Milwaukee civil service board upholds cause but reinstates DPW worker without back pay

The Board of City Service Commissioners on June 30 heard an appeal from Lakiesha Bowie, a former equipment operator in the Department of Public Works (DPW) Sanitation, and found the department had cause for discharge but voted to reinstate her without back pay.

The commission moved into closed session to deliberate and then returned to announce its decisions. Commissioners voted that, by a preponderance of the evidence, DPW had cause to discharge Bowie. On a follow-up vote the board decided to reverse the department’s termination and reinstate Bowie to her position without back pay (commission vote: 4–1 in favor of reinstatement; Commissioner Cleary recorded a dissenting vote).

Why the decision matters: the case centered on a last-chance agreement Bowie signed in April 2024 and a cluster of attendance and conduct allegations that DPW said occurred afterward. DPW officials told the commission that cumulative issues — including repeated late arrivals, alleged on-duty sleeping during overnight broom assignments and an exchange with a supervisor documented as aggressive language — supported discharge under the last-chance agreement’s terms.

Department evidence and testimony - Chuck Schumacher, operations administration manager for DPW, told the commission the department asked it to "uphold the discharge," saying Bowie had a range of…