Statement On The Resignation of TIME’S UP President And CEO Tina Tchen
Contact: Chelsea Fuller, press@timesupnow.org
TIME’S UP President and CEO Tina Tchen released the following statement:
“I have spent a career fighting for positive change for women and I’ve never stopped. Leading TIME’S UP has been a hugely rewarding experience and we have accomplished much together that has made work better for women across the country. Change will come when we move those who run companies to enact policies to make things better for women and other workers, and when legislators enact laws to further gender equity and safety. And, change happens when those of us on the outside keep holding them accountable when needed. I have done that at the White House, as executive director of the Obama Administration’s White House Council on Women and Girls, as an attorney advising companies, and now at TIME’S UP. TIME’S UP’s advocacy was based on that premise, that we cannot just shout on the outside for change without helping companies, government leaders and policy makers find the solutions to do better.
Now is the time for TIME’S UP to evolve and move forward as there is so much more work to do for women. It is clear that I am not the leader who can accomplish that in this moment. I am especially aware that my position at the helm of TIME’S UP has become a painful and divisive focal point, where those very women and other activists who should be working together to fight for change are instead battling each other in harmful ways. Therefore, it is time for me to resign and continue to work for change in other ways, and to let TIME’S UP engage in the thoughtful and meaningful process I know will occur to move forward.”
The TIME’S UP Board of Directors released the following statement:
“Tina Tchen has dedicated her life to making workplaces fair and equitable for workers and safer for women. That is why we asked her to lead TIME’S UP in the first place and why she has accomplished enormous changes in the two years she has served as our president. This includes guaranteeing support to the Silence Breakers and Harvey Weinstein survivors, developing a program to center women of color survivor voices, calling out sexism in politics, giving large corporations guidance to do the right thing and holding them accountable when their workplaces were not safe and equitable, and forcing the Golden Globes to address their toxic effect on the entertainment workplace. In sum, Tina has made a difference in the lives of so many and we are grateful for her hard work and impact. Accepting her resignation today is a demonstration of accountability and will allow our organization to move forward. Beginning Tuesday, August 31st, Monifa Bandele will become our Interim CEO.”
TIME’S UP Foundation
The TIME’S UP™ Foundation insists upon safe, fair, and dignified work for all by changing culture, companies, and laws. We enable more people to seek justice through the TIME’S UP Legal Defense Fund™. We pioneer innovative research driving toward solutions to address systemic inequality and injustice in the workplace through the TIME’S UP Impact Lab. And we reshape key industries from within so they serve as a model for all industries. The TIME’S UP Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.