Thursday, January 18, nearly all 30 Marin Housing Authority (MHA) employees represented by SEIU 1021 picketed outside their worksite to hold MHA accountable to taxpayers and MHA’s residents.

Following the expiration of its contract with its union employees, Marin Housing Authority has remained unable to provide details about its dealings with Nan McKay, a subcontracting firm currently embroiled in a $32.4 million lawsuit with the San Francisco Housing Authority for inadequate service to that city’s most impoverished residents. Questions linger in Marin regarding the number of Nan McKay contractors employed, the financial terms of their contract, and the oversight over Nan McKay’s operations.

Ultimately, MHA’s lack of transparency regarding their contractors and the lack of oversight harms the Marin County residents who rely on MHA for their housing. For example, Nan McKay’s contractors are regularly conducting false inspections and issuing false termination notices, further terrorizing an already vulnerable community.

“We have to hold Marin Housing Authority accountable to taxpayers and its residents,” said Melanie Raquel, a case manager for Marin Housing Authority. “It is unacceptable that the public still does not know how much money we’re paying to Nan McKay, and it is unacceptable that Nan McKay is terrorizing vulnerable residents with false termination notices.”

Read about the picket in Marin Independent Journal here.