for the agency’s toxic work environment, according to the independent report outlining the problems at the agency.
by laཧw firm Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton cites incidents of stalking, harassment, hom🎐ophobia and other violations of employment regulations, based on more than 500 complaints from employees.
Complaints included a woman who said she was stalked by a coworker and continually harassed even after complaining about his behavior; a field office supervisor referring to gay men as “little girls;” a♔nd a female field examiner who described receiving a picture of an FDIC se𒐪nior examiner’s private parts.
The FDIC is one of several bankꦓ🗹ing system regulators. The Great Depression-era agency is best known for running the nation’s deposit insurance program, which insures Americans’ deposits up to $250,000 in case their bank fails.
Sheila Bair, who was chair of the FDIC through the 2008 financial crisis and was one of th꧟e most prominent voices from government at that time, posted on Twitter on Monday that it would be best for the agency if Gruenberg would step down.
“Thꦉis controversy is hurting him and his agency. For his own sake and everyone at the FDIC, he should announce his intention to resign effective with the appointment,” she said.
