The world’s largest organization for LGBTQ youth suicide prevention and crisis treatment, which has cut six percent of its workforce, less than a month after 12 percent of its workforce was cut due to allegations of fiscal mismanagement and union-busting actions, was laid off six percent of its team last year.
According to three people with knowledge of the situation, who spoke with the Washington Blade on the condition of secrecy, the decision has just raised some of the Trevor Project’s employees ‘ confidence levels, who had, by and large, now lost faith in management.
The Blade had problems with the firm in August 2023. The sources who spoke to the business over the years have come to terms with management’s failure to turn things around, including team members who handle the challenging and mission-critical task of fielding crisis calls.
“This decision, although very difficult, was necessary, and we committed to navigating it with care and purpose, ” the group ’s founder and interim CEO Peggy Rajski said in a written statement to the Blade confirming the layoffs.
We worked closely and honestly with our coalition representatives throughout the procedure, and we appreciate the heart, honesty, and knowledge of all parties involved to help ensure the organization’s continued success and ability to carry out its vital mission, she said.
Rajski’s speech continues: “We remain thankful for the passion and efforts of each member of our team. I want to convince people that we continue to be unwavering about helping LGBTQ+ youth.
Our goal is to provide essential support and services to LGBTQ+ children in crisis, adding that it is just as crucial. With this restructuring, we can keep up our high standard of service, making us a trustworthy, regular source of assistance for those in need. As always, we remain available 24/7 for any young person who needs us.
“ In these moments of change, The Trevor Project’s promise of service remains strong. We thank our followers and allies for their continued assistance for the saving programs we offer to our favorite but all too frequently besieged LGBTQ+ children. ”
The Communication Staff of America-organized coalition Companions of Trevor United did not respond to requests for comment. According to one source, the coalition was actively engaged in negotiations throughout the hiring process but was not informed of the layoffs ‘ start dates.
‘The feeling is really gloomy ’
“The charity training and experience team were reduced by about a second, ” said the first cause, who added that all levels of people were affected by Wednesday’s cuts, from the “lowest-paid organizers up to managers. ”
This source confirmed Rajski’s say that line services are available 24/7, but added that there will be fewer volunteers “moving forth with these changes to the group sizes.” According to a second supply, staff burnout has increased since the first round of cuts last summer.
Workers were informed that labor reductions were imminent due to last week, including in an email sent to the interim CEO on January. 30 that was reviewed by the Blade.
We did not anticipate facing such ongoing squabble with our funding work in the fiscal year for 24,” Rajski wrote. We are facing significant ongoing income deficits despite the strict actions our entire organization has taken to reduce investing and increase revenue. ”
Additionally, the contact further stated that layoffs may be accompanied by various cost-saving measures, such as reducing voluntary costs like non-essential hiring as well as travel and other project costs that are not “mission essential.” ”
Nevertheless, the first source said, teams were already under pressure after major staffing reductions last year. According to the source,” the mood is really gloomy,” and many employees anticipate that there will be another round of cuts in the next six to eight months.
“Trevor claims they’ve adopted cost-cutting measures since the last layoffs but they’ve hired externally for a bunch of roles, [executives ] refused to take pay cuts, the org is way too top heavy as it is, and they’ve appeared to do little to nothing to revamp and revitalize fundraising efforts, ” the source added.
According to the three sources, Rajski and other organization leadership have attributed financial problems to the rising anti-LGBTQ political climate in the U.S. S. over the past few years.
However, they said, the influx of bills targeting the rights of queer and trans youth, which has increased the number of crisis calls fielded by Trevor and other youth-serving organizations, would, presumably, lead to increased rather than decreased fundraising capabilities.
“Let me be clear, ” the first source said. Employees at the interim CEO, Peggy Rajski, have ZERO confidence in her. ”
Rajski has “demonstrated a complete lack of care and consideration for Trevor staff since she took over after Amit’s departure, ” she said, referring to Trevor’s former CEO Amit Paley, who left in November 2022.
Paley’s tenure was also fraught. For instance, the second source described how Trevor employees lost coverage for gender affirming and mental health services in August 2022. The coverage was later reinstated following a furore from Trevor employees who claimed they were upset about the cost-cutting measure.
The first source, recalling the Blade’s story last summer, said that Rajski “has created a hostile, traumatic working environment, ” and, referencing reporting, noted she had been accused of having an abrasive management style prior to her tenure at Trevor.
Employees have been made to feel they were “expendable, ” the second source said.
According to a report from The Blade in August, Rajski reportedly objected to the negative feedback she had received from organization-wide meetings, which allowed employees to write comments or respond with emojis.
