Subject: Does this look like a clear cut and obvious High Sierra Industry (HSI, Reno, Nevada) management-led retaliation against long-time almost legendarily loyal employee, Chad Dehne?
If so, is it because they feared he might be a Whistleblower?
And why is this taking place at the same time that Dehne is the sole Challenger for Reno mayor? (click)

                                                                                       
This Report is an Official Objection to the "cell phone ruse and ambush" perpetrated by (grossly over-paid) management at HSI that is being used to try to avoid paying Unemployment Insurance Compensation to long-time employees... including ultra-loyal Chad Dehne. It is also an objection to the besmirching of his good name... by some upper level employees who are rumored to be include many bull-dyke lesbians.  If true, should bull-dyke lesbians like this be allowed to oversee Special Needs citizens... who could easily be victimized in all sorts of lascivious manners?

(HSI is supposed to be a non-profit shoestring budget organization that helps Special Needs people. But a cursory investigation shows that, as far back as 2007, Lavonne Brooks was paid over $136,000... an extra-ordinarily extravagant number by just about any measurement. (And that does not even include the money she was "making" by having paid employees do private and personal work for her... often with company equipment.)

Note: The only palatable reason for Dehne’s job loss (if there is any justification for terminating such a loyal and talented person), would be that it is due to the bad Nevada economy (14 1/2% unemployment in Nevada).

THIS SAYS IT ALL!

Lavonne Brooks is the executive director of HSI.
HSI is a quasi-gvmt organization.
HSI receives the vast amount of its operating capital from the government (gvmt) as portrayed on its IRS 990 data form (click).

Ms. Brooks often had Dehne do personal work for her on gvmt/company time and using gvmt/company equipment.

Dehne politely objected directly to Brooks about this abuse of authority, mismanagement, and mistreatment.
Brooks retaliated by claiming Dehne misused a cell phone that he was told to use "as if it was his own phone".
(One has to laugh at this most tacky tawdry charge that even the silliest of managers could conjure up.)

Brooks' casual misuse of company personnel and equipment created a nonchalant "work atmosphere"... albeit wrongful. That is, Brooks by her very own blatantly double-dealing actions, set the tone that  fomented, cultivated, and almost encouraged "loosy goosy" use of company equipment and paraphernalia by virtually everybody in her upper management.

This trifling and petty accusation (less than $100 over 3 months) of overzealous cell phone usage... is obvious retaliation for what HSI management considered to be Dehne's Whistleblowing objection to misuse of company property, equipment, and employees.

It must be noted that Dehne did not even ask for a cell phone.  And the cell phone was in his possession less than 1/3rd of each day. 

The entire scheme... to try to blame his departure from the company on a few measly phone calls... is transparent and tacky tawdry.

And to exemplify the ultimate in hypocritical ironies... when the second-hand cell phone was handed down to Dehne from his supervisor, she had left several very personal text messages between her and a girl friend. These messages were of a VERY personal and specific nature.

And then there is the question of how many other recently laid off employees were victims of these sorts of HSI management machinations?

Chad Dehne, a long-time VERY loyal and talented HSI Employee should be given the full Unemployment Insurance Benefits that were generated during his several years of excellent work. He should not be retaliated against for complaining about employer mis-conduct.

Furthermore, it is a diabolical thing to try to besmirch Dehne’s record after all of the wonderful things he did for the working level people at HSI

Further facts, questions, and comments of note:

Termination is due to economic hard times across nation and likely at HSI.

Several other long time and hard working employees have also been let go recently... for picayune charges... after many years of excellent work.

Questions about HSI’s phone plan:

With all of today's wonderful cell phone technology and plans, how could HSI come up with such a chintzy phone plan? ($77 = 3 months) And why wasn't Dehne’s use of his cell phone challenged when the bill for the first Month came in? Do any other HSI employees use their so-called company phones for personal reasons?

"StraightTalk" Phone Company permits 1,000 minutes of talk time per month for only $30. Brooks has made the decision to use (it seems) a more expensive system. Side note: StraightTalk is an Hispanic company. Is she getting a kick-back from her present phone service provider?

