PERSONNEL COMMITTEE
MEETING MINUTES
October 7, 2002
A regular meeting of the Chippewa County Board of Commissioners' Personnel Committee was held on
Monday, October 7, 2002 at the Chippewa County Courthouse in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. Chairman
Hopper called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. with a quorum present.
MEMBERS PRESENT: Aaron Hopper, Chairman, Ted Postula and Bernard LaJoie
MEMBERS ABSENT: None
OTHERS PRESENT: Tim Dolehanty, County Controller
Additions / Deletions to the Agenda
Chairman Hopper called for additions or deletions to the agenda. Hearing none, the agenda was declared
approved as presented.
Public Comments
Chairman Hopper called for pubic comments. No public comments were offered.
Agenda Item: Personnel Policy
Controller Dolehanty distributed an updated draft of the personnel policy last considered by the Board in
May, 2002. He said a personnel policy is especially helpful when questions arise regarding Board policy and
how various employee-related matters should be addressed.
The Committee discussed various components of the draft policy and agreed that it would serve as a single
point of reference for employees and commissioners. The Committee also discussed the manner in which the
revised draft should be presented to the full Board.
It was moved by Commissioner Postula, supported by Commissioner LaJoie, to present the revised
draft of the personnel policy to the Board of Commissioners for their consideration. On a voice vote,
the motion was CARRIED.
Performance Evaluation
Controller Dolehanty reminded the Committee of bylaws related to his performance evaluation. Members
concurred about the importance of input from all Commissioners and discussed ways to accomplish that goal.
It was agreed that Chairman Hopper would compile the comments from all Commissioners and meet with the
Controller to review the results.
It was moved by Commissioner LaJoie, supported by Commissioner Postula, to distribute performance
evaluation forms to all Commissioners with a request to return completed forms to Commissioner
Hopper before October 31, 2002. On a voice vote, the motion was CARRIED.
FLSA Salary/Exemption Test
Committee members received and reviewed an article from the Fair Labor Standards Handbook about salary
and exempt status of public employees. The article stressed the importance of proper classification because
the consequences of misclassifying workers with respect to Federal law can be expensive. Controller
Dolehanty stated the classification for each employee was included in the employee roster provided with the
draft budget.
Equalization Department Data Entry Clerk Part-Time Hours
Commissioner LaJoie reported on a discussion held by the Equalization and Apportionment Committee
concerning additional hours requested for the Equalization Department Data Entry Clerk. Register of Deeds /
Equalization Director Sharon Kennedy asked that the position be increased to 25 hours per week for the
remainder of the current fiscal year, then increased to 30 hours per week beginning on January 1, 2003. She
stated the additional workload makes this change necessary.
Controller Dolehanty presented a cost analysis for the request. Chairman Hopper suggested increasing the
position to 25 hours per week for the remainder of the current year, and then re-evaluate the need for the
position prior to 2003. Committee members discussed the impact on the 2003 budget, noting several
employee positions were left unfilled because of budget constraints.
It was moved by Commissioner Postula, supported by Commissioner LaJoie, to recommend that the
Finance, Claims and Accounts Committee consider increasing the position to 25 hours per week for the
remainder of the current year. On a voice vote, the motion was CARRIED.
Collective Bargaining
Controller Dolehanty presented a number of minor changes to the recently completed Probate Court union
contract, as suggested by Judge Lowell Ulrich. Mr. Dolehanty stated the changes were consistent with the
ruling of the Michigan Supreme Court that defined the Court as the employer. He also reported that the union
agreed with the changes.
It was moved by Commissioner LaJoie, supported by Commissioner Postula, to recommend
concurrence with the contract changes recommended by Judge Ulrich. On a voice vote, the motion was
CARRIED.
Committee Comments
There were no additional committee comments.
Chairperson's Comments
Chairman Hopper had no additional comments.
Adjourn
It was moved by Commissioner Postula, supported by Commissioner LaJoie, to adjourn the meeting.
On a voice vote, the motion was CARRIED.
Chairman Hopper declared the meeting adjourned at 6:15 p.m.
__________________________________ __________________________________
Timothy J. Dolehanty, AICP, Recorder Aaron Hopper, Committee Chairman