Hobart Fire Civil Service Commission

MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE HOBART CIVIL SERVICE FIRE COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF HOBART HELD OCTOBER 13, 2020 at 6:00 p.m. Call to Order: Mr. Lamprecht called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m., followed by the Pledge of Allegiance and a moment of silence. The meeting was held with the building open to the public and a call-in number for remote public participation. Roll Call: The following members were present: Mr. Finnerty, Mr. Schallenkamp, and Mr. Lamprecht (telephonically). Also present: Secretary Cheryl Govert, Attorney Mindel, Chief Smith and Mayor Snedecor. Approval of the Agenda: Motion by Mr. Schallenkamp, seconded by Mr. Finnerty, to approve the agenda as presented. All aye, motion carried. (3-0) Approval of Minutes: Mr. Lamprecht said that he noticed one item to be amended, in the discussion about Lt. Pouch taking the test it says he was 2 weeks from the 2-year qualification, it should read 2 days. Motion by Mr. Lamprecht, seconded by Mr. Schallenkamp, to accept the minutes of the Regular Meeting of September 8, 2020 as amended. All aye, motion carried. (3-0) Correspondence: Mrs. Govert noted that 2 invoices have been paid in the total amount $2,470 for Mr. Jaracz to develop exams for promotions and lateral transfers and to administer the tests. Mrs. Govert also noted that this exhausted the budget funds for 2020 and any other payments will have to be approved by the Mayor before being paid. Committee Reports: Mr. Finnerty said he was able to speed some time with Mr. Lamprecht and learn about some of the fire house procedures. Mr. Schallenkamp said he was out of town when the last union meeting was held but would be sure to attend the next meeting. Old Business: There was no old business New Business: Fire Department Supplemental Service Program: Mayor Snedecor was present and gave a brief update noting that the virus added extra overtime, but the City was able to recover about $114,000 from the Cares Act which helped with the overtime. The Mayor said he and the Fire Chief have met to work on a solution to the staffing concerns. The Fire Department has had some guys on sick leave, and some have retired. The ability to backfill positions is not something the City can do fluidly right now. Right now we have 55 Fire Fighters including the Chief. Our goal when negotiating with the Union was to have 17-18 Fire Fighters per shift with a minimum of 14, with 14 we can basically man all the stations. Over the past week, the Chief and I have been going over strategies. We believe that going into the season with fewer people off for vacations/days off we may be able to maintain the 14 per shift on a fairly regular basis without overtime. If someone goes out due to workman’s comp/injury overtime may be needed. The Mayor said the ability to continue to work the Fire Department on a purely fulltime fire fighter basis is becoming extremely difficult from a financial standpoint. The City receives $900,000 in Public Safety money and approximately $800,000 of those funds went to the Fire Department. The Mayor, Council Sub-Committee, Union, and the Chief met about a month ago to come up with some Supplemental Work Force strategies. Chief Smith will share some prospective concepts he is looking at to assist our full-time firefighting staff. Chief Smith explained that they would put a supplemental force together to help on fire scenes and EMS calls; it will also be used as a career development tool. He provided an outline of the program which is attached to these minutes. Mr. Schallenkamp asked about the cost of training, gear, and insurance, and Mr. Lamprecht asked if these expenses will be in the 2021 projected budget. The Mayor said they are still looking into the costs and are committed to finding a solution. Hobart Civil Service Fire Commission Minutes October 13, 2020 Certification of Promotion Examination and List: Mr. Lamprecht said that there are 3 candidates for the Captain position to be certified with no candidates for the Fire Prevention/Marshall and EMS Director positions. Motion by Mr. Schallenkamp, seconded by Mr. Lamprecht, to approve and certify the promotion list as presented. All aye, motion carried. (3-0) Certification of Lateral Transfer Candidate List: Mr. Lamprecht said there are 4 lateral transfer candidates all with 5-8 years of experience. Motion by Mr. Lamprecht, seconded by Mr. Schallenkamp, to approve and certify the lateral transfer list as presented. All aye, motion carried. (3-0) Chief Smith asked the Commissioners for the first two names from the list to begin the transfer process. Mr. Lamprecht provided the application packets of the first two candidates to Chief Smith and the Chief will return the packets to Mrs. Govert when he is finished with them. Announcements: Mr. Lamprecht asked Attorney Mindel if he could review the Commission Rules to see if there is anything for or against a supplemental staffing. Motion by Mr. Lamprecht, seconded by Mr. Finnerty, to direct Attorney Mindel to review the Fire Commission Rules and Regulations for any information regarding Supplemental staffing. All aye, motion carried. (3-0) Mr. Lamprecht asked if anyone would like to address the Commission and there was no further response. Adjournment: Motion by Mr. Schallenkamp, seconded by Mr. Finnerty, to adjourn the meeting. All aye, motion carried (3-0). The meeting adjourned at 6:30 p.m. ________________________________ ______________________________________ SECRETARY _______________________________________ _______________________________________ Hobart Civil Service Fire Commission Minutes October 13, 2020