Selectmen want more control over hiring
Published on July 19th, 2000
Stoneham, MA - Hiring procedures of town employees has come under Board of Selectmen scrutiny of late and on Tuesday night, Town Administrator Jeffrey Nutting listened to the board's concerns and proposed some changes.
Although Selectman Darin Leahy reportedly requested the meeting, he was not present, nor was Selectman Chairman Patrick Jordan.
The meeting was not televised, for unspecified reasons.
In general, Selectmen Cosmo Ciccarello, Al Conti and Bob Sweeney requested greater Board of Selectmen involvement in hiring town personnel.
According to Conti, since the Board of Selectmen can reject an appointment of the Town Administrator's, it should be part of the selection process.
"If we have the power of rejection, we must be well informed," he stated, suggesting that the board be involved in hiring of department heads and their assistants.
"I don't disagree," said Nutting, but he pointed out that the hiring process can be time-consuming and that the board should consider the degree to which it needs to be involved.
As an example, he contrasted the positions of Police Chief and MIS Director, suggesting that board involvement would be more useful in the hiring process of the former due to that position's high degree of public contact compared to the latter.
Civil service hirings follow different rules and when such a position needs to be filled, the state furnishes a list of the top three test scorers for consideration.
"We might want to ask some (interview) questions...It's important to know what the selection process is, especially for promotions," Conti said, adding that in cases where the top scorer is not selected, justification should be provided.
According to Nutting, the town's personnel bylaws are outdated and attempts to update them in the past have met Town Meeting disapproval. Job descriptions are also outdated and Nutting is currently working with Personnel Director Betty Luciano on updating these. He expects all job descriptions to be made current within the next 18 months.
Nutting and Luciano proposed changes to the recruiting procedures as well, including notice to the selectmen of vacancies and the subsequent commencement of recruiting processes, and prenotification of appointments with accompanying summaries of the selection process and the candidate's qualifications.
In response to other concerns voiced, Luciano advised that Board of Parole (BOP) background checks are performed on every candidate for hire, although more extensive checks are conducted for police department hires. She advised that Police Chief Eugene Passaro would be contacted for clarification on the BOP versus other types of checks.
The issue of residency of town employees was also raised, with Nutting stating that 85 percent of appointments made during his tenure as Town Administrator have been of Stoneham residents.
"All department heads know the preference is to hire Stoneham people," said Nutting.
Follow-up discussion is expected at next Tuesday's board meeting.
Police station move
In other news, Nutting announced that the police department's move into its new building could be sooner rather than later in an attempt to avoid the ramifications of a possible telephone company strike.
Nutting stated that moving the department's communication center could happen as early as August 1 if the rumored strike by telephone workers across the country appears imminent.
"I'd rather suffer the pains of moving early," he said versus being forced to wait out a strike.
Town Common
Town Common development got underway this week but, according to Nutting, will likely not be seeded in time for Town Day.
Nutting stated that seeding of the lot should wait until after the festivities where thousands are expected to amble about. Stoneham Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Sharon Iovanni has been notified, he said.
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