Chip Henderson
COUNCIL JOB CANDIDATESBelow are the names recommended for hire by the City Council Selection Committee:Legislative & Management Analyst:• Thomas Tansil• Brackett SmithClerk to the Council:• Nicole GwynCouncil Support Specialist:• Jeni Welch• Keren CampbellAdministrative Support Assistant 2• Kristen Booker• Angela Amick-Triplett
Two of the Chattanooga City Council's staffers likely need to start shopping their resumes.
The council will vote today to hire a new four-person staff, after the council opted to restructure its small office and put its employees on the city's general pay plan in October.
City Clerk Sandra Freeman and management analyst Randy Burns are not on a short list of seven recommended names made by a council selection committee. More than 300 people applied for the jobs.
Council Chairman Chip Henderson said Monday that Freeman was not recommended as clerk because she "did not meet the new job qualifications, nor did she meet [the old qualifications] when she was hired."
Councilmen Russell Gilbert and Jerry Mitchell are also on the selection committee.
Freeman was hired 18 months ago. She does not have a college degree - which has always been a requirement for the clerkship - but she has 30 years of municipal clerical experience. The council previously waived the education requirement when she was first hired in April 2013 and later confirmed by the sitting council.
Freeman also lacks her state clerk certification, which was preferred when she was hired but is now a requirement. But she would have the certification by mid-December. Since Freeman was hired, the city has paid for 94 hours of her certification. She has six hours left to go.
Burns was asked to interview for the new management and legislative analyst job, but he was ultimately not recommended to the short list by the selection committee. Burns lacks the legislative experience required by the new position, Henderson said.
"We felt like for this new position being restructured to legislative and management analyst he wasn't the best fit," Henderson said.
Instead, Deputy Clerk Nicole Gwyn is the only name recommended for selection for the clerk post. The legislative and management analyst job, along with a council support specialist and administrative support assistant, have two recommendations each.
Councilwoman Carol Berz, who leads the council's human resources committee, said Monday she has stayed out of the selection committee's way.
"We decided to keep it totally separate, so we could show full balance," she said.
But some on the council have called the entire restructuring effort a "back-door maneuver" to fire people.
Councilman Moses Freeman said in September that he rejected the idea of dismissing employees who had done good work.
Councilman Yusuf Hakeem said Monday he has the same sentiment and hopes other council members change their minds about restructuring.
"It's terrible to me that we would do something like this. I haven't changed my mind at all," Hakeem said. "I'm trying to not be antagonistic, but at the same time to get people to my mind to look at this with a moral perspective."
But Henderson said Monday if the full council doesn't like the selection committee's recommendations, they need only appoint other candidates.
"The entire council can vote to do whatever they want to with five votes," he said.
Berz said Monday she anticipates much debate on the subject.
"I have no illusions that there will be some in-depth discussion," she said. "I don't think there will be anything that's cut and dry."
Contact staff writer Louie Brogdon at lbrogdon@timesfreepress.com, @glbrogdoniv on Twitter or at 423-757-6481.