A Whistleblower is a person who raises a concern about wrongdoing occurring in an organization or body of people. Usually this person would be from that same organization. The revealed misconduct may be classified in many ways; for example, a violation of a law, rule, regulation and/or a direct threat to public interest, such as fraud, health/safety violations, and corruption. Whistleblowers may make their allegations internally (for example, to other people within the accused organization) or externally (to regulators, law enforcement agencies, to the media or to groups concerned with the issues).

Whistleblowers frequently face reprisal, sometimes at the hands of the organization or group which they have accused, sometimes from related organizations, and sometimes under law.

Whistleblower Protection Act of 1989 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whistleblower (click)

The Whistleblower Protection Act of 1989 is a United States federal law that protects federal whistleblowers, or persons who work for the government who report agency misconduct. A federal agency violates the Whistleblower Protection Act if it takes or fails to take (or threatens to take or fail to take) a personnel action with respect to any employee or applicant because of any disclosure of information by the employee or applicant that he or she reasonably believes evidences a violation of a law, rule or regulation; gross mismanagement; gross waste of funds; an abuse of authority; or a substantial and specific danger to public health or safety.

Further note: Eventually the Authorities will challenge Brooks to a polygraph about her integrity and about his being fired for being a whistleblower.
A credible polygraph will require an impartial technician from out of area.

"Reasonableness" (from standard Employee Handbook):
"No matter what policy you (managers) promulgate, what steps you take, what procedures you follow, what evidence you heap up, or how egregious the misconduct may seem to you, the event will be measured against the standard: "Is is reasonable?". Time and again, the key word "reasonable" recurs to temper unemployment laws and regulations. Yet nothing is so subjective as what is reasonable. No definition whatever can lay hold of this slippery term."
What is "unreasonable" is for the boss to force a worker to do private work for her.. on company time and using company equipment.
NO! Not "unreasonable"... more like fraudulent.

Scenario of possible deposition questions:

Here is more information about HSI.. a primarily gvmt-funded organization created to help people with disabilities. (click)

High Sierra Industries and be contacted at:

HSI
555 Reactor Way
Reno, NV 89502
Phone: (775) 829-7400

This Appeal is in direct response to the wrongful denial of Unemployment Insurance to Chad Dehne. Chad Dehne forthwith protests any charges of premeditated misuse of a company cell phone...that has any degree of significance. (The alleged $75 - $95 of misused minutes is so minuscule as to be an obvious pathetic ploy by the company to try to avoid its duties to its workers.)

Chad Dehne was a long-time extremely loyal employee for HSI; a quasi-government company that is heavily supplemented by the United States government. He had virtually a perfect work ethic relative to his dedicated protection and treatment of HSI’s Special Needs "clients". He was loved and admired by essentially all of HSI’s clients and "lower level" personnel... up to and including almost adulation by many. Thus to deprive these people of Dehne’s special abilities and erudite charm is downright wicked.

Starting in the late spring of 2010 (unbeknownst to Dehne) HSI management appears to have started a scheme to get rid of workers with the goal to use any and all contrivances to avoid having to pay an employee like Dehne his deserved Unemployment Compensation.

1. High Sierra Industries of Reno Nevada has a very noble work philosophy; in that the employees oversee and take care of Special Needs people of all ages. And the workers "on the floor" do this at a very low salary base. This does not count top brass. Because the record shows that as far back as 2007 the Director of this non-profit organization was making over $136,000... not counting myriad valuable perquisites.

1a. Why is this pertinent? Because with potentially less money and government subsidies coming in, she and her staff would like to get rid of as many workers as possible, and deny them basic benefits, so that she can protect her bloated salary.

2. The diabolical scheme (other workers are also being terminated with various trumped up charges being wreaked against them so HSI can deny various deserved benefits) being perpetrated by HSI is a ruse to avoid paying the Unemployment Insurance that is legally and rightfully due to Chad Dehne.

3. Furthermore a cursory investigation will show that he is being discriminated against and sexually harassed despite his perfect beyond-the-call-of-duty work ethic and record.

4. An in depth investigation would further reveal that this might likely be a politically perpetrated hoax to attempt to thwart Dehne’s Reno mayoral campaign. His campaign was started at just about the same time these phony cell phone charges were being fabricated.

