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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010-07-20 Merit Appeals Board MinutesHilo, Hawaii Tuesday, July 20, 2010 The regular meeting of the Merit Appeals Board, County of Hawaii, was held in the conference room of the Department of Human Resources, 101 Pauahi Street, Suite 2, Hilo, Hawaii, on Tuesday, July 20, 2010. Present: Mr. G. Rick Robinson, Chair Mr. Gary Yoshiyama, Vice Chair Mr. Kenneth Rowe, Member Mr. Ronald K. Takahashi, Director of Human Resources Ms. Sharon Toriano, Deputy Director of Human Resources Ms. Diane Noda, Deputy Corporation Counsel Ms. Irene Okamura, Human Resources Technician I Ms. Yumi Nakamura, Clerk III Excused: Mr. Henry "Hank" Silva, Member Mr. Brian J. De Lima, Member Chair Robinson called the meeting to order at 9:34 a.m. MINUTES OF JUNE 15, 2010 MOTION: Chair Robinson moved that the minutes of June 15, 2010 be approved as circulated. The motion was seconded by Vice Chair Yoshiyama and unanimously carried. NEW BUSINESS A) Communication No. 10 -03, petition of appeal, received June 28, 2010, from Todd K. Zeiller, appealing his non - selection to a position with the Planning Department. HMO Count is an Efial C�y" Provider and Effy9ayer. The Board scheduled Mr. Zeiller's appeal hearing for September 21, 2010, at 10:30 a.m. B) Change meeting time of Merit Appeals Board meetings. Vice Chair Yoshiyama explained that this issue stemmed from a conflict with another board that he serves on, which meets 7:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. on the same dates as the Merit Appeals Board. He believed that it would be a disservice to both boards if he couldn't fully participate as expected to carry out his responsibility, which led to Chair Robinson suggesting having a discussion on changing the time of the Board's meeting. There were no objections to changing the meeting time to start at 10:00 a.m. MOTION: Vice Chair Yoshiyama moved that the meetings start at 10:00 a.m., with appeal hearings to start at 10:30 a.m., effective September 2010. The motion was seconded by Mr. Rowe and unanimously carried. DIRECTOR'S REPORT Mr. Takahashi reported the following: 1) Furlough Update. The County's furlough plan began in July and will be on the first and third Friday of every month, except for August when the third Friday is a holiday, thus the furlough Friday will be observed the following Monday. They were able to negotiate and finalize final supplemental agreements with the unions on how to implement the furloughs. They negotiated a 5% reduction in pay for the Water Safety Officers (beach lifeguards), Police and Fire Dispatchers, and the administrative personnel in the Wastewater Division of the Department of Environmental Management. The departments for those employees felt it was difficult to shut down operations for one day, so the alternative of not furloughing them two days per month was to agree to a 5% reduction in pay where they continue to work their 40 hours per week. Everything is in place now, and they're facing their first payroll situation with the furlough, which will probably generate a lot of questions on dealing with those situations. oil In response to a question posed by Mr. Rowe, Mr. Takahashi explained that Unit 11 (fire fighters) and Unit 12 (police officers) negotiated a pay raise four years ago; therefore the 5% increases for the fire fighters and the 6% for the police officers were effective July 1 and have been processed. The police officers and fire fighters are not subject to furlough. 2) Other items of current interest. All collective bargaining agreements with all unions expire on June 30, 2011. They have officially begun negotiations for the new contracts that take effect on July 1, 2011. The employers have formally exchanged proposals with the unions, although they have not scheduled any meeting dates for negotiating any changes to the agreements. Mr. Takahashi doesn't anticipate negotiations to fully start until the election of a new governor takes place; however, they have started the process in accordance with law. Any tentative agreements on cost increases reached by the parties (the employer and the union) have to be approved by their respective legislative bodies, which would be the State Legislature and all of the county councils. If any one of those bodies reject the cost item increase, the parties have to go back to the table again. NEXT MEETING DATE The Board's next meeting was scheduled for Monday, August 16, 2010, at 9:30 a.m., followed by Teri Botelho's appeal hearing at 10:00 a.m. The next meeting will be on September 21, at 10:00 a.m., followed by Todd Zeiller's appeal hearing at 10:30 a.m. The meeting recessed at 9:49 a.m. 3 Hilo, Hawaii Tuesday, July 20, 2010 HEARING ON PRE-HEARING MOTIONS — 10:00 A.M. — TERENCE S. IGNACIO —WERE ANY CIVIL SERVICE LAWS, RULES, OR REGULATIONS VIOLATED IN THE APPELLANT'S TERMINATION AS A PROBATIONARY POLICE OFFICER WITH THE HAWAII COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT? Present: Mr. G. Rick Robinson, Chair Mr. Gary Yoshiyama, Member Mr. Kenneth M. Rowe, Member Mr. Julian White, Deputy Attorney General Ms. Yumi Nakamura, Clerk III Ms. Irene S. Okamura, Human Resources Technician Others Present: Mr. Terence S. Ignacio, Appellant Mr. Terence G. Ignacio, Appellant's Father Mr. Robert J. Crudele, Attorney for Appellant Mr. William B. Heflin, Attorney for Appellant Mr. Brandon Gonzalez, Deputy Corporation Counsel Ms. Diane Noda, Deputy Corporation Counsel Ms. Sharon Toriano, Deputy Director of Human Resources Chair Robinson called the hearing to order at 10:03 a.m. and noted that the Appellant had requested a closed hearing. 4 .• OPEN SESSION: MOTION: Mr. Rowe moved to dismiss the appeal without prejudice and remand the parties back to Step 3 of the process. The motion was seconded by Vice Chair Yoshiyama and unanimously carried. Mr. White noted that he will draft the findings of fact and conclusions of law and order for the Chair's examination. Once the Chair signs it, it will be emailed to the parties, and that's when the clock starts ticking. The hearing adjourned at 10:52 a.m. Respectfully submitted, Ronald K. Takahashi Secretary APPROVED: G. Rick Robinson Chair vym 11