I watched with interest the smattering of news last week about Phil Missirlian, CEO of Greystone Staffing and Greystone Healthcare Staffing of NY. Missirlian was arrested May 11 and has been charged with tax fraud.
At issue is nearly a half-million dollars he allegedly stole to pay alimony and child support to his ex-wife Barbara and the couple’s children. He faces up to 15 years in prison.
According to Nassau County (NY) District Attorney Kathleen Rice, Missirlian failed to pay $496,850 of employees’ withholding taxes for the tax years 2007 and 2009.
My first response was: this is a typical business dispute for someone with big dreams.
Missirlian’s dreams were outlined in a New York Times article from 2000 that described Missirlian’s beginnings in the staffing industry.
It’s curious that the terms of Missirlian’s takeover of what had been his Dunhill Staffing Systems franchise are not public knowledge. But his plans for expansion into Florida and North Carolina seemed pretty ambitious, and pretty clear.
My second response was: it’s not like we couldn’t have seen this coming.
According to an independent search using the New York Department of State’s Tax Warrant Notice System, red flags appeared as early as August of 2007 when a tax lien of $46,803.04 popped up against Greystone Healthcare Staffing of NY, a division of Greystone Staffing.
The numbers increased from there. In October of 2007 a lien against Greystone Staffing showed an amount of $135,328.95; in July of 2010, it was $17,920.03.
There are no tax liens or amounts shown for 2009, perhaps because Greystone Staffing filed for voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy in March of that year. Schedules show a total claim of more than $4 million, with nearly a million of it unsecured.
So what’s the deal? For many, many businesspeople, the ego is larger than the brains behind it.
And it’s almost certain that behind the scenes, the tremendous ego of Missirlian looms large.
I can assume this from a man who was listed, despite all of this, in a “Ones to Watch” list in the Long Island Business News in June 2010.
I can also assume this from a man who was once denied a New York Supreme Court appeal and forced to pay a principal of $26,100 – almost a livable annual salary – to a blacktop company for changes to his driveway.
Behind the scenes, there can also be all kinds of justifications. The government is wrong; this is a witch hunt. Disgruntled former employees are feeding the prosecution false information. You hear stuff like this a lot during business disputes.
But here’s the bottom line: whatever is going on, something is clearly very wrong. If you’re working for a company that clearly has multiple tax liens against it, that’s a problem. If the company files for bankruptcy, that’s another problem. If any of these things result in the arrest of your CEO, that’s a big problem. And if the company you work for should get shut down, regardless of how justified you feel, you’re still out on the street.
So it’s definitely curious that Missirlian seems to have a handful of employees that have stuck with him through thick and thin, even as others have referred to the man as a “dirtbag.”
At what point do you just say “This is wrong?”
{ 16 comments… read them below or add one }
It makes me wonder how much of the “alimony” he was paying her was her portion of the company’s earnings, given that she was the former VP of Greystone.
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take it from me, he wasn’t and isn’t paying her alimony. She was blind sided and royally screwed. He tricked her into signing her out of VP, that is when his world crumbled. He’s a user and abuser. His excuse was paying her alimony, not the case.
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wow, his father must be proud, he learned it from him.
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trouble is one bad apple like this reflects on the whole of the staffing industry which is a shame because many staffing company work hard and ethically
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Missirlian is an interesting character…I worked for him at one point in my career…He was the most dishonest, unethical, morally corrupt person I’ve ever worked with…
He taught me a lot about business and how it shouldn’t be run…nice to see karma catching up with him and I love the hair plugs
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As an ex employee I read with interest this article. His entire company knows exactly what he did and they support him every day. I would never work for a company that steals from their employees-but his Managment team supports it-they steal and back stab from the other staff members. Hopefully he will bring those two middle aged employees down with him-the way they treated others through the years is shameful. As I tell my children-this is to all the current Greystone employees-you ARE the company you keep. Now karma is getting all back.
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You can be haunted by karma but you can be haunted by trying to snuff out every evil thing you run into as well. Where to draw the line in the sand?
Would love to hear what some of the inner circle at Greystone have to say:
NickTsiokos – Controller
Kim Cottage – Marketing
Mathew Devasia
Maria Giudice
Phil Missirlian
Tina Patrone
Hot debate. What do you think?
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This is in response to Inner Circle. Yes, I’ve read and heard all about Missirlian’s latest bout with the law. Not surprised and it’s been a long time coming. Justice is finally served for all the B.S. he has put innocent people through. It’s all very satisfying and a relief that he finally has to answer to the law and be accountable for his unethical ways.
Hot debate. What do you think?
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As a former employee as well…Thank god justice is served! Its insane that his staff stands behind him the way they did while I was there! There are all just as unethical. If everyone walked out and stopped supporting this oh so obvious crook this would have never happened! To all the clients out there still working with Greystone….know that you are only supporting robbery and immoral ways! its amazing someone can be so dirty and get away with it as long as he did! Notice how everyone who has worked there is saying the same thing….Good luck Katheryn….you really trust him now? Ridiculous!
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Does this mean I shouldn’t go on my interview next week? I just spoke with them today…
Seriously!!
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No one should interview there, and clients and temps should leave them too, if they haven’t already. If you get hired, you’re doomed to a life of facing frivolous lawsuits once you leave because that’s the only way he can try to get money back to pay his alimony. Rumor has it if “Massapequa Phil” sees his shadow from his jail cell window with his cell-mate Brutus, that means it’s 6 more years of hard time in the clink for that mental midget! Kathryn’s an idiot too. Karma.
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Any update on this? Anyone know what is going on with the case just out of curiosity.
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i had known Phil a long time. He was a client of mine in my clothing business and refused to pay for 9 suits when they came in and I lost thousands. He really turned into a scimeball. I was trusting of him because of our long relationship, but he did not care to screw me and kept the clothing.
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I worked with Phil and his entire company for many years. He did not pay me for any merchandise that he purchased. He is a sleaze. I hope his staff gets up and leaves, like the smart one I now do business with. Phil, I hope you get exactly what you have gave. Good luck.
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Rob they must have been very small suits not much fabric needed so it won’t be a total loss. You can recoup by selling the fabric to make pee wee herman dolls.
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When are they going to throw that lil bitch in jail?
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