JEA board member Rick Morales asked utility CEO Vickie Cavey this week to step down from her post, according to people familiar with the situation.
Cavey decided to continue as CEO and made a change of her own Feb. 19 when she eliminated the chief of staff position, ending Kurt Wilson’s employment with the utility after he talked with board members about Cavey’s leadership.
In a separate announcement, City Council President Kevin Carrico said he thinks the board must investigate complaints he’s fielded from JEA employees that the utility suffers from a “toxic corporate culture” under Cavey.
“Everyone is entitled to an investigation but if what I’ve been told in confidence by her employees comes to light then she should absolutely be removed,” Carrico said.
Wilson, who had been JEA chief of staff since 2024, said his ouster came after he spoke with current board Chair Joe DiSalvo the day before about Cavey’s leadership.
“For two years, I’ve counseled the CEO that her treatment of select staff and subordinates was not appropriate,” Wilson said in a statement.
He said he talked to two board members about Cavey, starting in November when a board member reached out to him “inquiring about her behavior.” He did not identify the board member.
“On Wednesday, I brought my concerns to the board chair and the question was asked, ‘Why haven’t employees called me?’ Twelve hours later my position was eliminated. This is why.”
Cavey wrote a Feb. 19 message to JEA employees about the elimination of Wilson’s position.
“After a great deal of consideration, I have made the decision to eliminate the position of chief of staff,” Cavey wrote. “This position will not be replaced. Effective today, Kurt Wilson is no longer with JEA. We appreciate all the work he did and wish him all the best.”
Cavey said the government relations team will now report to JEA Chief Administrative Officer Jody Brooks.
Carrico said that since he became City Council president last July, he has “unfortunately taken numerous meetings and calls from JEA employees with allegations of racism, toxic corporate culture and other leadership challenges associated with with the CEO.”
He said he is “having conversations with community leaders interested in addressing these challenges and moving our utility forward” as he decides who he will appoint to the seven-member JEA board.
“I look forward to announcing a name in the coming days given the disturbing culture observed at our utility,” he said.
JEA declined to comment on Carrico’s statement or whether a board member asked Cavey to step down as CEO.
Cavey worked 32 years at the utility until her first retirement in 2016. She later came back to the utility to assist Paul McElory in 2020 when he returned as an interim CEO in the aftermath of the failed attempt to sell the utility in 2019.
Cavey came out of retirement a second time when the board named her interim CEO in April 2024 when then-CEO Jay Stowe stepped down in what was described as a mutual decision by Stowe and the board. The board later removed the “interim” from Cavey’s title in September 2024.
Wilson joined JEA in 2020 after a 25-year career in the fire department where he rose to fire chief.
City Council member Randy White, a former fire chief himself, said he cannot comment on the internal workings of JEA but he said Wilson showed in his career he understands what it takes to lead an organization.
“I would certainly listen to his concerns if he had concerns,” White said. “If he had something to say, I would listen attentively and put a lot of weight on it.”
(This story was updated with a minor name correction).
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: JEA board member reportedly asked utility CEO to step down
Reporting by David Bauerlein, Jacksonville Florida Times-Union / Florida Times-Union
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