T o w n o f C h i l m a r k P e r s o n n e l B o a r d
Adopted November 6th, 2008
M i n u t e s
Thursday, October 16th, 2008
Chilmark Town Hall
8:05 am
Present: Richard Williams (Chair), Jennie Greene, Susan Heilbron, Stephen Lewenberg, Max McCreery
Also Present: J.B. Riggs Parker (Selectman), Tim Carroll (Executive Secretary), Marina Lent (Personnel Board Secretary)
Absent: Polly McDowell (Staff Liaison)
Minutes of October 2nd adopted as amended, with 2 abstentions
Chilmark Library Director Ebba Hierta brought the following personnel-related issues to the Board for discussion:
Step Increase for Irene Tewksbury: The position of Assistant Librarian was budgeted at a step 1 in the FY’09 budget; however, the Library was fortunate enough to find a highly experienced and capable candidate with years of prior experience in a library position in the Oak Bluffs Library. She stated that it is very important to retain this highly qualified candidate. She felt it would have been more appropriate to have been able to hire her at a step 3 instead of a step 1, and she would like to be able to rectify that in the FY’10 budget.
Stephen Lewenberg inquired whether there would have been a way to have gotten the resources to hire her at the appropriate step level from the outset. Ebba Hierta replied that tight timing, with a pressing need for filling the position in the library and the candidate considering another job offer from the school, would have made this very difficult. Stephen Lewenberg pointed out that the Personnel Board stands ready to assist in various ways in all the Town’s hiring processes, including working with the FinCom to make available necessary funding in situations like this one.
A MOTION was made that the Personnel Board recommend to the Finance Advisory Committee that Irene Tewksbury be brought to a step 3 for FY’09, rather than the currently-budgeted step 1, in light of her qualifications at the time of hire. UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED.
Executive Secretary Tim Carroll will attempt to convene the FinCom to address this issue. Jennie Greene suggested that the Personnel Board draft a letter to the FinCom, conveying its recommendation and confirming its consistency with the Chilmark Personnel Bylaw. Library Director Ebba Hierta will put the question on the agenda of the next meeting of the Board of Library Trustees.
Seasonal Permanent Status: Library Assistant Judith Mueller was hired in 2005 as a seasonal employee. In recent years she has been working year round with variable hours between summer and off-season, averaging less than 20 hours per week. Ebba Hierta proposed changing the status of this employee from seasonal to permanent, and inquired whether that would make her eligible for paid holidays and accrual of vacation and sick pay.
Discussion ensued as to the distinction between the “casual” employee, defined in the Bylaw as someone who is non-elected and works <20 hours/week, and the “part-time” employee, who works between 20 and 30 ½ hours/week. The part-time employee is eligible for health benefits, the casual employee is not. Members expressed a preference for the term “regular” to denote ongoing, scheduled employment, rather than the term “permanent” currently used in the Bylaw.
It is clear that this particular employee is not a seasonal employee, but is a “permanent, casual” employee under the current Bylaw. However, the Bylaw is silent as to whether or not casual employees are able to accrue paid vacation time or paid sick leave. Other permanent, casual employees are not getting annual leave or paid sick leave. These include the Building Inspector and the to-be-hired Assistant Shellfish Constable. The Bylaw, as well as current practice, indicates that the permanent, casual employee is not eligible for paid vacation and sick time. Executive Secretary Tim Carroll noted that the position description had been changed in 2003, already reflecting the non-seasonal status of the Library Assistant.
A MOTION to change the status of this employee to a non-seasonal employee was UNANIMOUSLY ADOPTED.
Position Description Revision: Library Director Ebba Hierta presented a draft revised Position Description for the Library Assistant, which includes Assistants hired for the summer positions. She stated that the position has evolved since 2003, and that the current description did not reflect the technical skills and degree of maturity and judgment required by the position. She described features of the job which were reflected in her proposed changes, for example, the need for maturity and confidentiality when assisting customers seeking information and help in coping with highly personal and sensitive issues, such as a newly-diagnosed illness.
Tim Carroll noted that the job description applies to both seasonal and permanent employees and pointed out that the accelerated seasonal compensation scale can easily lead to a situation where a seasonal person will end up getting paid more than the more experienced and knowledgeable permanent person in the same position. He then went on to suggest that the lower pay grades could be eliminated from the compensation table entirely: they are so low that there are almost no employees who are placed in these grades.
A MOTION to approve the job description as presented by the Library Director was APPROVED UNANIMOUSLY.
Richard Williams asked if there were fiscal implications to the changes made in the job description, and Tim Carroll replied that any change in a Chilmark position description triggers a re-grade review. This should be done in time to be incorporated into the FY’10 budget.
