63-year-old Dorothy McGrath, Former Production Manager At Milwaukee PBS-MATC Passed Away

McGrath worked at Milwaukee PBS-MATC as production manager for more than 5 years, while working 5 years at the technical college she was the only female Asian-American employed as a veteran department production manager at Milwaukee PBS. She exposed a practiced work environment discrimination of lower pay salaries for women, low Social Security and retirement pension compared to male counterparts and had filed a fact finding response to a bad work performance review she received from the MATC VP and General Manager of PBS.

By H. Nelson Goodson 

Hispanic News Network U.S.A.

January 22, 2025

Milwaukee, Wisconsin - On Wednesday, Patricia Gómez, the Director/Production/Host at Milwaukee PBS, announced the passing of Dorothy McGrath, 63, the former Production Manager at Milwaukee PBS. Gómez in a mass mailing wrote, Dear Friends and Colleagues,

Last night, I received the heartbreaking news that Dorothy McGrath had passed away. Dorothy was the Production Manager at Milwaukee PBS as part of Milwaukee Area Technical College (MATC) for over seven years. She was also a proud Asian American Veteran.

Like many others—both women and minorities, as well as non-minorities—Dorothy faced retaliation and discrimination in the workplace - MATC-MPBS. She was often overlooked in her role, and her salary was lower than that of white male colleagues hired after her despite having more experience and a heavier workload. Like many of us, she was subjected to fact-finding meetings as part of retaliation. Two years ago, amidst harassment, discrimination, and retaliation, Dorothy made the difficult decision to leave Milwaukee PBS when she was offered a position with Alaska Public Media.

Dorothy was an incredibly skilled and hardworking manager.  She mentored many of us—whether we were her direct reports or simply anyone who sought her guidance.

I had a heavy heart when I saw her leave the station MPBS. She would have stayed if she had been treated with the respect she deserved, but unfortunately, she was forced to find another place to grow. While it was painful to see her go, we found comfort in knowing she had been offered a position as Chief Operating Officer and VP of Administration.

Sadly, Dorothy's experience reflects the unlawful mistreatment that many of us have faced at MATC. Most employees are afraid to file official complaints because they have families to support and fear losing their jobs. MATC has implemented initiatives to improve the toxic environment of racism and gender discrimination within the organization, but these efforts are often nothing more than a façade. Incompetent managers are consistently hired, and a cycle of micromanagement persists, with little focus on improving the quality of services we provide—internally and externally.

Instead of working together to achieve our true mission—serving our communities, offering hope to those facing poverty through education, creating opportunities for economic mobility, and preparing professionals who will drive prosperity for all—we continue to move in never-ending circles, without achieving the goals we were meant to.

I will continue to raise my voice, even if the MATC administration wants me to remain silent. I will advocate for all, just as Dorothy taught me.  Dorothy, I admire you and will honor you by standing up against injustice and working to uphold the DEI standards. 

So long, my friend. My dear Dorothy.

Attached is a document written by Dorothy, in which she expresses her concerns including how lower-paid women of color receive less in Social Security and pensions when they retire- see attachment.