CC Minutes - 10/27/08 Work Session

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important to close the loop. He asked for clear guidance from this council on its expectations of what staff would bring back for consideration as there did not appear to be consensus on the issue of an ordinance. Ms. Piercy felt that before councilors could determine if ordinance language was required they needed additional information, particularly about ordinances in other communities and what the City’s current process was. Mr. Pryor agreed with the Mr. Zelenka’s request for information. He thought it was important to assure that people were educated about the current mechanism. Ms. Bettman said she wanted staff to list the different components of all the ordinances, compare them to State and federal laws and process and identify gaps in coverage. She was not certain how the union grievance procedure related to the complaint process and wanted assurance it protected employees from retaliation. She reiterated that employees did not feel safe speaking out. Ms. Piercy remarked that it would be necessary to obtain the agreement of the council for that type of research. Mr. Clark was concerned with the discussion of potential retaliation and wanted to know how the State and federal processes addressed that issue in order to determine what remedies the City might wish to put in place. Mr. Zelenka, seconded by Ms. Bettman, moved to direct staff to return to the coun- cil with the following information: ? A description of State and federal laws and processes, including the step-by- step process for filing a claim ? Suggested language for the policies and procedures manual that described how the process worked ? Statistics at the State and local level for the last decade or two regarding com- plaints from the City ? Language from the charter review committee ? Ordinances from other communities around the country and a summary of how they differed from the City’s process Ms. Bettman offered a friendly amendment to include information about specific protections for employees and whether they were enforceable. Mr. Zelenka ac- cepted the amendment. The motion as amended passed, 7:0. Ms. Piercy announced that the council would take action on two items from the regular meeting agenda. C. CONSENT CALENDAR A. Approval of City Council Minutes of the July 14, 2008, Work Session; July 16, 2008, Work Session; September 15, 2008, Joint Elected Officials Meeting; September 17, 2008, Work Session; September 22, 2008, Work Session; September 24, 2008, Work Session; October 7, 2008, Boards, Commissions, and Committees Interviews; October 14, 2008, Boards, Commissions, and Committees Interviews B. Approval of Tentative Working Agenda MINUTES—Eugene City Council October 27, 2008 Page 5 Work Session