A MOTION to approve a grade increase, effective July 1st, 2009, following a re-grading review, was APPROVED UNANIMOUSLY. Susan Heilbron and Jennie Greene will form the grade-review Subcommittee for this position.
Minutes of September 25th Ebba Hierta then raised the issue of Personnel Board minutes of September 25th 2008 which referred to the Library as having undertaken the recent hiring process without regard for Town procedures. She emphasized that she would gladly comply with Chilmark’s Bylaw and procedures, but could not do so if she was not fully informed as to what those procedures were. In this case, she had done exactly as she had been instructed to do.
Selectman Riggs Parker stated that new hires must be appointed by the Selectmen before they can go on the payroll, which had fortunately been accomplished in this case before causing any hardship to the employee.
Members agreed that there had been insufficient communication in this case. Tim Carroll noted that, while the Personnel Board had made great strides in defining a solid, sound hiring process, this process has yet to be clearly set down in writing and communicated to all Chilmark staff and officials. He noted the special case of the Library and Police Department, which, in addition to being Town employees, work under their own statutory authority, and have wider discretion in their hiring processes. He will work with the Police Department and the Library to set down in writing a description of the hiring process that addresses their situation.
Selectman Riggs Parker agreed that it is very necessary to write down the hiring process as we have developed it over the past months. Department heads need clarification on these procedures. Personnel Board members affirmed this point, and thanked Ebba Hierta for bringing this to their attention. Chairman Richard Williams reviewed the language in the minutes of September 25th, and apologized for the misunderstanding, noting that today’s discussion would be recorded to correct any false impressions given. Ebba Hierta strongly urged members of the Personnel Board to communicate any concerns quickly and directly to her, before expressing them in a written record. She reiterated her willingness to work within Town procedures and thanked the Board for this opportunity to work
together.
Selectman Riggs Parker reiterated the importance of producing a Procedure Manual to guide Town officials and employees, including the BOS. Susan Heilbron noted that she and Chuck Hodgkinson were engaged in a comprehensive compilation of all changes made in the Bylaw so far, and, at the same time, were separating those sections of the text that more properly belong in the Procedure Manual. She hoped that they would be able to complete the Bylaw draft, incorporating all changes made to date, in time for the next meeting of the Board, on November 6th, 2008, which she will be unable to attend. Chuck Hodgkinson can present their compilation draft.
Updates on Current Hiring Processes: Executive Secretary Tim Carroll updated the Board on hiring processes currently under way. There are seven applicants for the Assistant Shellfish position, including an in-house candidate. The Shellfish Advisory Committee will discuss the applications tonight.
He then reported on last Tuesday’s meeting of the Board of Health (BOH), attended by himself, Max McCreery on behalf of the Personnel Board, and Riggs Parker on behalf of the BOS. It had been a very productive and positive meeting. Members had discussed the past configuration of the position of Health Inspector, noting that it had in a sense been scaled back to fit the previous employee, who, at the time of hire, had not been certified. The BOH felt that they would like to hire for a more high-level position of a Health Agent, who would be empowered to make decisions on behalf of the Board, rather than an Administrative Assistant.
Tim Carroll noted that job descriptions for the position in other Island Towns varied widely, from a single page to a 12-page description. Towns frequently split the duties between a high-level Health Agent and an Administrative Assistant. He hoped to have a final proposal developed by the BOH at the upcoming meeting on Friday to bring to the BOS for approval on Tuesday, and be able to advertise for the Health Inspector by October 23rd.
Selectman Riggs Parker confirmed that it had been a very positive meeting, with all parties listening and responding to each other. Tim Carroll noted that Max McCreery had ably represented the Personnel Board, demonstrating the constructive role the Board can play in these processes, by contributing on personnel and hiring procedure questions, rather than intervening on matters of substance. The choice of what is the right configuration for the job rightly belongs to the BOH. The Executive Secretary and Personnel Board are present to facilitate implementation of the wishes of the BOH, and to ensure consistency with Town Bylaws and procedures.
Performance Appraisal Process: Personnel Board Chair Richard Williams noted with great appreciation the draft performance appraisal document produced by Selectman Frank Fenner, and requested that it be sent to Board Secretary Marina Lent for distribution to the Board.
Executive Secretary Tim Carroll inquired as to the status of the draft letter to be sent to Department Heads on the performance appraisal process, encouraging them to develop their own format for this year’s appraisal process. It was noted that Beach Superintendant Martina Mastromonaco has developed a simple and effective method for appraisal of the entire beach staff. Jennie Greene noted that the Beach Committee had questioned the need for performance appraisals of beach staff, but she felt this was valuable in order to ensure continuity in this important department from one year to the next.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:42am.
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