Henri Sori, the Miami-Dade county department head that came under fire last year for that “Harlem Shake,” “morale-boosting” video
his staff produced in 2013, resigned from his position Friday.
The official reason is that the director of the Community Information and Outreach Department found outside employment. But sources tell Ladra that Sori was told to resign or get fired after employees complained that he had gotten out of line yet again.
Sori had been in the administration’s sights since the county was embarrassed by the politically incorrect video that was exposed by WPLG Local 10’s Ross Palombo. To refresh your memory, the video had employees shaking their booties and waving wads of cash. In different segments, employees drank booze, danced “Gangnam Style” in their offices and did the “Harlem Shake” inside commission chambers, even standing on the dais. In one scene, a male employee aggressively air humps the vacant space in what Sori later claimed was a reference to Wednesdays and the Geico “hump day” commercial.
While Sori said it was intended as a team-building exercise,
the little stunt and his poor judgement landed him a five-day suspension.
But that was a year ago and las malas lenguas say the back-breaking straw was something more recent and may have involved sexual harassment complaints from employees in his department.
Michael Hernandez, the spokesman for the count mayor who oversees CIAO, would only say that Sori left to pursue an opportunity in the private sector. And Sori’s own resignation letter references a “job outside the county.”
Here it is:
“It is with mixed emotions that I write this e-mail advising you of my resignation from County Service effective immediately, as I have accepted a job offer outside of the County. This is not an easy decision as my career with the County has been very rewarding, yet this is the right decision for my family and me. I have worked for Miami-Dade County since January 1990 and it has been a distinct pleasure and privilege. I have worked in various Departments, for various County Managers and Mayors and these last four years, serving as your Director, have been the most rewarding. I learned significantly from all of you through your hard work, dedication to your craft, creativity and always maintaining a positive attitude even through challenging times.
The one constant in life is change and while I look forward to this new chapter in my life, I will miss you! Keep making a difference, continue to excel and always maintain a sense of humor. There are many individuals who shaped my career, they know who they are and I wish to express my sincere gratitude.
I want to personally thank Mayor [Carlos] Gimenez for appointing me Director of the Community Information and Outreach Department in August 2011 and I wish him continued success in leading our County.
A sincere THANK YOU! I wish you and your families all the best.”
But c’mon! Here we have a 25-year employee 
who has spent the last four of those as a department director, earning $160,000 a year. Don’t know what his golden umbrella exit package totals yet, but I bet it’s nice.
Sp, I don’t know about you, but Ladra believes the sources.
After all, it’s not like someone with the poor judgement to produce a video of employees air humping and making sexual innuendos that made some feel uncomfortable wouldn’t do something else just as stupid.
In fact, some might say it was just a matter of time.
‘Harlem Shake video’ producer at Miami-Dade resigns added by Ladra on
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A fitting end. The video looks more idiotic than uncomfortable. Is that the best Sori’s creative types can come up with? His true mistakes involved alcohol and sexual harassment. That’s not something that starts overnight. It means he’s been doing it for years.
By forcing him to resign, Gimenez gave Sori a final gift as he’ll now have a healthy pension to supplement the income from his next job. Yes, there will be a “next” job. He’s Cuban and this is Miami, after all. Sori will keep getting jobs for as long as he wants. Worthiness not required.
Oh how fun it is to pile on a guy. I am not a friend of Sori’s but I knew him and of him. First the video, I had seen it till the TV show but I’ve heard of it. I also heard that it had been done for years…before he got there. It’s a department that houses the creative types. This is what they do. Is it right? Probably, not but don’t make it seem like Sori is some kind of monster for approving and participating in a video. You’d thinking he was killing kittens the way the vitriol drips from the screen. As for his other mistakes, well he should have known better. He obviously needs help and beheading him and foisting his severed cranium on spikes outside the palace gates does no one any good. I imagine that he has kids and a wife. Sori may not have been a saint, he was human, very human. He was messed up but he never, as far as I’ve heard, was cruel or meanspirited. From the people I’ve spoken with, they didn’t really have a problem working for him. You guys don’t realize how you destroy lives with your comments. Let the reporters report and allow the facts to speak for themselves.
If, as alleged, he was collecting income, yet not putting in the required hours, that’s WAGE THEFT. So, Kathy Rundle, ARREST him already and PROSECUTE him into a jail cell. Make him pay it all back!
Others who were responsible (underlings? subordinates?) for that DISGRACEFUL and INDECOROUS display of UNPROFESSIONAL MISCONDUCT — dancing on the dais, etc. — ought to be DEMOTED, FIRED, PINK-SLIPPED, TERMINATED, you name it. We don’t pay these public servants to goof off on OUR time. They need to learn this lesson the hard way.
And as for Gimenez, the Top Clown of them all, he needs a good ass-kicking come election time. He needs his ass kicked OUT OF THERE! We need a truly responsible mayor of integrity who inspires his/her subordinates to exemplary behavior, a mayor with leadership qualities that make us proud rather than ashamed.
