Agenda Packets - 2025/10/14 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Mounds View City Council October 6, 2025 Special Meeting Page 5 1 employee was hired, by no means was it looked at that the City does not value its current 2 employees. 3 4 Council Member Clark questioned how much it costs to hire a new employee. Human Resources 5 Director Ewald estimated new hires cost the City several thousand dollars due to the hiring 6 assessment, physical and drug testing that had to be completed. 7 8 Council Member Smith inquired what step Mr. Schnur's position would be hired at if he were to 9 leave the City. Human Resources Director Ewald reported the City tries to bring new hires in at 10 Step 1, but pay rates are negotiated with each employee, noting there was an 18-month 11 probationary period. 12 13 Mayor Lindstrom stated he did not see how the City could advance the steps for these employees 14 given the policies that were in place.He reiterated that he had to trust staff and the recommendation 15 that was made for the recent hire. He explained he greatly valued the work of the existing 16 employees, and he would hate for this situation causing ripple effects for other staff members. He 17 indicated this was a more complicated topic than just this one employee because there would be 18 ripple effects. He commented on how the Council felt good about making changes to the step scale 19 several years ago. He reported he had to support the decisions that were made by the department 20 heads based on the recent hire given the experience that he had. 21 22 Mr. Schnur indicated he understood the new employee had the right qualifications for the position. 23 He stated it was disheartening that this new employee was getting paid more than the City's current 24 employees. 25 26 Council Member Clark explained she understands where Mr. Schnur was coming from, but she 27 did not believe it would be right for the Council to go against the current policies that were in 28 place. 29 30 Council Member Gunn stated she has been with the City for 20+years, and she knows almost all 31 the public works employees. She indicated she understood the situation and concerns that have 32 been raised by Mr. Schnur. She discussed how working in the private sector meant her wage 33 increases were not guaranteed but rather were performance based. She stated she did not support 34 the Council changing its current policy to allow for wage grievances. She apologized but noted 35 she would not be able to go along with the grievance. 36 37 MOTION/SECOND: Gunn/Meehlhause. To Deny the Grievance Request. 38 39 Council Member Meehlhause reported he had great respect for the public works staff but noted he 40 would have to follow the policy that was in place. He indicated the Council also has a fiduciary 41 responsibility to consider when it comes to property tax increases for wages and compensation. 42 43 Council Member Gunn reiterated that Step increases for coming for all four public works 44 employees in 2026. 45