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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCIV 1982-01-27 Minutes MINUTES FOR THE REGULAR MEETING OF THE CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION JANUARY 27, 1982 AT 7:00 P.M. TN ~ THE NORTH RICHLAND HILLS CITY HALL, 7301 N.E. LOOP 820 CALL TO ORDER Chairman Szol called the meeting to order at 7:00 P.M. ROLL CALL Members Present: Ed Szol Chairman Bob Roark David Phelps George Pederson Others Present: Sharyl Groves Councilwoman Ron McKinney Civil Service Secretary Cecil Forester Director of Public Works/Utilities John Moody Water Superintendent Don Andrews Fire Arson Investigator APPROVAL OF MINUTES Commissioner Phelps moved, seconded by Chairman Szol, FOR OCTOBER 20, 1981 to approve the minutes of October 20, 1981 as written. The motion carried 3-0 with Co~issioner Pederson abstaining since he was not present at the meeting. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Commissioner Phelps moved, seconded by Commissioner FOR APPEAL HEARING Roark, to approve the minutes for the appeal hearing OF NOVEMBER 17, 1981 of November 17, 1981 as written. The motion carried 3-0 with Commissioner Pederson abstaining since he was not present at the hearing. REQUEST TO RECONSIDER Cecil Forester, Public Works/Utility Director, addressed MAINTENANCE WORKER the Commission. He said he was asking the Commission to PAY GRADES consider the pay grade of the Maintenance Worker III and the Pump Station Operator III which currently are in Pay Grade 5. He explained to the Commission that to qualify for Maintenance Worker II and Pump Station Operator II positions in Pay Grade 4 an individual only has to be a good worker, be punctual, and do what he is told. He stated that there is a big jump in qualifications between a II and III. He explained that Maintenance Worker III's and Pump Station Operator III's are crew leaders, equip- ment operators, decision makers, mechanics, and public relations people. He said he felt the III's are misclassified; that they are more than one step above the II's. Mr. Forester said he felt they should be classified in Pay Grade 6. He compared the responsibilities of the Equipment Operator, Auto Mechanic II and Water Service Worker in Pay Grade 6 with that of the ' CIVIL SERVICE MINUTES _ _Janu~ry 27, 1982 Page 2 ~ Maintenance Worker III and Pump Station Operator III. He said an equipment operator is only required to operate equipment, an Auto Mechanic II is only required to work on equipment, and a Water Service Worker's only requirement is to install water meters. He explained that a Maintenance Worker III is required to operate equipment, be able to work on equipment without supervision, and install water meters as well as check out leaks and make accuracy tests. He said he did not have a Maintenance Worker III who could not do the 3ob of the Water Service Worker, but the Water Service Worker could not take the position of a Maintenance Worker III. Ae explained that a Pump Station Operator is a very extremely important person in the City. Chairman Szol asked what the difference was between what an Equipment Operator is required to do and that of a Maintenance Worker IiI. Mr. Forester said the Equipment Operator operates such equipment as the loader, grader, front end loader, and backhoe. He said a Maintenance Worker III also operates the same equipment, but is also required to do other things as well. He said the Equipment Operator has no supervision requirements while the Maintenance Worker III's are crew leaders responsible for supervising their people. Chairman Szol asked if there was a need for the equipment operator classification; if it would be more economic to combine the classification with the maintenance worker. Mr. Forester said he did not have any trouble finding work for the Equipment Operator. He said the Equipment Operator is more of a specialist. Commissioner Phelps asked how he valued the Equipment Operator and Maintenance Worker III. Mr. Forester said the III's were much higher. Co~issioner Phelps asked if the equipment operator might be classified wrong. Mr. Forester said if the City had a top notch equipment operator he would need to be classified where he is, but the City does not pay enough to get that kind. He said the III's are much more valuable and much more important. ~ ~ CIVIL SERVICE MINUTES January 27, 1982 Page 3 Commissioner Phelps asked about the Maintenance Foreman position. Mr. Forester explained it was a new position that was budgeted this year in the Utility Department to provide supervisory relief for the Water Superintendent foreman wise on the weekend, night and emergency crews, and to help the Water Superintendent with follow up activities. Commissioner Phelps asked if the maintenance ~orkers automatically progess up. Mr. Forester explained that they do up to a II position, but if the IZ's don't become qualified for the III position they will not progress any further. Commissioner Phelps asked if the major difference between a II and III is leadership. Mr. Forester explained that a III is a person who has progressed in job knolwedge, is able to meet the public, and take responsibility. Chairman Szol asked how the pay for the Maintenance Worker III compares