The Ohio Civil Rights Commission determined the Toledo Fire and Rescue Department’s first female assistant chief was likely denied a promotion to lead the agency, and afterward subjected to harassment, because of her gender.
Karen Marquardt filed a discrimination complaint against the city and the fire department in September, contending she was denied a promotion to fire chief because she’s a woman. She also contends a captain and other higher-ranking men within the fire department harassed her and that city officials failed to investigate her allegations about a hostile work environment.
“I was rejected in favor of a male candidate, Brian Byrd, who has less relevant experience and qualifications,” Chief Marquardt wrote in her complaint to the commission. “During my interview, Wade Kapszukiewicz, city of Toledo Mayor, indicated that I clearly was qualified because I had the most experience in the position. Mr. Kapszukiewicz also stated that some people have told him he has enough women in leadership positions and some say perhaps he has too many.”
The commission found it probable that city and fire department leaders engaged in unlawful discriminatory practices against Chief Marquardt in denying her the promotion and in subjecting her to harassment, according to commission records dated June 28.
Chief Marquardt also claimed she was later demoted to battalion chief — her current role — as an act of retaliation. However, the commission did not find probable cause regarding the retaliation claim linked to her demotion and dismissed it.
Before the demotion, Chief Marquardt served in the assistant chief role for four years. She has been with the department since 1996.
On June 13, 2018, former Fire Chief Luis Santiago announced he would be retiring at the beginning of August of that year. Under the city’s charter, the mayor has the authority to select the next fire chief.
Mayor Kapszukiewicz considered three internal candidates: then-Assistant Chief Marquardt along with battalion chiefs David Hitt and Brian Byrd, who was later chosen for the role.
The commission said information shows Mayor Kapszukiewicz had made a comment to Chief Marquardt regarding “having enough women in leadership positions,” although the mayor indicated to the commission he had been joking.
The mayor, who has been lauded for having the most female staff members in Toledo’s history, declined comment for this story through a spokesman.
The city of Toledo will have an opportunity to appeal the commission’s finding. If an appeal is made, the case will go to a reconsideration supervisor for review.
Chief Marquardt also declined to comment on the pending case.
At a news conference on July 24, Mayor Kapszukiewicz announced he selected Chief Byrd as the next fire chief primarily because of his background as a paramedic. The mayor indicated Chief Marquardt was not a paramedic, however, “he was unaware if the third candidate, Chief Hitt, was a paramedic,” the commission found.
Prior to serving on the fire department, Chief Marquardt served for nearly 20 years as a chemical dependency counselor. Additionally, she provided oversight for the emergency medical services and training bureaus. In that role, she was responsible for the fire department’s paramedic program, according to the commission’s findings.
Mayor Kapszukiewicz had told The Blade he considered leadership style when selecting a new fire chief, but witnesses interviewed by the commission said Chief Byrd “had problems performing all of the duties in the position of deputy chief,” after he was promoted to that role in 2007.
Chief Byrd voluntarily took a demotion to battalion chief in 2016.
The commission also weighed in on the relationships and leadership role connections between Chief Byrd, Chief Marquardt, and ex-Chief Santiago.
“Chief Byrd was outside former Fire Chief Santiago’s core decision-making group. However, Mayor Kapszukiewicz stated he never observed [Chief Marquardt’s] leadership style but heard she was a more hierarchical style with rank and command and that former Fire Chief Santiago was like that as well, and that [Chief Marquardt] and Chief Santiago were ‘joined at the hip,’” the commission wrote in its letter of determination.
Chief Marquardt also indicated in her complaint she was harassed by “supporters” of the mayor and the mayor’s staff when she attempted to file an internal complaint, according to commission records.
During an August captain’s meeting, Chief Marquardt claims Capt. Dan Brown-Martinez berated her, stated he was out to “get her,” and that he was in full support of the mayor.
Chief Marquardt reported the incident to city Safety Director Karen Poore and requested an investigation.
“[Email] communications show Ms. Poore consulted with the law department and advised [Chief Marquardt] to follow her chain of command and speak with Fire Chief Byrd regarding the matter. After [Chief Marquardt] informed Ms. Poore that she was uncomfortable speaking to Fire Chief Byrd about the matter, Ms. Poore again directed her to follow her chain of command and speak with Fire Chief Byrd,” according to the commission’s determination letter.
Chief Marquardt met with Alan Bannister, the director of the city’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion on Oct. 4. The commission found that Chief Marquardt told Mr. Bannister of communication issues between her and the fire chief and was advised again to bring up the issue with Fire Chief Byrd.
Chief Marquardt contacted Mr. Bannister by email on Oct. 16 to follow up on her “concern of a hostile work environment” and asked for an update on her complaint, the determination letter stated.
“Mr. Bannister does not recall receiving the [email] and states that there has been no investigation into [Chief Marquardt’s] complaint by the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. Further, another female attempted to file a discrimination complaint with the Office of Diversity and Inclusion for investigation to no avail,” according to the commission.
However, commission documents show when a male firefighter filed a discrimination complaint with the office on Feb. 9, 2018 claiming he was subjected to harassment and a hostile work environment, an investigation ensued and a determination was made a month later.
The commission determined the discrepancy with how the city handled complaints from female firefighters versus male ones also equated to discrimination.
Further, the commission found Chief Marquardt was frequently subjected to harassing conversations — such as a battalion chief commenting about, “the boys were working hard for me,” despite having two females under his command. An overall lack of inclusion for women was also noted across the department — such as when new shirts were ordered for the chiefs and they only came in men’s sizes — despite the fact that there were two female chiefs.
Assistant Chief John Kaminski, who serves as the leader of the department while Fire Chief Byrd was out of the office, also declined to comment through a spokesman, indicating he had not had an opportunity to read through the commission’s findings.
Attempts to reach city Law Director Dale Emch were unsuccessful.
First Published July 4, 2019, 3:46 p.m.
