Civil Service Commission

DocuSign Envelope ID: 742214A4-32D6-46B5-8008-893E29A179FA TUMWATER CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION MINUTES OF VIRTUAL MEETING November 10, 2022 Page 1 CONVENE: 5:34 p.m. PRESENT: Chair Eric Trimble and Commissioner Simon Tee. Staff: Secretary/Chief Examiner James Trujillo, Fire Chief Brian Hurley, and Police Commander Jay Mason. CHANGES TO There were no changes to the agenda. AGENDA: APPROVAL OF MINUTES, SEPTEMBER 8, 2022: MOTION: Commissioner Tee moved, seconded by Chair Trimble, to approve the minutes of September 8, 2022 as published. A voice vote approved the motion. NOVEMBER OF Chief Examiner Trujillo referred to highlighted changes to the Eligibility List. ELIGIBILITY The Assistant Fire Chief list has expired. A new Entry Level Firefighter LISTS: Eligibility List is scheduled for consideration later in the meeting. A Lateral Firefighter Paramedic Eligibility List was provisionally approved in September and requires the Commission’s approval. The Entry Level Police Officer Eligibility List is an active continuous list. LATERAL Chief Examiner Trujillo reported firefighter paramedic positions are popular FIREFIGHTER and difficult to recruit because of market competition. Three individuals PARAMEDIC initially applied for the Lateral Firefighter Paramedic position. Of the three ELIGIBILITY applicants, two withdrew leaving one applicant. That applicant completed and LIST: passed all test phases. The proposed Eligibility List includes the name of the applicant. Chief Examiner Trujillo advised that he provisionally approved the list to enable the Fire Department to continue through recruitment process. Until the Commission approves the list, the Fire Department is not able to hire from the list. Chair Trimble inquired about the applicant’s current place of employment. Fire Chief Hurley advised that the applicant is currently employed with the South Beach Regional Fire Authority in Westport, Washington. The applicant has worked for the agency since 2010. MOTION: Chair Trimble moved, seconded by Commissioner Tee, to approve the Lateral Firefighter Paramedic Eligibility List as presented. A voice vote approved the motion. ENTRY LEVEL Chief Examiner Trujillo presented the continuous examination Eligibility List PARAMEDIC/FIRE for Entry Level Paramedic/Firefighter. The City sources candidates through DocuSign Envelope ID: 742214A4-32D6-46B5-8008-893E29A179FA TUMWATER CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION MINUTES OF VIRTUAL MEETING November 10, 2022 Page 2 FIGHTER Thurston County Medic One. Two candidates are proposed for inclusion on ELIGIBILITY the list. Because of the competitiveness of the position, he provisionally LIST: approved the Eligibility List to afford the recruitment process to move forward. Commissioner Tee asked whether the City limits its search of candidates only to Medic One. Chief Examiner Trujillo said he believes Medic One is the only source but is unsure as to whether the practice is mandated. Fire Chief Hurley explained that candidates can apply through the City; however, the evaluation process for paramedic skills is completed by Thurston County Medic One. Several times during the year, candidates are invited to apply and participate. Medic One is the source of qualified candidates for the cities of Lacey, Olympia, and Tumwater. The candidates are also required to complete the Public Safety Testing written test. If the candidate passes the test, the applicant is included on the list for the Commission’s consideration. The paramedic evaluation is completed by Medic One. MOTION: Chair Trimble moved, seconded by Commissioner Tee, approve the Entry Level Paramedic/Fire Fighter Eligibility List as presented. A voice vote approved the motion. ENTRY LEVEL Chief Examiner Trujillo reported the City utilizes an open competitive process FIREFIGHTER for entry level firefighters. Thirty-nine applicants submitted applications, ELIGIBILITY which are fewer than in prior recruitments; however, at the time of LIST: recruitment, no openings existed. Of the 39 applicants, 29 passed the testing process and are proposed for inclusion on the Eligibility List. Diverse applicants include a female minority applicant and three female candidates. The scores were shared with applicants on October 25, 2022. No appeals were submitted based on scores. The proposed list is effective until November 2023 and supersedes the existing list expiring at the end of November. Chair Trimble asked whether any firefighter volunteers were included on the list. Fire Chief Hurley advised that one candidate is a current volunteer at the Fire Department. MOTION: Chair Trimble moved, seconded by Commissioner Tee, to approve the Entry Level Firefighter Eligibility List as presented. A voice vote approved the motion. ENTRY LEVEL Chief Examiner Trujillo reported on the results of the Entry Level Police POLICE OFFICER Officer process, a continuous examination process because of the timeline ELIGIBILITY necessary to hire and train new officers. This recruitment process resulted in LIST: six applicants comprised of one female and five males. Five of the applicants passed the testing process. No appeals were filed. The proposed Eligibility List includes the names of the candidates. DocuSign Envelope ID: 742214A4-32D6-46B5-8008-893E29A179FA TUMWATER CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION MINUTES OF VIRTUAL MEETING November 10, 2022 Page 3 Commissioner Tee inquired as to whether any diverse applicants were included on the list. Chief Examiner Trujillo said only one female applied with no other minority candidates applying. MOTION: Commissioner Tee moved, seconded by Chair Trimble, to approve the Entry Level Police Officer Eligibility List as presented. A voice vote approved the motion. UPDATES: Commissioner Tee asked about continuing outreach efforts to attract female and minority applicants for any of the eligibility lists. Chief Examiner Trujillo replied that the Fire Department and the City have pursued additional efforts to actively recruit females and minority applicants for entry level firefighter positions. Additionally, some process obstacles have been removed, as well as pursuing a number of outreach activities. For the last recruitment, City staff resources