Debate has given way to internecine war in the Dublin Simon Community, reports Carl O'Brien, Social Affairs Correspondent
As the microphone was passed around the crowded hotel function room in the Royal Dublin Hotel, the tone of the contributors grew increasingly bitter. One volunteer talked about how the former chief executive had been shafted out of his job. Another accused a senior member of the organisation of sexual harassment. The entire board of the organisation had to go, said one contributor.
It sounded like the vitriolic meeting of a political party in turmoil. But this was an extraordinary general meeting of the Dublin Simon Community, a charity that has helped homeless people in the capital for 30 years.
"We were ambushed," said one Dublin Simon member. "Once the meeting started, the barrage started. The accusations came from all directions, like a plague of locusts."
After almost five hours of stormy debate, a no-confidence motion in the board of Dublin Simon was passed by 114 votes to 83, throwing the management of the organisation into chaos.Today, a week after the meeting, members of the Dublin Simon Community are still wondering how a debate over the future direction of the organisation that started two years ago evolved into such a damaging internecine war.
Since it opened its first inner-city soup-run and emergency shelter in 1969, Dublin Simon Community, and the wider charitable sector, has changed radically. Dublin Simon now has around 116 paid staff, 214 volunteers and an annual turnover of about €7 million. It operates a range of services, including low- and high-support housing, detox units and outreach services. Across the voluntary sector there has been a shift away from the volunteer-dominated ethos to professional delivery of services. In a competitive sector, charities are often vying with each other to provide homeless services.
It was against this backdrop that a debate began around two years ago within Dublin Simon over its future direction, resulting in the publication last March of an independent review by social policy consultant Simon Brooke. His paper urged the organisation to adapt, pointing to the growing difficulty in recruiting volunteers and the "professionalism" expected from charities.
The board of Dublin Simon decided that its chief executive of nine years, Greg Maxwell, was not the man to lead it forward. Internal records seen by The Irish Times show that by July 2004 he had been dismissed by way of redundancy and told: "You do not have the set of skills and expertise suited to the organisation of Dublin Simon Community to carry it forward."
It added: "There are no 'allegations' against you at all. You are not accused of any misconduct or lack of performance."
Sam McGuinness, a private-sector manager who had been chief executive of software group Storm Technologies, was appointed interim chief executive.
The decision came as shock to supporters of Maxwell, a former trade union official and member of ICTU's executive committee. During this time his supporters argued that he had helped the organisation become the leading provider of services for homeless people in the Dublin area. The budget had increased from €700,000 in 1995 to €8.4 million, and fundraising had increased from €500,000 to €4 million.
A bitter stand-off ensued, in which Maxwell alleged that he had been unfairly dismissed. He lodged papers before the Employment Appeals Tribunal and matters culminated in last week's heated e.g.m. The board is set to resign and fresh elections will be held at an a.g.m. to be held in March. But that may not mean the end of the internal conflict.
It is understood that 14 managers have indicated that they will resign if Maxwell returns as chief executive. Maxwell's supporters, meanwhile, want him automatically reinstated if the Employment Appeals Tribunal finds he was unfairly dismissed.
The organisation's management finds itself at a crossroads, caught between the worlds of volunteerism and professionalism and riven with division over its future direction.
On Thursday night, at an inner-city flats complex run by the Dublin Simon Community, there was no sense that the row was having any effect on services. A 43-year-old homeless man's face crinkled into a broad smile as he described his spacious apartment.
"This feels like a home," he says, pointing to the complex where he has been living for a year and a half.
Gone are the days of the simple soup runs, says one volunteer. The focus is now on providing structured solutions to homelessness, moving people along the accommodation chain and helping them become more independent.
Jerry is one of the people benefiting.
"I'm getting places," he says. "Yesterday I had an interview for a FÁS security course. I've been doing my CV and interview skills here, so I think I did well, fingers crossed. I can't thank these guys enough."