5. And notwithstanding and alleged misuse of company property (IE: THE CELL PHONE THE COMPANY ORDERED DEHNE TO USE) the punishment does not fit the alleged trumped up wrongdoing.

6. As further proof of the true background of the attempt to deny Insurance is the FACT that Dehne’s position has still not been re-filled. In other words, Dehne was either laid off because

a) there was lack of required work, b) not enough Grant money was coming in, or c) this is a case of retaliation and discrimination against a loyal employee. Or maybe all three.

7. Dehne was ordered to have a cell phone due to his doing so much of the company’s work out on the road. He was told not to use the phone for "private use".

YET ON THE VERY PHONE HE WAS HANDED DOWN THERE WERE SEVERAL INAPPROPRIATE AND PERSONAL TYPE TEXT MESSAGES ALREADY ON THERE. This is a phone that Dehne picked up at work in the mornings and left at HSI in the evenings.

7a. Besides all of that, it sounds like a lousy cell phone plan in the first place... especially considering the massive numbers of almost giveaway cell phone plans out there.

8. HSI had a widespread LOOSY GOOSY attitude by top brass about use of company equipment and personnel.

And the most poignant example of this FACT was demonstrated in late Spring of 2010 when Dehne was ordered by his top boss (She with the more than $136,000 salary referred to above) to do private work for her and her family with company property and vehicles. Specifically he was told to help her move stuff to/from her private home and the home of her brother; using one of HSI’s large trucks.

8a. When Dehne objected and indicated he might contact government oversight agencies because of this wanton workplace (reverse) sexual harassment, discrimination, and abuse of company property and personnel, the top brass started their semi-clandestine retaliatory chicanery.

1. This diabolical scheme severely damages Dehne’s chances for any other employment. And this is all the more egregious when one considers his benefit to society due to of his historically praiseworthy work ethic.

2. Several other dedicated HSI workers were terminated under similar sinister trumped up charges and their chances for re-employment are also severely jeopardized.

3. The coup de grace came when management started nitpicking about use of the company-ordered cell phone... nitpicking that amounted to maybe a total of $75. That is when Dehne volunteered (and HSI accepted) to work for an hour every day for free. Thus several months ago, Dehne started arriving at work a ½ hour early and leaving ½ late WITHOUT PAY. The money HSI saved far far exceeded any money spent on the cell phone EVEN IF HE TALKED 8 HOURS A DAY. This is a cell phone he didn't want and didn't asked for.

3a. This is the cell phone that was left at HSI when Dehne left in the evening and then picked up when he returned in the morning. This is the cell phone that already had numerous personal intimate text messages on it when Dehne received it from his immediate superior.

4. To repeat; the money saved by this voluntary plan far exceeded any that was supposedly used on the cell phone.

1. HSI is a quasi-government company with a wonderful concept of helping the needy. But it is a company that is being run by people with less than noble self-serving morals. HSI concocted a scheme to try to deprive Chad Dehne of his rightful Unemployment Insurance Compensation.

2. To try to juxtapose the alleged misuse of a picayune $75 of supposedly questionable cell phone minutes to the total denial of Unemployment Insurance is ludicrous, nonsensical, and diabolical. This is especially true when one takes even a cursory look at the loosy goosy daily operations of this company. HSI’s attempt to deny Dehne his rights is a mendacious abuse of authority and just downright nasty.

3. HSI is heavily subsidized by the United States government and as such, it is subject to myriad Whistleblowing Regulations. And HSI just quite possibly might have wanted to get rid of Dehne before he had a chance to take any action.

4. In the Marine Corps these bosses would be Court Martialed. And Dehne would receive a (much deserved) Medal for his compassionate work for this low paying... but very noble... job.

___________________

Chad Dehne - Appellant (and victim)
3756 Vantage Road
Reno, Nevada 89502
Date: 18 October, 2010
By REGISTERED MAIL

cc: Judge William Munnell
Governor James Gibbons
Senator Harry Reid
Congressman Dean Heller
"The Employment Law Group" - Whistleblowing Agency
Sam Dehne, Lt Col, USAF (ret)

Letter of Recommendation from California Superior Court Judge, William Munnell