Wakefield votes to advertise for new non-union supervisor

By P.J. GLISSON

[email protected]

Wakefield - After a closed session at their Monday evening meeting, the Wakefield City Council reopened its chambers to the public and voted to advertise for a new non-union position titled Department of Public Works supervisor.

That vote directly followed the council's prior vote to sign and implement a new contract for the city's union employees.

Mayor pro tempore Amy Tarro abstained regarding the union agreement and voted no on the new supervisory job. All other members voted yes on both counts.

"Why do we feel that needs to be done?" asked Tarro regarding the new position.

Mayor John Granato explained that a new non-union supervisor will not displace any current union workers. An added benefit, he said, is that "the (current) lead men now would be accountable to the non-union supervisor."

Mike Sibley is now the lead of the city's Public Works Department. Dave Semenak is the lead of the city's electrical crew.

City manager Rob Brown said the city spent $28,000 in electrical outsourcing work in the past fiscal year, and several council members said that was too much.

In a written statement to the council, Brown indicated that several council members asked him to explore the possibility of adding a non-union supervisor to the staff while they were in recent budget workshop sessions.

The city's personnel committee also asked him to create a job description, and he distributed two tentative options at Monday's meeting, describing one as "more technical" and one as "more vague."

Those descriptions note that the new job would entail "organizing, directing and supervising the electric, water, sewer and DPW departments."

According to the longer job description, the new hiree also would maintain records, provide regular reports to the council, handle the DPW budget, and take charge of any related hiring.

That person's role, potentially, also would include responsibility for city streets and parks, motor vehicle equipment, and the addressing of city blight.

Qualifications would include previous public works experience, proficiency with computers, good communications skills, the capacity to perform in a "highly physical" role, and all necessary certifications and licensing.

Brown also stated that, if any candidates apply for the job, the city then would need to pass a related budget amendment to fund the new supervisor, who would report to the city manager.

According to Granato, the city also plans to hire a firm in the fall to evaluate the city's utility issues, in relation to work load, priorities and efficiency. Brown said another company also will evaluate the city's utility rating system.

After the meeting, Brown told the Daily Globe that, although the union contract appears close to being enacted, it is still not guaranteed to be accepted by union workers. Meanwhile, he said, they still are operating under the previous contract.

Wakefield's union employees are represented by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, which is affiliated with the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations.

The local group is known as AFSCME #25, AFL-CIO, Local #992.

Brush pile poses

continuing problem

In other business, the council members discussed a collection of brush across from the city's baseball fields on Nunnemacher Street.

The huge pile was the result of a 2016 summer storm that caused substantial damage in the region, and council members are anxious to resolve the situation.

The council has discussed having the city's volunteer Fire Department do a controlled burn of the location, but the city manager reported Monday that the state's Department of Environmental Quality is concerned about the level of smoke that would cause for nearby residents.

Hence, he said an alternative option would be to move the brush to another location.

"I am opposed to that," said the mayor, who pointed out that moving the brush to another spot will simply create a new problem for the new area.

"Let's get rid of it where it exists," said Granato.

Council member Dale White suggested that, at some point "down the road," the city might need to create a compost pile for the city and its residents to use.

He added, however, that he does not believe the current brush is appropriate for that because it consists of many differently-sized pieces. In agreement with Granato, he added that it also is not practical to move the mess.

Moreover, said Granato, "If we're going to have a (compost) site, it's going to have to be monitored because people have a tendency to bury a refrigerator under brush."

The council took no action on the matter at Monday's meeting.