were focused on the work for the Regional Fire Authority proposal as well as other activities resulting in less outreach efforts than in previous recruitments. The Fire Department has also conducted open houses focused to attract female applicants. Fire Chief Hurley added that the IDEA Team was instituted to assist the City in building outreach programs to attract a pool of diverse candidates. Although COVID stalled many efforts, the City plans to visit schools and utilize social messaging to convey information about hiring opportunities within the fire service. Police Commander Mason explained that the recruitment efforts within the Police Department have been challenging because the City uses Public Safety Testing to complete initial vetting of applicants, which places the Police Department in direct competition with other police department in the state. Unlike the Fire Department, which administers its testing process for entry level candidates, the Police Department uses Public Safety Testing to complete the written and physical testing process. Names of the applicants successfully completing those tests are forwarded to the Police Department. The department continues to discuss ways to improve the recruitment process. It has been difficult to target individuals or groups because they often test for other police departments within a certain geographic area. Applicants have the choice of testing for specific departments across the state. The department advertises recruitments on the City’s social media platforms. Commissioner Tee asked whether the City uses social media platforms that target specific minority communities. Police Commander Mason replied that he is not aware of any social media platforms that target specific communities. The department has extended recruitment opportunities to Joint Base Lewis McChord. Chair Trimble explained that previously, Public Safety Testing outreached to different minority communities through strategic advertising and advertising DocuSign Envelope ID: 742214A4-32D6-46B5-8008-893E29A179FA TUMWATER CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION MINUTES OF VIRTUAL MEETING November 10, 2022 Page 4 outside the state in areas with a diverse population. In the past, Public Safety Testing conducted testing outside the state to attract more diverse applicants, as well as military applicants. The company has also hosted recruitment fairs and events at different locations and on college campuses. The City receives the benefit of those recruitment efforts by Public Safety Testing; however, applicants have the option of selecting the department. Commissioner Tee said he has experience in assisting an agency in outreaching to minority groups where there is a higher concentration of minority or diverse applicants. He has assisted agencies in advertising through radio stations that broadcast to Hispanics and other ethnic populations. He asked about the feasibility of the City utilizing some of those methods. Chief Examiner Trujillo replied that Public Safety Testing is pursuing many of those advertising opportunities; however, testing is different than in previous years as the process has transitioned to online testing, which has opened up the process across the state. The City is working on targeted diversity recruitment for City positions. One group the City has connected with is a local Latino organization to attract Latino applicants. The Latino population is the fastest growing minority population in the City. He conceded that more efforts are possible and that there is room for growth for the City in this area. Chief Examiner Trujillo reported the Local International Association of Firefighters Local 2409 voted to approve its contract with the City. The contract includes reclassification of several Fire Captains to Battalion Chiefs. The City plans to present the reclassifications to the Commission for approval in December. The Commission is also scheduled to consider a reversion list at the December meeting. Efforts continue on recruitment of the vacant position on the Commission through the City’s advertising and recruitment process, as well as with several different civic organizations. Chief Examiner Trujillo spoke to the planned conversion of minutes to action versus detailed minutes. He previously described the conversion incorrectly as he understood the minutes service, Puget Sound Meeting Services, was no longer providing the service, which was incorrect. The City has elected to prepare minutes differently by using an action minute format with recordings available for individuals who want to review details of a meeting. Fire Chief Hurley reported Mark Armstrong, Fire Prevention Officer, was recently selected as Firefighter of the Year. Fire Prevention Officer Armstrong has been with the Fire Department since 1999 and assumed the Fire Prevention Officer position last year. The Council will recognize his achievement at the next Council meeting. The department has offered two conditional offers to firefighter paramedic candidates. One candidate is a lateral candidate and the second is an entry level candidate. DocuSign Envelope ID: 742214A4-32D6-46B5-8008-893E29A179FA TUMWATER CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION MINUTES OF VIRTUAL MEETING November 10, 2022 Page 5 Moving forward to 2023, personnel changes include new Fire Lieutenant positions and Fire Captains reclassified to Battalion Chiefs. Police Commander Mason reported one entry level officer is attending the police academy and is scheduled to graduate in January 2023. The department is working to fill one vacant position. The department has experienced stability in personnel and does not foresee any personnel losses other than developing a strategy to address pending retirements in the next several years. Commissioner Tee expressed appreciation to staff for their efforts. NEXT MEETING The next meeting is scheduled on Thursday, December 8, 2022. DATE: ADJOURNMENT: Commissioner Tee moved, seconded by Chair Trimble, to adjourn the meeting at 6:09 p.m. Motion carried. _________________________ ___________________________________ Eric Trimble, Chair James Trujillo, Secretary Chief Examiner Prepared by Valerie L. Gow, Recording Secretary/President Puget Sound Meeting Services, psmsoly@earthlink.net