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Council approves HR services renewal with clarification on confidentiality
Summary
Sheldon City Council voted to renew an HR services agreement with Center Benefits and approved added language clarifying that the consultant may receive employee communications and may hold such communications in confidence, after council discussion and a friendly amendment.
Sheldon City Council voted April 15 to renew a one-year HR services agreement with Center Benefits and to add clarifying language that the consultant may receive employee concerns and may hold those communications in confidence.
The council discussed section three of the contract, which staff read aloud and which states the consultant may receive information, concerns or complaints directly from city employees and may act “in a manner consistent with professional standards of independence, confidentiality, and impartiality, and with generally accepted human resources practices.” Councilmember Tom Eggers and others pressed for explicit language that the consultant could also “hold such communications in confidence.”
“Nothing in this agreement, however, will be construed to prohibit the consultant from receiving information, concerns, or complaints directly from city employees, or from responding to, taking appropriate action on, or holding such communications in a manner consistent with professional standards,” staff read as the proposed clarifying sentence.
After the council discussed procedural options and a friendly amendment was offered, the amendment clarifying confidentiality was seconded and approved by roll call. The roll call recorded ‘Aye’ responses from Wagner, Henn, Eggers, and Ostrander. The council’s action memorializes the renewal of the HR contract with the added confidentiality clarification.
Staff said the agreement is substantially the same as last year’s contract with a few edits and that materials had been circulated to councilors and the public; one council member and a member of the public said they had received the document only shortly before the meeting and asked for more time to review in earlier stages of the process.
The contract will proceed as amended; staff indicated the document circulated includes a highlighted version for council review and that further procedural follow-up will be handled through city staff.
