Civil Service Commission

DocuSign Envelope ID: 26519240-4966-4F63-AE33-518FEF6950A2 TUMWATER CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION MINUTES OF VIRTUAL MEETING February 21, 2023 Page 1 CONVENE: 5:33 p.m. PRESENT: Chair Simon Tee and Commissioner Eric Trimble. Staff: Secretary/Chief Examiner James Trujillo, HR Program Manager Juliann McGarva, Fire Chief Brian Hurley, Police Chief Jon Weiks. Others: Blake Chard, Tumwater Resident. CHANGES TO There were no changes to the agenda. AGENDA: APPROVAL OF MINUTES, JANUARY 12, 2023: MOTION: Commissioner Trimble moved, seconded by Chair Tee, to approve the minutes of January 12, 2023 as published. A voice vote approved the motion. FEBRUARY Chief Examiner Trujillo reported the Lateral Firefighter/Paramedic Eligibility STATUS OF List no longer exists. There have been no other changes since the January ELIGIBILITY report. LISTS: APPROVAL OF Chief Examiner Trujillo reported the recruitment process for entry level Police UPDATED ENTRY Officer is an active and competitive process. The updated eligibility list LEVEL POLICE reflects the number of applicants who passed all phases of testing. During this OFFICER round, all applicants passed testing to include all women and diverse ELIGIBILITY candidates. Nine individuals are included on the existing list. The updated list LIST: reflects additions and a deletion of one candidate. The one name removed is of an individual who did not pass a background investigation. MOTION: Commissioner Trimble moved, seconded by Chair Tee, to approve the updated Entry Level Police Office Eligibility List as presented. A voice vote approved the motion. APPROVAL OF Chief Examiner Trujillo presented the Fire Lieutenant testing plan. The plan is FIRE similar to previous plans. It was partially developed and administered by LIEUTENANT PublicSafetyTesting.com. PublicSafeyTesting.com administers the second and EXAM PLAN: third steps of the testing process. The first step is candidate screening completed by the City and the Assistant Fire Chief to verify candidates meet minimum qualifications as outlined in the job description. Individuals meeting the minimum qualifications are invited to participate in the second step, a written exam. The test is based on the Fire and Emergency Services Company Officer, 6th Edition. The testing affords the candidate a 30-day study period to prepare for a 100-question test. Minimum passing score is 70%, which is DocuSign Envelope ID: 26519240-4966-4F63-AE33-518FEF6950A2 TUMWATER CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION MINUTES OF VIRTUAL MEETING February 21, 2023 Page 2 required for candidates to advance to the Assessment Center. Specific dimensions are evaluated in the Assessment Center conducted by PublicSafetyTesting.com. Staff anticipates presenting an eligibility list for the Commission’s consideration at its May meeting. The top seven candidates are eligible for the Chief’s interview as part of the process. The recruitment is tied to the Lieutenant Paramedic/Firefighter position as well. Commissioner Trimble inquired about the approximately number of personnel eligible to participate in the exam. Fire Chief Hurley advised that it is likely seven to eight individuals are eligible to participate in the test. The Assessment Center is an all-day event with multiple stations with role-playing of a command technical scenario. The testing involves a number of phases, which has benefitted the fire department. Chief Examiner Trujillo added that the testing process has been well received and those who have completed the process indicated they were able to obtain value from the process. Most of the feedback has been positive because the process evaluates issues that are useful for the candidates in their respective positions. MOTION: Commissioner Trimble moved, seconded by Chair Tee, to approve the Fire Lieutenant Exam Plan as presented. A voice vote approved the motion. APPROVAL OF LT. Chief Examiner Trujillo reported the proposed exam plan builds on the Fire PARAMEDIC Lieutenant exam plan. The exam includes similar elements of a written exam EXAM PLAN: and assessment center but includes the addition of an oral board. To be eligible for a Lieutenant Paramedic, a candidate must have passed the Fire Lieutenant exam as well. The exam assessment is 20% for the written exam, 30% for the assessment center, and 50% for the oral board. The top seven candidates are eligible for the Chief’s interview. The Commission is scheduled to consider the eligibility list at its May meeting. MOTION: Commissioner Trimble moved, seconded by Chair Tee, to approve the Lieutenant Paramedic Exam Plan as presented. A voice vote approved the motion. CIVIL SERVICE Chief Examiner Trujillo reviewed a proposed change to Civil Rule 27 on Fire RULE POSITION Service Classifications to add a new classification to address business needs of UPDATES: the City and the Tumwater Fire Department as negotiated during the last round of fire