OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Personnel Committee Meeting - May 4, 2026

Common Council & Committees — Monday, May 4, 2026
BodyManitowoc, Wisconsin
SessionCommon Council & Committees
DateMonday, May 4, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 6:03

Transcript — Verbatim
0:02

I'm just gonna sit back and watch.

0:03

So there's an item regarding South Side.

0:13

That was Jefferson School.

0:15

Yeah.

0:16

Seeing Andrew School was right at the street.

0:18

We used to play in the street.

0:20

Nobody got it.

0:22

The only stop sign was a forky.

0:23

That was it.

0:24

Otherwise, everyone else.

0:25

Yeah, we were even smart enough to go.

0:27

Uh and the kids didn't make it.

0:31

Yeah, right.

0:33

All right.

0:34

It is 5:30, so we can call the personnel committee for the city.

0:37

Now let's walk to order.

0:40

Uh roll call.

0:41

All members are present.

0:43

Next on the agenda, uh, public comment.

0:46

Is there anybody from the public who'd like to comment?

0:49

Second call for comment.

0:52

Third fault call for comment.

0:53

Any submitted comment?

0:55

No.

0:55

Nobody online?

0:56

No.

0:56

All right, we'll close public comment.

0:58

Next on the agenda is the consent agenda.

1:01

Are there any items we'd like to have removed or discussed?

1:06

All right.

1:08

So take a motion.

1:09

Move to approve the consent agenda.

1:11

Second.

1:12

Move by Schley, second by Sichowitz to approve the consent agenda.

1:16

Any further discussion?

1:17

No discussion.

1:18

Oh, sorry, no discussion.

1:19

Thank you.

1:19

All in favor?

1:21

Any opposed?

1:22

Same sign.

1:24

All right.

1:25

All right.

1:25

First action item on the agenda is uh 2603A5 classification of market review and job description updates for the surveyor engineering technician.

1:36

Thank you.

1:39

Uh there was a memo on this agenda written by by Dan, our director of public works.

1:46

Um he explained what we wanted to do with this position.

1:52

So this position's been held for a long time by an employee who's been here probably over 25, close to 30 years, I want to say.

2:00

Okay.

2:01

And um the job is currently the surveyor technician.

2:05

Um it's a unique position.

2:07

Um, he does all the surveying internally, but he also does a lot of engineering work too, which is a unique set of skills that people usually you usually can't find an employee who does both of those things.

2:19

Um so because of that, we did revamp his job description in the past month, and we sent it in to Carlson Detmanner, now Cottingham Butler, um, for some repricing, and they did recommend moving it from grade I to grade J.

2:34

So what we're asking for tonight is approval on the job description updates that we made, and then also the moving of that position on the compensation structure.

2:50

Any questions for Jesse?

2:54

Jesse, when this position becomes vacant through hopefully retirement at some point and not any other way.

3:01

Do we anticipate changing it back to the way it was just because of the uniqueness of the individual skill set and the probably inability to find somebody with those unique skill sets?

3:14

Thank you for bringing that up.

3:16

Yes, we do.

3:16

I as a rule I don't necessarily love creating jobs for a specific individual.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural█████████████████████████████████████████████50%
Personnel Matters█████████████████████████████████████████████50%
Summary of Proceedings

Personnel Committee Meeting - May 4, 2026

The Personnel Committee of the City of Manitowoc met on Monday, May 4, 2026 at 5:30 PM in the Council Chambers. All five committee members (Norell, Sitkiewitz, Schlei, Beeman, and Benzinger) were present. The meeting lasted approximately 5 minutes and covered a consent agenda, a reclassification of a Surveyor/Engineering Technician position, and a resolution to hire seasonal employees related to city supervisors.

Consent Calendar

  • Approval of Minutes: The committee unanimously approved the minutes from the April 6 and April 20, 2026 Personnel Committee meetings.
  • Legal Fees Report: Reviewed outside legal counsel fees billed through April 2026.
  • Health Plan Report: Received an update on the health plan (Medical & Dental FAR).
  • HR Office Initiatives Report: Received the HR update for May 2026.
  • City Attorney's Office Initiatives Report: Received the Attorney's Office update for April 2026.

The consent agenda was approved by a 5-0 vote (motion by Schlei, second by Sitkiewitz).

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No public comments were made, either in person, online, or submitted in advance.

Discussion Items

  • Classification & Market Review for Surveyor/Engineering Technician (Item 26-0385): Human Resources Director Jessie Lillibridge explained that the position, held by the same employee for approximately 25-30 years, has evolved to include both surveying and engineering work—a unique skill combination. The job description was recently updated and submitted to Cottingham Butler (formerly Carlson Detmanner) for repricing, which recommended moving the position from Grade I to Grade J on the compensation plan. A committee member asked whether the position would be reassessed when it becomes vacant. Lillibridge confirmed that upon retirement (or other vacancy), the city plans to review the entire engineering division to determine the best path forward, potentially changing the role or contracting out. The committee approved the reclassification and job description update unanimously (5-0).
  • Resolution to Hire Seasonal Employees Related to Elected Officials, Department Heads, or Supervisory Personnel (Item 26-0396): Lillibridge explained that a city ordinance requires approval by the Personnel Committee and full Council for hiring seasonal employees who are related to a manager or elected official. This resolution covered two seasonal employees related to supervisors in the Department of Public Works and the Fire Department. The committee approved the resolution unanimously (5-0) and referred it to the Common Council for final action.

Key Outcomes

  • Consent Agenda: Approved 5-0.
  • Surveyor/Engineering Technician Reclassification: Approved 5-0 (motion by Sitkiewitz, second by Beeman). The position moves from Grade I to Grade J, with updated job description. Future vacancy will trigger a review of the role.
  • Seasonal Employee Resolution: Approved 5-0 (motion by Schlei, second by Beeman). Referred to the Common Council on the non-consent agenda for a vote.
  • Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 5:35 PM (motion by Schlei, second by Sitkiewitz).

Meeting Transcript

I'm just gonna sit back and watch. So there's an item regarding South Side. That was Jefferson School. Yeah. Seeing Andrew School was right at the street. We used to play in the street. Nobody got it. The only stop sign was a forky. That was it. Otherwise, everyone else. Yeah, we were even smart enough to go. Uh and the kids didn't make it. Yeah, right. All right. It is 5:30, so we can call the personnel committee for the city. Now let's walk to order. Uh roll call. All members are present. Next on the agenda, uh, public comment. Is there anybody from the public who'd like to comment? Second call for comment. Third fault call for comment. Any submitted comment? No. Nobody online? No. All right, we'll close public comment. Next on the agenda is the consent agenda. Are there any items we'd like to have removed or discussed? All right. So take a motion. Move to approve the consent agenda. Second. Move by Schley, second by Sichowitz to approve the consent agenda. Any further discussion? No discussion. Oh, sorry, no discussion. Thank you. All in favor? Any opposed? Same sign. All right. All right. First action item on the agenda is uh 2603A5 classification of market review and job description updates for the surveyor engineering technician. Thank you. Uh there was a memo on this agenda written by by Dan, our director of public works. Um he explained what we wanted to do with this position. So this position's been held for a long time by an employee who's been here probably over 25, close to 30 years, I want to say. Okay. And um the job is currently the surveyor technician.

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