Valley Water is suing one of its directors for removing confidential documents from its district offices.
The water district sued Director Rebecca Eisenberg on April 22 for removing a confidential report from office, which also led to her being censured by her colleagues on the board in March. Eisenberg has 30 days to respond to the lawsuit.
The district had been investigating allegations that Eisenberg fostered a hostile work environment. and made sexist comments. Eisenberg also accused top district officials of gender discrimination, harassment and abusive behavior.
Valley Water spokesman Matt Keller said the board has asked Eisenberg several times to return the documents, including board President Nai Hsueh asking him to do so during the censure hearing.
“The Valley Water board of directors has been consistent in its request that the confidential report be returned to Valley Water,” Keller told San José Spotlight.
Eisenberg denied any wrongdoing and repeated that he notified district employees of his intention to take the documents. The lawsuit also suggests that he shared the report with others, but said he signed a sworn statement that he had not shared it with anyone, not even his attorney.
“It is deceptive, consists of intentionally and deliberately false statements made with malicious intent, and seeks documents already in its possession, all funded by taxpayer dollars during a time when the district is having a contract pause,” Eisenberg said to San José Spotlight.
San José Spotlight first reported that Eisenberg took more than 2,000 pages of documents related to the district. $587,497 investigation against her. Investigators substantiated nine of a total of 25 complaints accusing Eisenberg of harassment or offensive conduct by CEO Rick Callender, District Attorney Carlos Orellana and other employees.
Eisenberg ruffled feathers on the water table almost immediately after ousting his predecessor Gary Kremen in November 2022, who faced his own allegations that included workplace harassment. Eisenberg criticized Valley Water for failing to hold Kremen accountable and make changes after an investigation found Kremen violated district policies when intimidated, verbally assaulted and threatened district workers.
In early 2023, Valley Water officials said they received numerous workplace complaints accusing Eisenberg of gender discrimination and making inappropriate comments. Documents obtained by San José Spotlight allege that Eisenberg blamed the region’s infrastructure problems, such as flooding, on men who “love to build things” using concrete.
The agency’s costly investigation became public in February. It also details an incident in June of last year, where Eisenberg told board president Nai Hsueh that “English is not his first language, so I want to make sure he understands it.” The comment came after Hsueh told Eisenberg that he didn’t know what the Latin term ad hominem meant, which “surprised” Eisenberg.
Eisenberg told investigators that he was not demeaning Hsueh based on race or national origin, but rather was “acting around (Hsueh’s) language barrier,” according to the report.
Eisenberg also leveled eight allegations of discrimination, harassment, abusive conduct or retaliation against Callender, Orellana and the district, although investigators hired by the agency determined there was insufficient evidence to support his claims.
Eisenberg said the investigation was retaliation by Callender and Orellana in response to concerns she raised about sexism at the agency.
The board of directors, including Eisenberg, were allowed to view 2,000 confidential pages related to the investigation, including supporting documents and interviews with employees, in a secure room near the Valley Water secretary’s office. Members were not allowed to take photographs or copies of confidential materials and were told that the documents could not leave the room.
Eisenberg noted that he never denied taking the documents, but said he believes the public deserves to read the full report. Eisenberg said he suggested releasing a redacted version of the report, but the water district disagreed.
“I’m glad the public is starting to see how Valley Water’s chief executive, district council and majority of the board behave – how little they care about their statutory and moral responsibility to spend public money responsibly” Eisenberg told San José Spotlight. . “Is your job to provide clean water at an affordable price? How exactly does this lawsuit do anything other than increase water rates?
Valley Water Lawsuit Against Eisenberg
Contact B. Sakura Cannestra at [email protected] or @SakuCannestra on X, formerly known as Twitter.
