Committee Minutes
MINUTES
Grand Forks Civil Service Commission
June 11, 2009
Vice-Chairman MacGregor called the Grand Forks Civil Service Commission meeting to order at approximately 3:30PM in the City Hall, Council Chambers. Commissioners, Nies, and Vanyo were present.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
It was moved by Commissioner Nies and seconded by Commissioner Vanyo to approve the May 14, 2009 regular meeting minutes.
All approved, motion carried.
It was moved by Commissioner Vanyo and seconded by Commissioner Nies to approve the May 18, 2009 special hearing minutes.
All approved, motion carried.
CHANGES/ADDITIONS TO AGENDA
LeRoy Bergquist stated that there would be one change to take the “Eligibility of Non-Classified Employees to apply for Classified Position” and place this item next on the agenda.
It was moved by Commissioner Nies and seconded by Commissioner Vanyo to approve the change to the agenda.
All approved, motion carried.
Eligibility of Non-Classified Employees to apply for Classified Position per 6-0513(1)
Mr. Bergquist stated the employee sent a letter to the HR Director requesting he be considered as an internal candidate for the position of Building Maintenance Worker. This employee is currently a seasonal employee that has been with the City over one year. It was moved by Commissioner Vanyo and seconded by Commissioner Nies to approve the eligibility of the non-classified employee to be considered for the internal position.
Vice-Chairman MacGregor added that the Commission started this practice after the flood of 1997, when there were a lot of temporary employees and a lot of positions became available.
All approved, motion carried.
REASSIGNMENT REGISTERS
Firefighter, Sr.
Mr. Bergquist stated that Deputy Chief Flermoen is available to answer any questions and they have requested to include all five candidates on the register. Deputy Chief Flermoen stated that all five are very good candidates, so they would like to leave the register as it is with all names. Deputy Chief Flermoen stated that there might be possibly one opening within the next year. Discussion was held. It was moved by Commissioner Vanyo and it was seconded by Commissioner Nies to establish the cutoff for the Firefighter, Sr. Reassignment Register at 50.150%.
All approved, motion carried.
Christopher Carlson
Rodney Freitag
Kevin Blake
Steven Lackman
Samuel Reile
Fire Captain
Mr. Bergquist stated that the department has requested all four candidates be included on the register. Deputy Chief Flermoen stated that they are not expecting any openings, but because this is the first line supervisor and the department has historically maintained a register for this position. It was moved by Commissioner Nies and it was seconded by Commissioner Vanyo to establish the cutoff for the Fire Captain Reassignment Register at 64.768.
All approved, motion carried.
Jeffery Laskowske
Jerod Kurtz
Robert Kramer
Andrew Carter
Building Maintenance Worker
Mr. Bergquist stated that there is one position open and it has been requested to cut at 77.00, since only one name will be sent to the Mayor and we don’t anticipate any further openings. Vice-Chairman MacGregor suggested dropping the cutoff to 69.00, which is closer to 70%. It was moved by Commissioner Vanyo and it was seconded by Commissioner Nies to establish the cutoff for the Building Maintenance Worker at 69.000.
All approved, motion carried.
Brent Olmstead
James Gierszewski
David Pankratz
Bruce Hecht
Removal of Name from Eligibility Register
Mr. Bergquist stated that the Commission had established a Police Officer Eligibility Register last month. In the interview and the background check processes some other facts came to light. Captain Kirby from the Police Department was present to answer questions. Commissioner Nies asked for time to read the recommendation letter from the HR Director to remove the applicant from the Register. Vice-Chairman MacGregor asked where this candidate ranked on the register. Mr. Bergquist stated that he ranked number two. Captain Kirby stated that he oversees the HR Bureau in the Police department which is responsible for hiring. He stated that in reviewing prior years procedures, it was decided, in addition to the background checks and the polygraph prior to the interview process, that in the future we might want to make personal visits to the community or the past employers, prior to making a recommendation to the Mayor. In this case, information came to light during the interview that was more detailed than what the Police department knew prior to doing the background and polygraph. When the Police department sent an investigator out to the prior employer, the investigator found information that indicated prior misconduct within that prior agency and that the applicant had not been fully disclosed this information. The investigator also found evidence of behaviors and statements the individual had made that the Police department believes are inconsistent with what is expected of a City employee as well as a position of trust such as a Police Officer. From this information it was determined a second polygraph was appropriate and the results of the second exam concluded that the individual was deceptive in his remarks to the polygraph examiner. Staff provided a report to Chief Packett that concluded the individuals behavior was disqualifying and the department would ask the individuals name be removed from the register. Chief Packett did endorse that recommendation and forwarded the recommendation to HR Director, who reviewed the recommendation and came to the same conclusion. The department has had personal conversations with the individual and he knows the conclusions the Police department has developed. Commissioner Vanyo asked if there has been any response from the individual on the letter. Captain Kirby stated there has not been any response. It was moved by Commissioner Nies and it was seconded by Commissioner Vanyo to remove the applicant from the current Police Officer Register.
All approved, motion carried
ADJOURNMENT
It was moved by Commissioner Vanyo and seconded by Commissioner Nies to adjourn the June 11, 2009 regular meeting. The meeting was adjourned at approximately 3:45PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Daryl Hovland Human Resources Director