MOUNT VERNON — While offering they cannot specifically comment on the recent termination of former Knox County Fiscal Officer Chester E. Woods III, Knox County Commissioners said they are in favor of creating a centralized, countywide human resources department. It would be one with across-the-board standards for hiring practices, such as processes for standardized pre-employment screening, employee evaluation and background checks.
Woods was terminated May 25 by County Engineer Cameron Keaton after making $4,865 in unauthorized expenditures by allegedly falsifying documents and using county credit cards to buy items, some of which were delivered to his home. A criminal investigation is underway.
Commissioners joined county Administrator Jason Booth last week in stating that not only is a centralized HR department something they favor, but it is also something being worked on. Booth said there is a possibility a human resources director could be in place by the end of the year.
But for a countywide HR department to work, it means that all Knox County elected officials who administer their departments — the Knox County Sheriff, engineer, auditor, and treasurer — would have to “buy in” to the proposal, commissioners Teresa Bemiller and Thom Collier said. That would mean agreeing and signing on to uniform human resources guidelines and rules.
Commissioner Bill Pursel was not available for comment on the issue Friday.
Currently, each of the county’s elected officials, known as the “appointing authority” of their office, can hire their employees as they see fit, and there is very little commissioners can do to oversee their decision-making. And yet, Booth acknowledged, county governments, like any local government, are personnel-driven institutions from which 80 percent or more of their budget goes toward personnel costs. Who is hired to fill a key county position is one of the most important decisions county officials make, he said, and an HR director with specific education and training could make a difference in the quality of employees hired.
“With every elected official being their own appointing authority, they don’t have to run any hires by commissioners, unless they are creating a new position that needs our (county) funding,” Bemiller said. And yet, she added, when department heads are involved in difficult personnel issues, they often request to meet with commissioners in executive session to help work out issues such as compensation.
Booth said it makes sense to have all employment applications sent through a centralized HR intake system to conduct pre-screening of prospective employees and make sure they meet minimum qualification standards. The county has approximately 430 employees, yet Booth only directly supervises eight different department heads, he said, involving non-elected officials who report to him. That only amounts to about 60 employees under his purview, with the vast majority of county employees, well over 350, working under department directors who are elected.
Booth said it would also make sense for a countywide HR director to sit in on prospective employee interviews. He evaluates his department heads who report to him and scores those evaluations. Having a human resources professional on hand to lend guidance — and offer additional points and questions during the hiring process and evaluation process — would be invaluable, he added.
Several things stood out about Keaton’s hiring of Woods in September 2016:
• There were no other applicants for the position because there was no requirement to advertise it to other potential candidates for what was an unclassified, “at-will” position, Keaton said.
• Several of Woods’ most recent jobs before becoming the engineer’s office fiscal officer did not appear to involve direct accounting or financial management expertise.
• Woods completed his employee application on Sept. 5, 2016, yet was offered the job, which paid $47,000 annually to start, on Sept. 1, 2016.
• Woods received pay increases during his time as the Engineer’s fiscal officer, yet Keaton did not give him a single employee evaluation.
• Woods’ employment application appeared to be incomplete, one example being Keaton stating that Woods had attended three colleges, yet Woods listed only one on his application.
• The employment application asked Woods if he had ever been convicted of a felony, and if so please describe; Woods’ complete reply was “yes, over 10 years ago” with no further description.
