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County ombuds presents 2024 term report to Personnel & Finance Committee, flags fear of retaliation and workplace trust issues
Summary
Dane County ombuds presented the office's 2024 term report, describing 28 unique visitors and 49 visits, outlining systemic trends including fear of retaliation, perceived inequity, and distrust of administration, and recommending expanded mediation, manager training and measures to build psychological safety.
Dane County's ombuds presented the office's 2024 term report to the Personnel & Finance Committee on June 9, summarizing activity during the office's first months and offering recommendations to address workplace perceptions and culture.
Diana Greene (Ombuds) said the ombuds office opened after a contract began April 1 and that the office hosted 28 unique visitors (49 visits) in 2024; 11 visitors returned more than once. The office provided coaching, 16 facilitations, and one mediation (with additional mediations initiated in 2025). Greene said the office's guiding principles are confidentiality, informality, impartiality and independence and noted the ombuds provides a voluntary, noninvestigative space for employees to discuss concerns.
Greene summarized systemic trends raised by visitors: fear of retaliation, perceptions of inequity and poor workplace culture, and distrust of administration. She emphasized those were visitors' perceptions and that the ombuds does not investigate or make legal findings. Greene recommended shifting some grievance outcomes from a strict yes/no model to a sliding-scale accountability approach, increasing non-coaching outcomes such as mediation and facilitation, providing manager training on nondefensive leadership and anti-retaliatory recovery, and improving communication from leadership.
Committee members asked about outreach and marketing to increase awareness. Greene said the website had 574 views in 2024, the office had introductory meetings and trainings, and signage in elevators and other materials are being used; she said referrals from employee groups and managers are increasing in 2025. Members discussed whether the ombuds's language about the 'appearance' of bias versus statements of bias affected trust; Greene said wording reflected her intent to describe perceptions while remaining within the ombuds office's independent, noninvestigative role.
Committee members and administration representatives noted the ombuds office fills a gap for employees seeking an informal avenue to raise workplace concerns and committed to further discussion in a subcommittee and follow-up meetings.
The committee accepted the report and scheduled further review in a future meet-and-confer and subcommittee meeting.
