WEBVTT

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 like to call these November 16th meeting of the Civil Service Commission to order at 332.

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 First order of business is introduction of guests. There's everyone that that I see is

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 not a guest but part of the regular regular group. So moving on. Next is public comments

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 and I understand there are none. So let's move on to the third item which is the approval

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 of the September 18th minutes that you had in your packet. I would entertain a motion

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 that we approve the minutes. I'll second. Any discussion any corrections? Hearing none

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 all in favor of approval of minutes say aye. Aye. Opposed? You're muted Lillian. I'm passing

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 so it's two of us anyway. So all right next order of business is the sergeant's position

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 announcement which again was in our packet. So who's going to handle this one? Okay. Well

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 we have it in front of us. Are there any questions about it? Registration deadline December 28th

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 test is on Wednesday January 6th. Anyone have any questions on that? I would entertain a

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 motion that we approve the POA for police sergeant test. So moved. Seconded. Any discussion?

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 All in favor say aye. Aye. Opposed? Next order of business is the position announcement of

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 POA for police lieutenant. Again same deadline December 28th test on Wednesday January 6th.

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 I would entertain a motion that we approve the POA for police lieutenant promotional

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 exams. I'm moved that we approve the POA for lieutenant. I'll second the motion. Any discussion?

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 All in favor say aye. Aye. Next is the what have we got firefighter test or yes POA for

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 firefighter. Captain is trying to get in. He was the one that had the different name

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 so he's trying to get to the link. Actually I think he's on right now. I think he just

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 popped up. He can kind of go over. I think they had to change the location due to the

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 number of people who have registered but he's on now so. Can you hear me? Sorry I'm having

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 to borrow somebody's computer and my cell phone didn't let me log in. What was the question

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 I'm sorry. Well we're at your place in the agenda to talk about the civil service exam

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 or firefighter. Okay yes sir. Sorry we changed it to change the venue to the civic center

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 due to COVID-19 precautions. We've got too many people that would occupy the facility

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 over at the police and so I think with talking to Chief Hedges and you know we did a site

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 visit over there at the civic center and they're confident that we can you know get three to

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 three to five hundred in there even distance with masks and everything so. Whoa that's

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 good news. Mr. Ramsey the Chief Hedges had asked me earlier if the Civil Service Act

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 allows them to give the exam at more than one place if because of COVID issues and the

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 answer is yes. So even if fire always seems to have a lot of people sign up I don't know

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 if they have an alternate site. It sounds like they think they have a big enough place

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 so they may not have to give it a two different locations but if they had to that's legally

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 permissible. Okay without without us having to change any of the paperwork. Yeah I think

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 it's fine it's it sounds like it's going well I think what would happen is people would

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 show up and they may and Stephanie may address this it may not even be an issue that they

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 may tell them there's an alternate alternative or additional site to go over there. My only

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 concern would be as long as somebody shows up on time and registers or checks in and

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 then they have to go over to another place they should be allowed to take the exam but

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 Stephanie it sounds like we just think we think the Civic Center is big enough for everybody

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 and we make it any any arrangements for a secondary place if need be or is that no longer

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 an issue. Yes sir you want me to answer that? Yeah sure. Well the answer is it depends you

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 know we have I think the Civic Center should be more than adequate but if not I've talked

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 to my counterpart at PD about using their facility as a backup or an overflow type thing.

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 We did gosh when I got hired of course it's been 21 years so back then we did two different

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 locations and what we had talked about is pre-reporting a message and you know playing

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 so that way the instructions and everything's all consistent and then now with iPhones it's

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 easier to synchronize your clocks but you know I think according to 143 from what I understand

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 everybody has to take the test at the same time so we can't have like you know start

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 at one o'clock one or two has to be like okay start your clocks at one click everybody start

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 on both locations. Yeah I think everyone will show up at the Civic Center and hopefully

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 there's plenty of room if not I Stephanie so kind of be an alternate site where we could

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 direct them to or are we just one place and that's it. I think to be on the safe side

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 we can have an alternate site to direct them to. I think we did that and I can't remember

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 exactly when but I remember we did have to switch locations and I forgot the rationale

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 as to why but what we ended up doing is starting the test just a little bit later just to ensure

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 that everyone could start at the same time but we made sure that there was a notice posted

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 on the location where the test was going to be located and we had someone stay there at

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 that site so I think if we just make sure everyone had adequate notice and the testing

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 began at the same time where the persons who's administering the test are able to speak and

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 notify each other let's get started at this time. I think that's fine I think everybody

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 shows up at the one main place and if they have to send people elsewhere sounds like

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 there's arrangements and make sure everyone starts at the same time so I think the posting

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 is fine hopefully it won't even be an issue. Do we know how many people have already signed

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 up? Yes ma'am 646 as of right now. Can you say that the Civic Center will only see three

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 to four hundred? Well and this is my first rodeo as a recruiter and so I apologize for

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 the lack of camera this doesn't have one but we have historically averaged about a 35%

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 retention rate you know the people who signed up to actually show up when I was talking

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 with our test provider you know we talked about doing a virtual test with COVID and

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 everything and he's one that pointed out the 143 issues of having to have it at the exact

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 same time and so he was telling me that nationwide is around 50% that's what we're shooting for

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 um so based on that I mean again it's one of those it depends kind of things you know

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 if we get 800 people sign up and 400 show up it'll be cake but if all 800 decide to

