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The City of Chelsea is retaining the services of Sage Solutions Group to temporarily meet its project and staffing needs. At the most recent City Council meeting on Monday, February 5, 2024, City Manager Marty Colburn requested council approval to enter into negotiations with a local professional services firm to fill the existing void.
Colburn said the city has been understaffed in some positions since before he arrived, and city attorneys brought the matter to his attention when he took office. “The city currently has 46 full-time employees and 49 authorized employees. We have 28 part-time employees and one temporary employee, so HR has a lot of day-to-day work, from recruiting and training to some of those things that aren’t happening [like] evaluate. We have three negotiations underway this year,” Colburn said.
The clerk’s office handled some onboarding and benefits work last year, but determined that professional services were needed for this year’s program, according to Colburn, who clarified that the costs were included in this year’s budget.
The agenda package includes a memo from Chelsea City Attorney Mariah Evans Fink to the council supporting manager Colburn’s request and providing additional background.
“Currently, the city manager is Human Resources. In most cases, that’s fine, but in some cases over the past few years, we’ve found that this structure leaves employees with no one to consult except the city manager. This also leaves Employees are put in a position where if they have concerns about their employment, the only person they can complain to is also the person who has the ultimate authority to hire and fire employees.”
The memo continues: “City employees, including the City Manager, should have a neutral party to whom they can raise issues that cannot be addressed by the current system. This requirement is not directed at any employee or City Manager and is intended to is an overall improvement to a system that is untenable in its current state and not in the best interest of city employees.”
Before the vote, the council asked some practical questions. Councilor Eric Keaton asked why Chelsea was only being considered for services by one company. “I was primarily looking for people who could actually work in the field,” Colburn said. “Trying to bring in some people from the local area…I did find that they had experience in the neighborhood, had experience dealing with local government, and were recommended as well. Give us.”
Councilman Tony Inelli then asked about the expected duration of the company’s services, saying, “I know there is discussion about hiring an assistant city manager to assist with these types of duties. Once that person is hired and brought in, Will these services disappear?”
Colburn responded: “I think so. For example, we might still bring in someone to do a salary study or some specific things, but other than that, I’d like to get to that point yes.”
This week’s vote was just to ratify the negotiations. Once an agreement is reached, Colburn will need to return to a future council meeting to seek approval to sign the agreement.
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