The three sources said she has subsequently removed the functionality to share feedback with Google Meet, and instead began prerecording video messages that now constitute all-staff “meetings, ” all while retaining management consulting firm KPMG to oversee the implementation of new values at the organization, which stress “heart, integrity, community, belonging, and progress. ”
The second source noted that Trevor Board Chair Julian Moore, a partner at multinational law firm Allen & Overy, announced earlier this year that the search for Rajski’s replacement had begun, and that the videos mostly feature leadership congratulating themselves.
The second source claimed that the environment became “sterile ” and that the only important members of the team were those making six figures rather than those actually doing the work. ”
“The crisis workers are the lowest paid people in the organization, ” a source said, “which just baffles me because, you know, they’re doing the literal work of the mission of the org. ”
The refrain she has frequently repeated about how the organization must remember “what’s really important, the youth who we serve” was the closest Rajski came to crediting the difficult work of those tasked with fielding crisis calls. ”
On Jan. 5, Friends of Trevor United “took over Slack, ” the workplace messaging app, “to seek accountability, demand transparency, and share frustration around Management’s delayed and undignified counter to our Union’s wage increase proposal for the organization’s performance review cycle. ”
The union gave several examples of concerns that workers raised:
- What IS our team’s strategy to make the C-Suite understand the urgency of this situation, not to sound like a broken record? We all suffer because they delay it the most. How do our vertical leaders ensure that senior management is accountable for their bad-faith bargaining? This is a slap in the face because I’ve been giving it my all. A proposal for wage increases was sent to management in six weeks. None of us deserve this, and it is beyond unacceptable. ”
- I am resonating with a feeling of great dismay and concern here. Six weeks really underscores an apparent disparity in accountability. Many of our leaders have said in their values that they are committed to this. In the next 24 hours, I would like to know how effectively we are communicating to upper management the urgency of addressing this issue. We have made a good contribution to this organization’s mission throughout the year. We need to see management show a sincere commitment to fair trade. ”
- “Trevor, whoever you are, you need to prove you are trustworthy. ”
- “ I see the responses here, and in #org-announcements… but I can only hope it has been made abundantly clear that this is a collective wound. Many of us are becoming aware that our hard work, loyalty, and commitment are being consistently met with indifference, that all of our words are being minimized, and that the issue is ‘Management disagreeing with the union,’ which is deepening in us. ‘ ”
- “Management’s empty-handed presence at the bargaining table, their responses in the channels we’ve been silenced from responding in… these things resonate as betrayal, as disrespect, and they’re dehumanizing. It shows a blatant disregard for the sacrifices we made throughout the FY23. It serves as a painful reminder that our aspirations for fair treatment and recognition are still unfulfilled. This is a stark illustration of the shattered hopes that many of us have had for ourselves as workers, for the young queer kids we once were, and for the young people we are still here for. Silence, or half-hearted responses, are echoing louder than any words spoken. ”
- “For anyone genuinely listening, please understand that we are not merely seeking raises … we are yearning for the acknowledgement, the respect, and the fair treatment we all deserve. ”
In conversations with the Blade, the three sources said they believe in Trevor’s mission and its work, no matter their feelings about management. They expressed hope that speaking out will enable some necessary adjustments at the organization, whose support for queer youth at risk has never been more crucial.
After publication, a spokesperson for the Trevor Project reached out with three corrections:
“The union was notified of the date in advance ” of the layoffs.
“The article inaccurately says that our all staff meetings are ‘pre-recorded ’ videos. Instead, we hold monthly staff meetings via livestream to share important company news from all organizational levels. We use this opportunity to highlight the positive impact our organization makes on LGBTQ+ young people and staff contributions to the organization’s suicide prevention and intervention efforts. This is a standard practice among large organizations with hundreds of remote employees, making sure the space is safe and productive for our entire community. ”
“ While there was some confusion and dissatisfaction around some changes to our health insurance coverage, it was generally due to roll out communications, and therefore staff had some untrue assumptions/perceptions about coverage. A high level of the staff’s health insurance benefits from that time was provided in an all-staff email on August 18, 2022.
- The Trevor Project will cover 100 % of premiums for ALL employee health insurance plans, including medical, vision, and dental
- Mental health care is free for in-network, meaning there are no copays, even before the deductible is reached, for mental health services. Benefits outside the network will remain the same as they were last year.
- All our plans cover gender-affirming surgery and care, including procedures like electrolysis, facial feminization, and pectoral implants
- The Trevor Project will cover 50 % of premiums for dependents
- The open enrollment period has been extended until Wednesday, August. 31 ″