with the other cities. Mr. Forester said he thought that North Richland Hills was in line but to keep in mind that North Richland Hills has 27% more water customers than Haltom City, 46% more than Euless, 300% more than Grapevine; that North Richland Hills has a bigger system with more problems, more lines and more breaks. He said that North Richland Hills has a more difficult situation in regards to the type of soil, North Richland Hills has more water breaks than any other city he has ever been involved with, and North Richland Hills maintains the water system for another city. Mr. McKinney stated that the Commission was being asked to raise the pay grades for a Maintenance Worker III and Pump Station Operator III. He asked Mr. Forester if the value between a I and II should be any greater. Mr. Forester said in his opinion it was, but that it does not justify changing. Mr. McKinney asked if the Pump Station Operator should be a greater value than the Maintenance Worker in the same category. Mr. Forester said yes, that the Pump Station Operator is depended on to be at work every day. CIVIL SERVICE MINUTES January 27, 1982 ~ - Page 4 Mr. McKinney told the Commission that a lot of the cities do not have different classifications for the maintenance workers; that they are grouped together. Commissioner Pederson asked how many Maintenaace Worker III's there are. Mr. Moody stated that in the Utility Department there are seven III's, seven II's, and seven I's. Chairman Szol said he would suggest that Mr. McKinney go out and physically see what the Equipment Operator, the Pump Station Operator and the Maintenance Worker III does, how much time they really spend on operating equipment and see how much skill is involved. Commissioner Roark asked if the Pump Station Operator III has supervisory responsibility. Mr. Forester said he only has four people who are pump station operators. He said they operate around the clock and that there is never more than one pump station operator on duty at any given time. ~hairman Szol stated that one of the key things that the Co~ission did when the pay plan was put together was to get the salaries competitive with the other cities--which this classification is at this point. He said if the Commission moves the III's up one step, then there will ~ust be a one step increase between them and the Maintenance Foreman. He said the same argument could then be applied to the Maintenance Foreman classification. He said maybe the Equipment Operator has been misclassified and should be in Pay Grade 5, the Maintenance Worker I and Pump Station Operator I should be in Pay Grade 2, the Maintenance Worker II and Pump Station Operator II should be classified in Pay Grade 3, and the Water Service Worker classified in Pay Grade 5. Mr. Forester stated that the Water Service Worker is not comparable to a Maintenance Worker III. Chairman Szol stated that the Water Service Worker may be classified too high. Mr. Forester stated that the Maintenance Worker III's are what holds the City together. Mr. Moody told the Commission that the figures they received from the other cities are not always accurate. He said unless you really knotir what you are looking ~ for you could be comparing something that somebody else calls a II or III. He said the figures might vary between 5% to 7%. He told the Commission that he had done surveys and charts in which he obtained his information regarding CIVIL SERVICE MINUTES January 27, 1982 _ ~ Page 5 salaries straight from the "horse's mouth". He told the Commission the figures they were shown came from a book. He said a former North Richland Hills employee who had never worked in the street department before went to Hurst and hired in at an entry level job digging a ditch for the Street Department and is making more money than he did at North Richland Hills as a Maintenance Worker III. Chairman Szol said to call Hurst and find out what the employee did hire in at. Mr. Forester stated that when the pay plan was put together it was his understanding that the City was not able to put together a whole lot of information in regards to what other cities were doing with their Street and Water Superintendents. Mr. Forester passed out a survey. He stated he obtained the information on the survey today by talking with the other cities personally. He told the Commission that North Richland Hills hired a Street Superintendent over a year ago for $1,500 but that according to the new pay schedule one can be hired today for $1,300. He.said the survey was what the superintendents in the other cities were actually making. He asked the Commission to take the survey into consideration. Co~nissioner Pederson moved, seconded by Commissioner Phelps, that the Commission have Ron McKinney to investigate the Equipment Operator, the Water Service Worker, the Maintenance Worker ITI, Pump Station Operator III, and the Maintenance Worker I& II and report his findings to the Commission at the next meeting for further consideration. The motion passed unanimously. REVIEW OF PAX GRADE Chairman Szol closed the regular meeting at 7:45 P.M. for FOR FIRE ARSON review of pay grade for Fire Arson Investigator. INVESTIGATOR (Closed) Ed Szol, Chairma a~ Ron McKinney, Civil S ce Secretary