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Tullahoma board authorizes RFP for outside HR firm to receive complaints and advise on personnel matters
Summary
After debate over scope and cost, the board voted to release an RFP seeking an HR firm to receive employee complaints and grievances as a final step and to advise on nondisciplinary HR functions; the board also discussed MTAS review and later policy amendments.
The Board of Mayor and Aldermen voted to release a request for proposals (RFP) seeking an outside HR firm to provide specified services, including receiving employee complaints and grievances as a final review step and advising the city on nondisciplinary HR functions.
City attorney and staff explained the item was a correction and clarification of a previous meeting’s action and recommended a written RFP (an offer to procure services rather than a binding contract). Alderman S15 offered an amendment to narrow the RFP’s scope to receiving complaints/grievances as the final step in the city personnel process and to give advice on nondisciplinary HR functions such as recruitment and policy guidance. S15 and others noted the personnel regulations for the city have recently been reviewed by MTAS (the Municipal Technical Advisory Service) and that some board members preferred to rely on MTAS recommendations to limit additional costs.
Board members discussed whether the RFP would duplicate MTAS work and the potential cost of hiring an outside firm to analyze the personnel regulations; proponents said the RFP is intended to add an external final-level review that employees could appeal to after exhausting internal steps. Staff explained that any interviews of shortlisted firms would have to occur in public to comply with the Sunshine Law and described standard RFP scoring and interview committees.
The board voted on the amendment, which was recorded in the transcript as passing with five votes in favor and one opposed. The board later took a final vote on the amended motion; the meeting record states the motion carried and the mayor declared the motion passed. The transcript includes an unclear numeric tally in one line (recorded as "Motion carries 5 to 5 to 1"); meeting minutes should be checked for the precise final tally. The RFP directs the purchasing department to solicit proposals to: receive employee complaints and grievances as a final step under the personnel regulations, and advise on nondisciplinary HR functions to assist city HR staff.
What’s next: Staff will publish the RFP; the board will later review proposals, potentially interview finalists in an open meeting, and must amend personnel regulations if it decides to formally add the outside firm as a final step in the grievance process.
