Lighthouse managers fired, escorted out of shelter by board members

Five managers at the Lighthouse have been fired effective immediately "without cause" after a month of upheaval at the Saskatoon shelter, according to termination letters obtained by CBC News.

Two managers say security and board members — including the new co-managing directors Jerome Hepfner and Twila Reddekopp, who signed the termination letters — escorted them out of the building.

Another manager, who works from home, says a board member and two security guards dropped off the letter there.

The letters say the terminated employees are "entitled to pay in lieu of notice in accordance with the Saskatchewan Employment Act," calculated based on the length of time they worked. 

Their benefit coverage has ceased immediately, according to the letters. 

"We thank you for your service to the Lighthouse and wish you all the best," the letters read.

In an emailed statement to CBC News, Hepfner wrote, "we are going through some operational challenges at the Lighthouse, but they will not affect the services and support we provide to the people in need in Saskatoon."

He added that the changes to the management team are personnel matters that will not be discussed in the media. 

Managers speak out

A few weeks ago, nine members of the Lighthouse management team signed a letter asking the provincial government to appoint a mediator after the organization's executive director, Don Windels, was put on leave with Hepfner and Reddekopp assuming leadership. No reason was given for Windels's absence.

Everyone who has been fired so far had signed that letter. 

One manager said the new managing directors are not willing to meet with managers as a group and will only meet one-on-one. 

On Jan. 18, an email signed by Hepfner and Reddekopp told managers to follow directions and that "insubordination in any form will not be tolerated."

The manager said this has made for a "hostile work environment" for managers and administrative staff. 

'Shock and disbelief'

Melissa Smith was the Lighthouse associate executive director up until Tuesday.

"I think we're all in a state of shock and disbelief that this could be happening when we've been really dedicated employees and working hard to serve the community," Smith said. 

She was in a meeting when board member Adeel Salman and Reddekopp said they needed to speak with her. A security guard accompanied them. Salman then handed Smith the termination letter. 

"He said that this is my termination. I said 'under what authority do you have to terminate me?' given all this board conflict and unrest and we haven't seen any board meetings or resolutions that would've accompanied [Hepfner and Reddekopp] being co-managing directors," Smith said.

"They didn't want to talk about that, so they weren't providing any comments back at that time."

Smith said she's unsure what the overall impact of the terminations will be on the organization, but that it's "truly shocking" given that roles such as fundraising and communications manager, and director of business services who oversees human resources, are now vacant. 

She said she thinks the day-to-day operations can still continue, "but I'm not confident that it will be without disruption or impact to the people that we're serving."