2021-05-26 Merit Appeals Board Minutes

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Merit Appeals Board Communications (Item 5) May 26, 2021 Communication No. 21-02, Received On April 30, 2021, Appealing A Recruitment And Examination, And Employment Action (Failure To Provide A Fair And Transparent Process For The Selection Of The Fire Chief) By The Fire Commission (Board Action Required: Setting A Hearing Date And Deadlines For Submittal Of Documents) CHR. CABANAS: Moving along, we have a Communication Number 21-02. Before we schedule the hearing, I would just like to before we schedule the appeal hearing for Mr. Robert Perreira, I would like to disclose the following information to maintain transparency in the appeal process. During my 37 -and -a -half-year career with the County of Hawaii, most of which I worked as the Manager of the Recruitment and Examination Division of the Department of Human ResourcesI conducted numerous training sessions for all levels of County employees on topics related to recruitment and examination. Mr. Robert Perreira attended some of these training sessions as well as the other three County employees who recently applied for the position of Fire Chief. I only know these individuals professionally through my work with the County of Hawaii and we do not socialize together. In addition, I assisted a previous Fire Commission over five years ago when two commissioners needed HR assistance with the position description and development of evaluation questions for the fire chief position. I have not assisted any of the members of the current Fire Commission and I was not involved in the evaluation process in Mr. Perreira's appeal. My son has been employed with the Hawaii Fire Department for nearly seven years and, currently, is a Fire Equipment Operator for the Department. I recused myself for the recruitments he applied for, and other staff in the Recruitment and Examination Division took charge of the entire recruitment and examination process whenever my son was an applicant. In July 2020, I thanked Mr. Perreira who was then the Acting Fire Chief for checking to see if my son was okay after my son tragically lost a friend, who was a fellow firefighter, in an auto accident. I also saw Mr. Perreira in November 2020 at an award ceremony at the Fire Department where my son received an award, and Mr. Perreira and I had a brief small talk type of conversation. Neither my son's current employment with the Fire Department, nor these interactions with Mr. Perreira as the Acting Fire Chief will affect my objectivity in any way in this appeal. In closing, I believe that I can be fair and objective in hearing both parties that of Mr. Perreira and that of the Fire Commission in the appeal of Mr. Robert Perreira. Page 4