Ex-Employee Files Complaint With State Against Secaucus Library

SECAUCUS, NJ — A man who used to work part-time at the Secaucus Public Library has filed a complaint with the state, alleging that another unnamed library employee told him "she disagreed with his gay 'lifestyle,'" NJ.com reported.

The man is Jeffrey Machno.

Machno used to host the Secaucus Got Talent show in the summertime, and he hosted many of the virtual library trivia nights during the pandemic.

Machno no longer works at the Secaucus Library; he was terminated from the job last October.

He filed his complaint in December with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, alleging harassment, discrimination and retaliation based on sexual orientation.

Machno confirmed to Patch that he filed the complaint, but he declined to say on the record what happened beyond already-published media reports. He referred people to read what was already reported in NJ.com and Hudson Daily Voice.

An unnamed library employee said “his lifestyle was not appropriate for the town,” one woman wrote in an email to Secaucus Mayor Michael Gonnelli, NJ.com reported.

Gonnelli said he would not be commenting on this matter.

Library Director Jennifer May said she could not comment either, as the library is now the subject of possible litigation.

Machno said he brought his complaints to the Library Board of Trustees on Oct. 28. On Oct. 31, he was informed that he was terminated. He told Patch he is currently working as a part-time assistant at another library in the area, and that he no longer lives in Secaucus. He grew up in Secaucus.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, out of their Newark office, is now investigating Machno's complaint.

If the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission decides to file a lawsuit against the Secaucus Library, that lawsuit will be public record and it will be reported on in Patch.