Henry Sori is a decent guy who made some mistakes and the time has come to pay the piper. But not a bigger mistake than the county voters who sent this crony-obsessed Mayor back into office. Between Walking Michelin Man Garcia-Toledo and Jorge “Let Me Promote Myself Cause Nobody Else Will Do It” Lopez running amok at County Hall it is not wonder the morale of both county employees, and residents, is at an all-time low.
The Mayor has hired a Chief of Staff who is probably making 5 times more than he is worth. A Deputy Mayor in Ostertag or whatever his name is who has a reputation for sleeping through meetings. Alina Hudak is the only good thing about that floor. Poor Michael Hernandez, a young kid with potential who is stuck slinging b.s. despite knowing exactly what he’s being asked to spew.
The more things change…..
The two pensioned Mayor Gimenez made a campaign promise to slash his annual salary from $300,000 to $150,000. The sneaky part of it is that he also seems to have slashed his work hours to match the new salary. Except, of course, during those periods in which he is dealing with crisis, the crisises that he has created.
Wow!
really and truly the guy was working the same hours his boss ( 10;30 am & 3pm ) puts into the needs of the county. The rest of the time he has to keep his body ( he has no mind,and wears no cloth) and his family happy (as the Mrs sees fit or he will get screamed at) Example,play golf, pick up the children and babysit. It used to be that women who had children had a hard time getting a job, but now since the macho macho man of the house has all the time in the world,heck why not change the rules. It is great for women, but what a sad way to get the respect that we deserve. Never the less Henry; BYE BYE and don’t come back:)
Mayor Gimenez’s support of incompetence at the top of his organization can now lead to a sexual harassment law suit.
Just how much money is spent on law suit settlements that have occurred from Mayor Gimenez’s lax attitude toward his minions? There are millions of county tax dollars that have to be spent to defend piss poor decision-making. One bad leader, in charge of a table of organization in disarray.
This Mayor has one plan; attack the front line ranks and consolidate high-ranking loyal supporters.
Sori’s name should be Sorry – because these actions are just pathetic. Mayor Gimenez’s legacy is a county staff infrastructure in ruins.
The corruption and favoritism by wife Lourdes Gimenez administrator at MDCPS is worse.
I am not surprised Sori’s career ended up like this. I worked with him years ago and his behavior was exactly the same as described here. Another embarassment for the Gimenez administration.
Beautiful response from Mayor Carlos Gimenez’s parrot in turn Michael Hernandez. Now for the true reason why sacred cow Henri Sori was forced to resign.
Sori has been a county hall favorite for many years. In the early 2000s he was given a job (without even an interview) as an assistant director by then Public Works Director Ari Rivera based on a relationship Rivera had with Sori’s father, also a former county worker at Miami Dade Transit and political hack. Later on, he was “promoted”, once again with no competitive process to an assistant position to George Burgess where his main task was carrying Burgess’ briefcase and props to county meetings. At last, he was tapped by Mayor Gimenez to oversee a do-nothing-produce nothing department and rewarded with a $160k job plus benefits for his political support of Gimenez.
Sori’s on the job drinking and womanizing were his true downfall. The video discussed here was just another alcoholic induced incident that got him and Gimenez in further trouble. The final straw in the county life of sacred cow Sori came a couple of months ago when once again while in a state of alcoholic stupor he accosted two top female employees from his department while at dinner and his sexual advances and foul language was caught on video by some of those present. The sexual harassment complaint, the video and a subsequent surveillance from the HR department caught this Gimenez protege coming in to work at 10:30 am and heading home by 3:00 pm on a daily basis. As a result, Sori was given the same treatment by Gimenez we have seen to other administration favorites such as Wendy Norris and Chip Iglesias- resign or be fired. Of course the cheerful good bye letter is intended for both parties to save face.
Sori’s incident is nothing new in Mayor Gimenez’s administration where individuals who have not been vetted by the county system rise to powerful positions based on their political alliances,
So there Michael Hernandez, you can lie through your teeth to protect your salary like you have done to protect many other disgraced Gimenez allies and all sort of shenanigans conducted by your corrupt boss but a simple public records request at the HR department will reveal Sori’s closed investigation details and his last shameful video (that is a right given to journalists by our Florida statutes that not even a tyrant like Gimenez can prevent). A true sign of the times and a representation of the true corruption of Gimenez’s inner circle.
He was never a very good administrator and his political usefulness was done so out he goes. Resigning immediately to spend more time with his family? Right! And I love Michael the mouthpiece on channel 10 saying the personnel file is not available . Hey Michael every employee in the county knows their personal files are public record. But look forward to a heavily redacted copy of heri’s to appear because ultimately it shouldn’t take an HR investigator to figure out an employee is only showing up 15 hours a week.
BtW. HR does not start investigations department directors without the mayor’s blessing And virtually no top administrator in the county could survive public scrutiny as to their hours. After all it’s only the rank-and-file that have to fill out time sheets. I remember about a decade ago somebody got the bright idea that supervisors and administrators even the County attorneys should have to keep a time log. That idea quickly died at the hands of supervisors, administrators and the county’s attorneys office who review all iitems before the get forwarded to the BCC.