ABQ Journal Editorial – County Must Revamp Its Personnel Policies
Friday, May 07, 2010
County Must Revamp Its Personnel Policies
Out in the real world, if you wreck a company car, or even your own car on company time, there is a good chance you will be asked to pee in a cup. And you’re going to say yes if you want to keep your job. It is, after all, a safety measure to protect workers and the public.
In BernCo world, according to the truncated section of personnel policy provided to the Journal by Bernalillo County, you will only be asked to submit to a drug test if you wreck a county car AND:
• Someone dies,
• You get a ticket AND someone goes to the hospital,
• You get a ticket AND a vehicle has to be towed,
• Your union tells you to.
Little wonder County Manager Thaddeus Lucero has done a 180 on whether Jamie Dantis should have been required to take a drug test after crashing a county van into a fellow employee’s car at the county detox facility where he worked. Last week, Lucero said a drug test should have been required. This week, he said he’s unsure and is having the policy researched.
It’s the latest twist in the saga of Jamie Dantis’ employment at the county Metropolitan Assessment and Treatment Services, which until last week fell under the supervision of his father, Deputy County Manager for Public Safety John Dantis.
Lucero has ordered an outside investigation into possible violations of the county’s nepotism policy and a possible cover-up of alleged wrongdoing during Jamie Dantis’ nearly four years working at the detox facility. He has moved Jamie Dantis from MATS to the Parks Department, at least temporarily, and removed John Dantis from supervising MATS pending results of the investigation.
In the meantime, County Commission Vice Chair Maggie Hart Stebbins has asked for a top-to-bottom review of all personnel policies. That would be an important step and should done quickly and thoroughly, in addition to dealing with the merits surrounding the Dantis employment issue.
County officials have worked hard in recent years to build public trust. It would be a shame to see it squandered.
