Four former employees of the Chicago mayor’s office have accused city officials of retaliating against them after they were placed on the city’s “do not hire” list, effectively barring them from future employment in any city government position.
The former staffers allege the punishment was a direct result of their complaints against Ronnie Reese, the former mayoral communications director, who was recently terminated following allegations of sexual harassment, misogyny, and creating a hostile work environment.
Ashley Rodriguez, a former social media team member for both former Mayor Lori Lightfoot and current Mayor Brandon Johnson, said she was fired and blacklisted after voicing concerns about Reese’s behavior. Rodriguez and three other ex-staffers have publicly claimed their terminations were linked to their decision to speak out about Reese.
Mayor Brandon Johnson responded to the allegations, stating he was unaware of the issues surrounding Reese until recently. Johnson attributed the oversight to a flawed reporting system that failed to disclose the full extent of Reese’s personnel history until it was uncovered through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.
“The system I inherited established a process that did not reveal everything in that personnel file until there was a FOIA request,” he said.
The incident has raised questions about workplace accountability and transparency in city government, with critics urging reforms to ensure complaints are properly addressed and whistleblowers are protected from retaliation.
