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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOMM - Meeting Minutes - 50-S - 11-21-1973 - SALARYSALARY MINUTE 'BOOK BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS WASHINGTON COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA MICHAEL R. FLYNN, JOHN P. BEYEC, JOHN MAZZA, COMMISSIONERS Minute No. 50-S Office of the County Commissioners Washington, Pa., November 21, 1973 The Salary Board of the County of Washington met in the Office of the County Commis- sioners with the following members being present: Commissioners Jones and Flynn and Con- troller Elish. Absent being: Commissioner Paluso. Also present being: Chief Clerk and County Administrator Whalen; Reporter Robertson of The Observer -Reporter; June Lilly of The Canons- burg Daily Notes; Jack Merdian of WJPA; Helen Miller of The League of Women Voters; Jerry Kelanic of WWVA; Earl Bugaile of WKEG; and Eric Bugaile of WESA. Meeting called to order and roll call taken: Mr. Jones - Present; Mr. Paluso - Ab-.sent; Mr. Elish - Present; Mr. Flynn - Present. Chairman asked if there were any corrections, additions, or omissions to Minute No. 49-S, each Commissioner and County Controller having received copies. as read. Moved by Mr. Elish, seconded by Mr. Jones, that Minute No. 49-S be approved, Roll call vote taken: Mr. Jones - Yes; Mr, Elish - Yes; Mr, Flynn - Yes. Motion carried unanimously. MAGISTERIAL DISTRICT #11: For the record: Donna B. Noble will replace Betty Prebeg while she is on vacation starting November 19, 1973, and ending November 26, 1973. PLANNING COMMISSION: For the record: Resignation of Thomas Rauchfuss, effective November 9, 1973. JUVENILE DETENTION HOME: Moved by Mr. Elish, seconded by Mr. Jones, that a voucher be prepared in the amount of $136. 00 for Daniel Luppino, Counselor, who worked a total of 40 hours @ $3.40 for the dates from November 11, 1973, to November 19, 1973, Roll call vote taken: Mr. Jones - Yes: Mr, dish - Yes; Mr. Flynn - Yes. Motion carried unanimously. COUNTY PRISON: Moved by Mr. Jones, seconded by Mr. Elish, that Richard Mull, Jr., and Paul Ross be placed on a per diem basis. Also included in this motion is the approval of the following per diem and part-time payroll: cum SALARY M [N UTE B ❑ ❑ K BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS, WASHINGTON COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA MICHAEL R. FLYNN. JOHN P. BEVEC, JOHN MAZZA, COMMISSIONERS Alverta Denson, Matron Corinne Yaros, Matron Richard H. Mull, Guard Roll call vote taken: 12 days @ $18. 34 $220108 11 days @ $18. 34 $201. 74 3 days @ $26. 83 $80. 49 Mr. Jones - Yes; Mr. Elfish - Yes; Mr. Flynn - Yes. Motion carried unanimously. REGISTRATION/ELECTION OFFICE: Moved by Mr. Jones, seconded by Mr. Elish, approving the request to have Estella Kaukonen transferred from PEP to County payroll at the rate of $159. 90 bi-weekly, effective November 5, 1973. Roll call vote taken: Mr. Jones - Yes; Mr. Elish - Yes; Mr. Flynn - Yes. Motion carried unanimously. MEN'S HOME: Moved by Mr. Jones, seconded by Mr. Elish, approving the promotion of Henry Rodler, , Watchman, to the position of Maintenance Man and an increase in salary from $192. 61 to $221. 6 bi-weekly, effective October 27, 1973; he will be replacing Pete Angott who resigned. Roll call vote taken: Mr. Jones - Yes; Mr. Elish - Yes; Mr. Flynn - Yes. Motion carried unanimously. Chairman Flynn then read the following letter under date of June 15, 1973, directed to Peter Elish, County Controller, under the signature of F. D. Whalen: "Dear Mr. Elish: Through an action taken by the Salary Board on April 26, 1973, you deleted from the Tax Assessment payroll one Keith D. Melenyzer even though that payroll and subsequent payrolls were properly certified to the effect that Mr. Melenyzer was performing his required duties. The action by the Salary Board was wholly improper in that the Salary Board does not possess the right or power to "Hire" or "fire. " The function of the eSalary Board is therefore limited by statute to fix the number of employees and their compensation. This matter was a part of the regular meeting of the Board on June 7, 1973, in accordance with excerpt from these minutes attached. The Board is, therefore, requesting that you prepare and release the payroll checks due Mr. Melenyzer. " Mr. Flynn then read the following excerpt: "Moved by Mr. Jones, seconded by Mr. Flynn, that the Commissioners go on record officially to direct Mr. F. D. Whalen to officially notify the County Controller to pay the employee involved (Keith Melenyzer) the salary which employee has earned and that in 1 11 71 A SALARY MINUTE BOOK BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS WASHINGTON COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA MICHAEL R. FLYNN, JOHN P. BEYEC. JOHN MAZZA, COMMISSIONERS 1 LJ 1 c., the event that the County Controller does not comply, that the County Controller should follow the County Code and submit to the Commis- sioners in writing the reason for not doing so. " Mr. Flynn stated that we have received no reply to this letter of June 15, 1973. He also stated that this morning Judge Sweet drafted an Order relating to employees under date of November 16, 1973. Mr. Whalen quoted the following from said Order: "We suggest that the letter ruling of the Commissioners directing the President Judge of this Court to post a vacancy is close to contemptuous. A position created by the Salary Board of five (5) members cannot be vacated by action of two (2) Commissioners. Mr. Flynn: The question I want to know, Mr. Elish, and in view of the fact that we didn't re- ceive any reply from you on June 15, in your opinion, is it within the providence or power of the Salary Board to discharge employees? Mr. Elish: Yes. The Salary Board has the right to employ and dismiss them. That has been my interpretation through the years. But coming back to Keith Melenyzer, I think my attorney wrote a brief on the reasons to delete him off the payroll. NIr. Flynn: But you say that it is within the providence and it is in the statutory bounds that the Salary Board can dismiss its employees. Mr. Elish. Yes, I think that they can. That is their purpose - to hire and , dismiss. Mr. Flynn then discussed the meeting of April 26, 1973, and stated that if they would subscribe to Mr. Elish's thinking, they could dismiss Charles A. Gillespie. But Mr. Flynn stated that he wouldn't attempt to do this because he knew he would be making a mockery of the statute by doing so. Mr. Flynn also stated that his reason for raising this question was to debate the merits of the authority of the Salary Board. (More discussion was held. ) Mr. Flynn: This Salary Board has no right to fire an individual. If Mr. Melenyzer did wrong, he should be taken the task by the Board of County Commissioners and so be dismissed - not by the Salary Board. If somebody _in: -your office does something contrary to your thinking, he should be dismissed by you - not the Salary Board. That is the point I am trying to make. Meeting adjourned. THE FOREGOING MINUTE READ AND APPROVED: November 21 1973 ATTEST: a CHIEF CLERK