LEWISTON, Maine — Some union workers with the City of Lewiston have cast a "no-confidence" vote against Mayor Carl Sheline and are seeking his impeachment.
At a city council meeting Tuesday night, MSEA-SEIU Local 1989 local chapter president Adam Jones announced 95 percent of union members voted "no confidence" for Sheline earlier this month.
Jones accused the mayor of bias toward businesses, creating a toxic work environment, and political favoritism. He also shared Sheline had recently initiated the process to put the planning and code enforcement director on administrative leave, and discussed eliminating the health inspector position, a union position.
"The city mayor has repeatedly shown lack of respect for our legal rights and processes spelled out in our union contracts, including conducting non-transparent investigations and discipline that blatantly goes against our collective bargaining agreements," Jones said.
NEWS CENTER Maine reached out to the Lewiston mayor following the city council meeting. Sheline released the following statement in response.
"I value our city employees and enjoy working with them every day helping to make Lewiston a better place. I am disappointed and surprised at this vote given that this group of employees hasn't reached out to me to talk through their concerns and especially since the office of the mayor doesn't have the power to hire or fire city staff. Nonetheless, I value the input of our unions, take their concerns seriously and look forward to working with all city employees to continue to make Lewiston a great place to work."
NEWS CENTER Maine also reached out to city councilors regarding the meeting and union vote.
Councilor Joshua Nagine said he was not surprised by the vote, saying in part:
"I believe that everyone who works for the city wants to feel that they doing a job that is appreciated, that they are valued contributors to Lewiston's present and future, and that they will be supported when they do the jobs they were tasked with. It's clear that many don’t feel that way based on the no confidence vote."
City Councilor Scott Harriman said while there is no mechanism for impeachment, the council does have the ability to judge of the qualifications of its members, including the Mayor. Harriman added the city council is continuing to digest the information shared at the meeting and is working determine a path forward at this time.