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Council debates civil-service waiver to recruit EMS training officer after no internal applicants
Summary
Sioux City officials debated a one-year waiver of Iowa Code chapter 400 so the city can recruit an EMS training officer from outside after no internal candidates applied; unions and staff warned of possible unfair-labor complaints, and city leaders asked staff to exhaust internal options first.
Sioux City Council on April 24 considered a resolution to waive a portion of Iowa’s civil-service rules for one year so the city can run an external recruitment for an EMS training officer.
Fire Chief Ryan Collins told the council the training-officer post has been vacant since October and that management opened the position internally but received no applications. Collins said the waiver would allow the city to use an entry-level civil-service examination process and immediately advertise externally if internal candidates are not available.
Nicole (staff) and the human-resources director outlined the mechanics: the waiver would remove the requirement to stay with a certified eligibility list for 12 months, letting management interview, make conditional offers and proceed to physical, psychological and medical screens without waiting for the list to expire. The city’s stated goal is to “get this position filled as quickly as possible,” Collins said.
Council members pressed staff about prior labor disputes and potential unfair-labor-practice complaints. Several members urged the city to exhaust internal and union processes first; councilors asked whether reopening the posting later would allow the two internal employees who previously expressed interest to be considered. Human-resources staff and the chief said they had met with AFSCME and that the waiver would preserve existing union coverage while opening options for external applicants.
Council discussion noted competing priorities: some members emphasized quick staffing for public-safety readiness, while others cautioned that premature external hiring might reignite union grievances that could slow hiring.
The item will move forward with staff direction to document recruitment steps, exhaust internal options where feasible, and return with any updates on candidate pools and union status. No final council vote to adopt the waiver is recorded in the transcript excerpt of the discussion.