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 come it's gonna be a gonna be a sticky situation. I think you should plan though that you kind

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 of have more people show up so just have those that alternative uh all set up and running

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 if need be otherwise you're you could be in trouble. Yes sir um we had Colba like I said

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 he's my counterpart at the police and he's let us use their facility he anticipated that

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 would see around 100 I want to say 104 with with spacing distancing um and we also got

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 permission to use NCTC next door here and use some of their their stuff they can hold about

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 200 and the problem we had was UNT and TWU who we've used in the past are closed WU it

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 says no and UNT is having a women's basketball game and then I think there was this um chief

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 tried embassy suites and they're booked up which sounds odd to me in the middle of a

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 pandemic but they love me they are and um pretty much everything else seems to be booked

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 up as well. I think the posting's fine because it tells everyone to go to the one central

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 location and then we can just deal with it if need be at that time. I'm the only thing

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 and I'm certainly not going to I'm not against any of this if we are going to have if we

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 do have to use the police facility in addition to the civic center um make sure that there's

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 parking so that the people who have to rush over there at the last minute just before

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 they have to start taking the test aren't having are stressed out with where they're

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 going to park and and all of that I mean that needs to all be clearly stated and laid out

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 before the testing starts so they all start with the same on the same level playing field.

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 Yes sir and commissioner Ramsey there's some parking right across from the police department

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 it's like a empty lot sort of behind some apartment complexes that um the applicant

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 the test applicants can use utilize. I've never found that a lot to be any emptier than

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 any of the others but uh but you know I'm just just make sure that we that we have taken

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 that into consideration that's the only thing that I'm concerned about is knowing that if

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 you come rushing in you've had a hard time you know you got five minutes and you're rushing

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 in to find a place to park and get in to take the test you're not in any frame of mind for

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 at least five to ten minutes to really take the test and that's not fair that's all that's

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 my only my only concern on that so. Okay and I would entertain a motion that we approve

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 the POA for the firefighter exam. I motion that we approve it. I second. Now is there

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 any other discussion? Daryl I did have a question you know you brought up a very interesting

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 point about the parking so the place of the location is able to handle all of these expected

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 applicants. We have enough space there. And with parking though we do have we have parking

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 that is in front of Hickory where the railroad track is as we have COVID going on we have

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 a lot of employees that's telecommuting that's in that building that's that's not there right

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 now so we should have plenty of spacing in that parking lot and then even for the police

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 department because of COVID a lot of the positions that are administrative who work in office

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 they're working from home telecommuting just as well so it should be some extra space at

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 this point to be honest. I mean it is a Saturday too and yeah I mean I and I understand that

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 I just wanted to have it go on the record that that is a concern to give the test takers

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 the you know a fair a fair start on that test so but yeah I mean it's a Saturday it shouldn't

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 it shouldn't be a problem but it always seems to be when we think it isn't going to be so

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 um okay sir I can address that real quick on that um Chief Becker just came in and had

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 a good idea about using city shuttle buses you know because we close the doors at one

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 o'clock on the testing center and we will have you know basically um you know custody

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 over the applicants whatever whatever the phrase is and we can put them in shuttle buses

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 and take them to the police station and drive them out there that way that you know we're

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 they're not having to rush and where there's no you know concerns about the accuracy of

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 information that's being given is that the test itself isn't at one o'clock that's just

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 when they have to be in the doors doors closed okay so we have we have some flexibility there

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 too so I just wanted to address that question about parking that's a great idea yeah yeah

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 that that's all I wanted was to make sure that that that we took that under consideration

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 as this is all going forward so I'm perfectly fine with that so any other discussion I have

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 none thank you all in favor of approval of the firefighter poa say aye aye opposed hearing

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 none all right next item on the agenda is the discussion of the next civil service commission

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 meeting crystal you're on or stephanie I know we need to have a meeting in january um because

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 we will have the certified list for both police and fire from the entrance exams um and probably

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 a couple other things that we'll need to go over but as far as having a meeting in december

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 I don't have anything on the books that people have requested um so it's up to y'all if y'all

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 would like to meet in december we certainly can if y'all want to hold off until january

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 when we know we will need to have a meeting that we we definitely need to have a meeting

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 in january we typically haven't haven't had a meeting in in december I don't think I don't

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 think we have so um so january the last week in january the fourth we probably need to

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 do the week of january 19th um that will give us time to get the entrance exams list done

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 and it'll also give us time to post the poa's for the fire promotional exams in enough time

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 to meet the requirements okay that's kind of a sweet spot that week

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 let's see monday is a holiday yes sir

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 I mean I'm fine on any any day that week except week of the 19th the morning week of

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 the 19th darrell yes sir okay

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 I'm good with that anytime that week I should be back for them okay chris john you are you

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 kind of okay I'm I'm I'm I'm thinking I have some things that but I don't think there's

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 anything that week I'm looking right now chris so maybe you can check the tv schedule and

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 I'm assuming we're going to still be virtual more than likely yes so check all the schedules

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 and then get back to us and give us some things and we'll we'll go from there absolutely okay

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 if there's nothing else for the good of the order I would entertain a motion to uh adjourn

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 this meeting at 349 on november 16th I move second all in favor say aye aye all right

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 well if we don't see you see you for christmas have a great thanksgiving and christmas stay

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 safe two yes happy thanks to you and merry christmas thank you