Embattled utility exec promoted as 1,200 laid off
A National Grid executive who allegedly passed thousands of dollars in personal expenses on to ratepayers was promoted to the utility’s top post in the Bay State on the same day the company announced it was laying off 1,200 U.S. workers.
“It’s very troubling to see someone get a promotion for passing along her expenses to ratepayers while others got pink slips,” said Mark MacDonald, president of the New England Gas Workers Association. “It doesn’t make any sense.”
Yesterday, Marcy Reed was named president of National Grid for Massachusetts in a major restructuring of U.S. operations.
Documents surfaced last summer that showed various National Grid execs expensed the cost of private-school tuition, medical bills and a trip to President Obama’s inauguration. Reed herself expensed items such as limo rides, snacks at Gillette Stadium, flowers and Dancing Deer cookies.
The expenses were uncovered last summer by Attorney General Martha Coakley after the utility sought Department of Public Utilities approval for a $106 million-a-year rate increase for the company’s 850,000 gas customers. DPU approved a $58 million increase, which has been appealed by Coakley’s office and is still pending.
Coakley’s office raised questions yesterday about the restructuring and called for the projected $200 million savings to be passed on to ratepayers.
“We have not been briefed on the specifics of the National Grid restructuring and are disappointed by the loss of jobs,’’ Coakley said in a statement. “We opposed a recent rate increase by National Grid, and will seek information on when National Grid knew about this restructuring and whether they factored it into their original rate proposal.”
Reed, who had been senior vice president for U.S. public affairs, yesterday defended her expenses and insisted they were passed on to National Grid shareholders, not ratepayers.
National Grid currently has 18,000 U.S. employees, a third of whom are in management positions. Thomas King, the utility’s U.S. president, said it was too soon to say exactly who would be laid off.