Personnel Committee

MINUTES PERSONNEL COMMITTEE SEPTEMBER 25, 2020 VERONA CITY HALL 7:30 A.M. 1. The meeting was called to order by Chad Kemp at 7:42 a.m. 2. Roll Call: Chad Kemp, Charlotte Jerney, and Heather Reekie were present. Also present: City Administrator Adam Sayre, Human Resources Coordinator Mitch Weckerly, and Public Works Director Theran Jacobson. 3. Approval of the minutes from the August 27, 2020 Personnel Committee meeting. Motion by Kemp, seconded by Jerney, to approve the minutes of the August 27, 2020 Personnel Committee meeting. Motion carried 3-0. 4. Discussion and Possible Action Re: Amendments to City Administrative Policy #4-Personnel Policy, Section 3-18, Regarding Compensation Weckerly stated this amendment makes cost of living adjustments (COLA) effective on the first day of the pay period closest to and before January 1st of each year. This streamlines the process and makes it easier for payroll. Motion by Kemp, seconded by Jerney, to approve amendments to City Administrative Policy #4-Personnel Policy, Section 3-18, regarding compensation. 5. Discussion and Possible Action Re: Position description, compensation and recruitment of Lead Water Operator position Jacobson stated Dan Palmer is retiring on April 1, 2021. Jacobson and Weckerly have been working on updating the position description. A significant overlap of the new hire date and Mr. Palmer’s retirement date is required for this position because of the knowledge required. Some supervisory components were also added to the position description. The position is currently at grade 11, but could fall between 11 and 12. Jacobson is proposing to keep it at 11 now, but depending on the applicant pool, it may have to be increased to grade 12. Jerney asked about the recruitment process for this position. Jacobson replied he will go through Human Resources, as well as use the channels and associations with which his department is familiar. Reekie asked if companies offering diversity will be included. Weckerly replied he will be asking any applicable contacts to share the posting with their associates and members. Sayre stated there will be approximately 13 weeks of overlap between the date the new hire starts and the date Mr. Palmer retires. Motion by Kemp, seconded by Jerney, to approve the position description, compensation and recruitment of a Lead Water Operator. Motion carried 3-0.  Jacobson requested unanimous consent of the Personnel Committee to take up Item 7 ahead of Item 6. There were no objections. 7. Discussion and Possible Action Re: Position description, compensation and recruitment of Construction Engineer position Jacobson stated the Construction Engineer is not a new position. It is an amendment of two positions, combining them into one. The amendments will also help the department prepare for a retirement coming up in 2022. The elements of the position include supervision of LTEs and the GIS Tech, being point of contact for inspection consultants, and being the records custodian for infrastructure. This position will report to the Assistant Director of Public Works, and will be graded at 15. The previous position was graded at 16. Jacobson is proposing a grade of 15, as Staff supervising this position are at grade 16. This is a very specified position with a self-management component, so the person taking the position should be experienced and qualified. The timeline is critical, as the project this person will be working on immediately upon hire will be starting in early November. Motion by Kemp, seconded by Reekie, to approve the position description, compensation and recruitment of the Construction Engineer position. Motion carried 3-0. 6. Discussion and Possible Action Re: Position description, compensation and recruitment of Public Works Maintenance Worker - Utility position Jacobson stated this is a utility based position. The primary focus of this position is to assist the Lead Water Operator. Water, sanitary sewer and storm water utility responsibilities would be included, as well as assisting with plowing streets. This position description is similar to maintenance staff, but is geared more toward utilities. As the City grows, the public works department needs to grow in order to provide needed services to the City. Kemp stated his main understanding is we want to make sure services do not fail, especially for snow plowing. He asked if the retirement would take place this winter season or next. Theran replied it would take place in the 2021-2022 winter season. He likes to train one person at a time. The Lead Water Operator and Construction Engineer will both be coming on in 2021. He is proposing the Public Works Maintenance Worker – Utility position start in the August/September time frame, so that person will be ready for the 2021-2022 winter plowing season. Kemp asked about the cost of this position and how it would affect the budget. Jacobson replied this is a utility-based position with no effect on the levy. The first year cost would be just over $40,000. The ongoing cost would be approximately $80,000. Sayre confirmed this is a utility position, so it will not hit the levy. The Finance Committee discussed the position and deferred it to the Personnel Committee. It is important to note that city-wide, there were other departments interested in adding positions, as well. Those had a levy impact. The City also has to be conscious that we kept a 2% COLA for all employees. If we are adding positions during a COVID-19 pandemic, we have to consider the perception of the public, and other department heads pushing back because they were told they could not add a position. Kemp asked if the City is in clear and present danger of loss of services within this budget period.  Jacobson replied the City is not in clear and present danger, but if we cannot get to things now, there may be failures later. The main concern is snow plowing. If the Lead Water Operator is not able to plow, the department will be short a plow operator. Kemp asked if possession of a CDL, allowing that person to operate a snow plow, is part of the position description. Jacobson replied it is listed as preferred, but not required. Jerney stated this position would be critical for the public health of the City, which would make it a priority on her list. Sayre stated the only reason we can have this conversation is because it is a utility position, so it is not a levy item. It would not be possible if it were not in the utility. Kemp stated the City’s financial outlook looks much better for 2022, but we will be struggling to get through the 2021 cycle. He would say ‘no’ to the position for now. If we can find a Lead Water Operator that is also able to plow, we should be able to get through this cycle. 8:23 a.m. – Reekie left the meeting. Kemp asked Jacobson to keep the Committee updated on the Lead Water Operator position recruitment. The Committee took no action on this item. 8. Adjournment: Motion by Kemp, seconded by Jerney, to adjourn at 8:25 a.m. Motion carried 3-0. Ellen Clark, City Clerk