After months of demanding the wages they were owed, current and former workers at Northeast Ohio Neighborhood Health Services are getting their back pay.
Nearly 20 workers won wage theft judgments against the financially troubled nonprofit in July. They have either received their money or still need to complete the necessary documents to receive it, a Cleveland Municipal Court spokesman told Signal Cleveland.
Most won judgments for the nonprofit healthcare provider not paying them for two weeks in December. It was then that they first demanded their back pay from NEON, which operates seven health centers and two mobile units. The nonprofit was sued in 2025 by a lender that has sought to take over NEON and foreclose on its properties.The nonprofit could have legally objected to the judgments but did not.
These NEON workers stuck together when it was frightening, frustrating, and completely unfair, but they won.”
Andy Schumann, an organizer for the Northeast Ohio Worker Center
The current and former NEON workers coordinated with the Northeast Ohio Worker Center in bringing their wage theft cases against the nonprofit. For months before suing the employer, many of the workers banded together and continued to ask NEON CEO Willie Austin for their back pay.
“These NEON workers stuck together when it was frightening, frustrating, and completely unfair, but they won,” wrote Andy Schumann, an organizer with the worker center, in an email to Signal Cleveland. “Unfortunately, many of us don’t realize how much power we have when we stand in solidarity together, so we don’t even consider organizing [for what is owed us].”
Signal Cleveland has contacted some of the workers who were granted or are eligible to receive their missing wages. We will update this article with their comments when we receive them.
After the workers won their judgments and they were entered into the court record, NEON had 14 days to object. The nonprofit didn’t object. This meant that the workers were free to take a collection action against NEON by filing garnishment proceedings against the nonprofit. Not all of those who won judgments have yet done so.
NEON workers missed paychecks last year
The current and former NEON workers’ fight for their back pay became a high-profile wage theft case.The city’s Fair Employment Wage Board got involved. Some wage board members met with Austin last winter in an effort to persuade him to release the back pay. Austin told the wage board that the workers had been paid, even though they hadn’t.
The wage board lacked authority to force NEON to pay the workers because the nonprofit didn’t have a contract with the city of at least $25,000, nor had it received $75,000 in financial assistance.
Schumann said he wasn’t surprised the workers prevailed.
“I’m very inspired by these workers, many of whom are extremely passionate about their work (or former work) at NEON, and sacrificed countless hours and months of meticulous planning to take care of each other,” he wrote.
