East Lansing City Manager Placed on Leave
A week after East Lansing Grants Coordinator Erica Dziedzic-Hernandez accused City Manager Robert Belleman of sexual harassment and verbal abuse during a City Council meeting, the City Council voted to place Belleman on paid leave.
At Tuesday’s meeting, the City Council returned from a nearly 90-minute closed-session and voted to place Belleman on leave, effective Wednesday at noon. The motion passed will also have the city to contract with Thrun Law Firm to answer “initial questions” raised by the council during closed-session. Belleman will appoint an acting city manager to lead the city while he is on leave.
The council did not clarify what questions were raised in closed-session and voted unanimously in favor of the motion, without discussion.
At the May 19 City Council meeting, Dziedzic-Hernandez said during public comment that Belleman gave her the nickname “Too Easy” and threatened her job.
On May 21, the City Council held a special meeting where it voted to release the investigation into Dziedzic-Hernandez’s complaint that was completed late last year.
The investigation, released the following day, included interviews with Dziedzic-Hernandez, Belleman and six other city employees. The law firm hired to complete the investigation, Miller Canfield, did not find evidence to support Dziedzic-Hernandez’s claims of bullying and sexual harassment, but interviews did indicate there are problems with the city’s workplace culture, that Belleman can be especially stern towards women and that it is perceived that Belleman has favorites within the city staff.
Both the May 21 special meeting and Tuesday’s City Council meeting saw residents speak during public comment who called for Belleman to be fired.
During his communications time at Tuesday’s meeting, Belleman made a statement directed at the city’s workforce.
“I’m sorry if any of you have felt that I have not been the leader that you needed me to be,” he said. “Each day I strive for the city to deliver services at the highest level possible, but I can do better and I will do better. I have taken your feedback to heart, your comments and concerns have not fallen on deaf ears, and I will make positive changes going forward. I care about you, the residents we serve and our community.”
Belleman was hired as East Lansing city manager in September of 2023, and signed a new three-year contract with the city last fall.
Before being hired by East Lansing, Belleman worked as Saginaw County controller. He was fired in June of 2023 following allegations that he created a toxic workplace.