I attended a public hearing in regard to the abolishment of a position held by a 14-year employee in the Lake County Superior Court system.
Marlene Elder was terminated due to budget shortfalls. She was told that since the department and her position was terminated that she was not entitled to a memorandum of understanding (MOU) which would have allowed her to return to her previous job and bump a junior employee. In fact, she considered herself to be part of that department. She stated that when she was asked to take over the position of records clerk she had been assured that it would not affect her seniority or job security. The MOU is a common provision in most corporations and large employers where employees are represented by a union.
The public was not allowed the opportunity to make comment or ask questions and perhaps that would not have been appropriate. I take this opportunity to state my questions.
1. Prior to establishing this department, where were the records stored and which department performed the job? Who performed the job when she was on vacation or sick?
2. Now that the department has been abolished, is the function of that department no longer required?
3. If the function is still required, which department will it be merged into?
If it is in fact the same department which Elder previously worked in, what would be the motivation to terminate a fully trained employee with over 14 years of service? Was it her wage scale?
I worked for 30 years in a very large company, a union member for many years and a manager for a few years. In my opinion there are good and bad decisions and actions on both sides. I know that the union is there to make sure that every employee, union member or not, is treated fairly, based on agreements. If one employee gets a raw deal, then anyone can. Management”s main responsibilities are to train and evaluate each employee fairly and to meet the bottomline, in this case financial. Sometimes corners are cut to reach the goal.
It appears that this action was handled more like a firing, otherwise Elder would have been given a two-week notice and her union representative would have been notified. This appears to be either poor management, judgment or a calculated risk!
Ann Blue
Lakeport
