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HomeMy WebLinkAbout5.a. Maintenance Level I Recommendationor DATE: APRIL 2, 1987 TO: ADMINISTRATOR STEVE JILK FROM: CITY ENGINEER/PUBLIC WORKS DIRECTOR RICH HEFT SUBJ: MAINTENANCE LEVEL 1 RECOMMENDATIONS I have posted the postion opening for Maintenance Level 1 in the Public Works Garage posting area and also in the lobby of the City Hall as the union contract requires. Both of the existing temporary employees, Carl Dahnke and AJ Korpella are applying for this opening.I also recieved five other applications from people outside the City work force. Because the two City employees are qualified for the position, I did not consider the additional applications further at this time. Public Works Supervisor Brown and Public Works Foreman Cook are recommending Mr. Dahnke to fill the Maintenance Level 1 position. The reasons being that Mr. Dahnke was hired last April to fill this same position in anticipation of Mr. Mazurkiewitz's termination. During Mr. Dahnke's employment with the City, he has performed satisfactorily. I agree with the recommendation from Supervisor Brown and Foreman Cook regarding the hiring of Carl E. Dahnke to fill the position of Maintenance Level 1 pending successful completion of a physical and background check. cc: Finance Director Don Darling Public Works Supervisor Don Brown Public Works Foreman Richman Cook wro:U TO hUUMUL APR 0 31987 CLIMES clan 1987 07 DATE: APRIL 7, 1987 �•I I 1' :I' ... �. M A04• ,•I Gentlemen, You have received a recommendation frau Rich Hefti concerning the hiring of Carl Dahnke to fill the position vacated by Don Mazurkiewicz per his inability to meet requirements for employment. I concur with Richs' reconv endation. Based upon Carls performance since I have been here, I would concur with Rich's appraisal and support the action. Carl will be placed in the Maintenance I position with a 1987 base rate of $7.26/hr and benefits. Further, I would advise you that, based upon my review of the union contract and discussion with and confirmation of my interpretation of the contract by Dave Grannis, that we will be responsible for back pay. This pay would go back to January 1, 1987, in Carls rase, the difference between his current pay of $7.00/hr and the Maintenance Level I pay of $7.26/hr. Prior to January 1, 1987 the base pay for that position was $6.98/hr. Also and more importantly, we are obligated to place A. J. Korpela, hired on May 15, 1986, in a permanent status as Maintenance Level I at a rate of pay and benefits commensurate with that position. We will be obligated to grant back pay to A. J. back to November 15, 1986 at a rate of the difference between his current pay of $5.50/hr and $6.98/hr, the 1986 base rate for Maintenance Level I, from November 15, 1986 and the difference between $5.50/hr and $7.26/hr from January 1, 1987 until now. You're obviously asking why? Carl Dahnke was hired on April 7, 1986 as a temporary employee to fill the temporary vacancy left by Don Mazurkiewicz periling the outcome of his ability to get a drivers license. A. J. Korpela was hired on May 19, 1986 as a temporary employee to handle the added seasonal load experienced in the Public Works Department. A. J. was kept on during the fall and then into winter to assist in projects that department was able to accomplish because of a lack of snow cover. Page 2 Maintenance Positions I was advised, when I started in November, that both of these employees were temporary employees. I asked and received a recommendation frcm. Rich Hefti that A. J., the only extra employee, so to speak, be retained through the summer of 1987 before a decision was made as to laying him off because of the need for people in the public works. I concurred and you were advised of this two Council meetings ago when we discussed Don Mazurkiewicz. There are two factors governing our dealings with employees of the City. They are; the Minnesota Labor Relations Act (State Statute #179) and the contract we have with, in this case, the members of the Public Works Department. Let's review what effects both have here: The Union Contract states that any employee working in Public Works for more than 14 hours a week or 35% of the normal work week and more than 67 work days is eligible to be in the Union. After 6 calendar months of employment an employee will be considered a "permanent employee". For Carl Dahnke that would have meant he was a "permanent employee" as of October 4th and A. J. Korpela would have reached that status as of November 15th. State Statute #179 states that this permanency goes into affect at 100 days. For Carl this would have been August 2, 1986 and for A. J. it would have been October 3, 1986. So, according to State law, as of October 3, 1986 we were obligated to consider A. J. as a full time, permanent employee or find reason to lay him off. State law will hold over a contract as long as it is more restrictive. In discussion with the Union we understand the position they are taking is to grant back pay only to the 6 months point and not 100 days. My first thought on this matter was to fight it. But, after two lengthy discussions with Dave Grannis and my review of State law I see no reason to fight it except to delay the ultimate result and most assuredly create animosity among employees. A mistake was clearly made. Decisions on these two positions should have been made prior to the 100 days and preferably prior to the 67 days referred to in the Contract. I cannot and will not attempt to put any reason to the lack of decisiveness in this matter, especially since there effective dates were prior to my starting. We have to accept the legal requirements constraining us at this point. Fortunately, the personnel involved FILE ct.s Page 3 Maintenance Positions makes this a lot easier to take since A. J. Korpela also has proven his ability, desire and capability and I have no reason to deny his being placed on the position. A. J. will be filling a position normally held by "temporary" help we hire for the sumner months and into the fall, as development continues we are sure his time will be well utilized. Also, I will be suggesting that we consider other utilization of this position in the upcoming year, possibly not renewing the cleaning contract for City Hall and utilizing this position to pick up that need which is now costing us some $11,000 a year. Groundskeeping, summer and winter will be an additional need at our new building. We can, of course, make a decision to lay him off. At this time I don't believe that is realistic and if we do, for two years, if the need arises to hire someone to fill that void it would have to be offered to him. The most difficult part of this is that we are being forced to place a permanent status on a position through a lack of decisiveness not because of our timely decision to do so. I believe the work load is there and he will be utilized but it would seem our control over the decision was given away several months ago. That bothers me. With this in mind, I ask your formal approval for the hiring of Carl laahnke and A. J. Korpela to the position of Maintenance Level I workers and authorize back pay for wages, as required, to coincide with their fulfilling of 6 months of employment, being October 4, 1986 for Carl Uahnke and November 15, 1986 for A. J. Korpela..