Commissioners continue morale arguments
By E G. WHITE-SWIFT
Of the Emerald
Lane County Commissioner
Bob Wood has called for the crea
tion of a citizen's committee to in
vestigate morale problems within
the Lane County bureaucracy.
The morale problems are the
result of a summer of controversy
at the Lane County courthouse.
Key department heads have re
signed amid charges of employe
insubordination and commission
ers' cronyism, while the two recent
additions to the board, commis
sioners Jerry Rust and Archie
Weinstein, have attempted to
working in a responsive manner.”
The employe morale problem,
which had apparently been sim
mering for some time after the
Rust-Weinstein reorganization
began last spring, surfaced Au
gust 30 when two middle
management employes released
their letter of resignation to the
press. Jeanne Taylor, an adminis
trative assistant in the general
services department, and Kathie
Ann Elliott, word processing
supervisor, jointly signed the let
ter.
‘There is a value in reorganiza
tion when it is done by examining
a structure and then reorganizing
from consideration for permanent
appointment to an upgraded ver
sion of the job he has held for two
years.
Hulbert expressed dissatisfac
tion with the methods used to up
grade the CRD and the placement
of the Office of Appropriate Tech
nology within the office without
providing any funding for its oper
ations. He also expressed con
cern that changing the status of
department heads from the merit
system (similar to civil service) to
a system where the department
heads sen/e at the prerogative of
the board could lead to problems.
“The appointed department
Dippers lose pants in court
Proponents of skinny-dipping had their day in
county court this summer, but they lost their case.
The 43,000 Lane County residents who voted
last November against a ban on public nudity lost
their chance for nudity sites within the county.
Lane County s commissioners voted in August
not to allow any exceptions to the anti-nudity ordi
nance, forcing sun and water worshippers to be
come clandestine, skinny-dipping criminals.
Opponents of nudity were well organized in
their public testimony at a July public hearing on
the proposed exemption. They appeared in large
numbers and carried petitions signed by rural
landowners.
Lane County sheriff Dave Burks intends to en
force the ban on skinny-dipping since the ques
tion of exemptions was resolved. Violators could
face $1,000 fines and/or 30 days in the Lane
County jail.
Although sheriffs deputies may patrol popular
swimming holes, they will probably wait until a
"domestic complaint" from an angry or offended
citizen is filed with the sheriff’s office before reach
ing for the handcuffs. Burks has not indicated how
much it will cost the county’s 250,000 residents to
enforce the ordinance.
change the administrative struc
ture of Lane County's bureauc
racy
"The problems that exist within
the Lane County government
structure must be identified and
corrected because they are de
structive to county services, waste
a great deal of staff time, and are
costing the county valuable emp
loyes as well as money," Wood
said when he announced his
morale committee plan. “The
board of county commissioners
has contributed to the problem
and must now take a positive
leadership role in contributing to
the solution."
Rust and Weinstein disagreed
with Wood, stating their influence
has been positive on county emp
loyes.
“The morale is not low,” Rust
says. "There have been isolated
incidents drawn out in the press,
but most of the employes are
to correct certain identified prob
lems," the two wrote in their letter.
"However, to keep employes
teetering on the brink, month after
month, wondering when their turn
will come to be pushed over, is un
acceptable as well as demoraliz
ing. The attempts at reorganiza
tion by the new commissioners
have been sloppily planned,
clumsily executed and altogether
disheartening."
Taylor and Elliott wrote they ob
jected to the atmosphere of uncer
tainty, fear and persecution that
"pervades the courthouse." Lane
County’s national reputation for
program excellence and progres
siveness is eroding, they said, as
other counties are referring to this
area as "Lame County.”
A week before the Taylor and
Elliot resignations, Don Hulbert,
acting director of the county's
Community Relations Depart
ment (CRD), withdrew his name
J
heads are not afforded the same
protection through the merit sys
tem that all other employes
enjoy,” Hulbert said. ‘‘I believe this
is not in the best interest of county
citizens, as this structure can fos
ter the growth of political patron
age or lead to political reprisals.
"I personally and professionally
do not wish to be considered a
political appointee. I do not con
sider that I am now, although one
board member has stated that he
is politically committed to replac
ing employes, such as me, who
were hired under former county
administrator Bob Elfers,” Hulbert
said.
Commissioner Archie Weins
tein has frequently stated his goal
as commissioner is to dean out
the Elfers administration.
Elfer s position was eliminated
in the recent reorganization of the
county's administrative services
office.
Another member of the Elfer’s
administration, personnel director
Dick Wold, tendered his resigna
tion Sept 1, effective Nov. 4. The
commissioners have indicated
they may try to force both Wold
and Hulbert out of their positions
before that time.
In his letter of resignation, Wold
said that recent actions by the
board are in conflict with the Code
of Ethics for Professional Person
nel Administrators.
“I have concluded that the cur
rent environment at Lane County
inhibits my ability to conform to
those ethical standards if I con
tinue to give the appearance of
subscribing to the type of actions
taken in the area of Labor Re
source Management.”
As commissioners Rust and
Weinstein were considering
Wold’s resignation at a regular
board meeting (Wood was absent
from the meeting), they made
comments which Wold consi
dered unfair. He subsequently
filed a grievance against the two
commissioners which has not
been resolved.
Earlier in the summer, the
commissioners were confronted
with an unfair labor practice com
plaint by employes who objected
to the “fair share” provision
ratified at a special meeting of
county employes.
The fair share provision forces
non-union county employes to
contribute their “fair share” to the
union for the benefits the union
bargains for ail employes.
By a 2 to 1 vote (Rust and Wood
outvoting Weinstein), the com
missioners found the union had
provided enough notice to the
non-union employes of the contract
ratification meeting. Some non
union employes contended there
was only 24 hours notice prior to
the meeting and that it was not
dear what was to be voted on.
To compound the commission
ers’ labor problems, supervis
ory county employes (commonly
referred to as 04’s) decided to or
ganize to represent their interests
as a group rather than as individu
als.
Wood hopes that his proposal
to establish an outside committee
to examine the county employe’s
morale problems would start the
county in a new direction. How
ever, Rust and Weinstein have not
offered much support for his prop
osal . As they view the situation, an
informal morale survey (which
would be written by the Commun
ity Relations Department) could
solve the problem.
“Conflict is a constant compan
ion to any large-scale operation.
We are continuing to resolve con
flicts as others arise,” Rust says.
“We will continue to have con
flids, no matter how together we
feel.”
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