labor negotiations. The proposal adds a new role of Fire Prevention Officer II and enables the City to improve fire prevention services, expand fire inspections, and expand public education to prevent fires. Commissioner Trimble asked whether the proposal affords another promotional opportunity within the fire department. Chief Examiner Trujillo advised that it would provide a promotional opportunity. DocuSign Envelope ID: 26519240-4966-4F63-AE33-518FEF6950A2 TUMWATER CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION MINUTES OF VIRTUAL MEETING February 21, 2023 Page 3 Chair Tee asked whether the position would be an open competitive recruitment process. Chief Examiner Trujillo explained that if the department has capacity within the department for promotions, the City would pursue internal promotion recruitment. However, if the department lacked qualified candidates, the recruitment would be an open competitive process. Fire Chief Hurley added that the position was originally classified as a Fire Inspector. During the pandemic, the incumbent retired and the position remained unfilled. During the recruitment process, the Commission was asked to reclassify the position as a Fire Prevention Officer with the intent of expanding the position to focus on risk-reduction as the previous position focused primarily on fire inspections. Certifications for the position are issued by the International Fire Code Council in addition to required fire investigation training. The City benefits as well by adding a certified fire safety educator as a component of fire prevention education for the community. To recognize the additional training required, the position is proposed as a Fire Prevention Officer II, which was also requested by the labor union. The position would conduct fire inspections as well. The objective is to expand capabilities within that division of the fire department. The proposal would add a second level position to expand fire prevention capabilities. The position also benefits the City as it adds a certification that the Survey and Rating Bureau seeks when examining and rating the fire department. Chief Examiner Trujillo requested consideration of approving the request to update Civil Service Rule 21 (21.01 Fire Service Classifications) to add the role of Fire Prevention Officer II. MOTION: Commissioner Trimble moved, seconded by Chair Tee, to approve updating Civil Service Rule 21 (21.01 Fire Service Classifications) to add the role of Fire Prevention Officer II. A voice vote approved the motion. UPDATES: Police Chief Weiks advised that the department anticipates attaining full staffing by the end of the week. The department hired an individual earlier in the day and the second individual is scheduled to complete a background investigation within the next several days. Both individuals will start at the beginning of March putting the department at full staffing for approximately 45 days as one officer intends to resign to relocate to the East Coast to open a distilling company. Following the hiring of the two individuals, an eight- month lag is anticipated before both individuals can attend the police academy. Dependent upon upcoming changes in police academy scheduling, the officers could be enrolled sooner rather than later. Fire Chief Hurley thanked the Commission for approving the testing processes as the department has one open Fire Lieutenant position. The department is also in the process of testing for a lateral Firefighter Paramedic with two candidates. Interviews of the candidates have been scheduled. The DocuSign Envelope ID: 26519240-4966-4F63-AE33-518FEF6950A2 TUMWATER CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION MINUTES OF VIRTUAL MEETING February 21, 2023 Page 4 department has two Firefighter Paramedic vacant positions and filling the positions would fully staff the department. The Fire Department advertised to a wider audience generating more views of the application. The department plans to participate in the Tacoma Community College Employment Fair in conjunction with Thurston County Medic One. Chief Examiner Trujillo announced that effective March 1, 2023, Manager McGarva will assume the position of the Interim Administrative Services Director as well as the role of Chief Examiner for the Civil Service Commission. He has accepted a senior manager position in Oregon and will be leaving the City at the end of the month. Chair Tee, on behalf of the Commission, thanked Chief Examiner Trujillo for his service to the Commission and to the City. NEXT MEETING The next meeting is scheduled on Thursday, March 9, 2023. DATE: ADJOURNMENT: Commissioner Trimble moved, seconded by Chair Tee, to adjourn the meeting at 5:59 p.m. A voice vote approved the motion. _________________________ ___________________________________ Simon Tee, Chair Juliann McGarva, Secretary Chief Examiner Prepared by Valerie L. Gow, Recording Secretary/President Puget Sound Meeting Services, psmsoly@earthlink.net