Vermont’s Legislature in recent years has pondered and in some cases passed new laws on how private employers deal with sexual harassment, how much they pay employees and whether they can ask employees to sign non-compete clauses.
Yet Vermont’s General Assembly has no human resources office or policy of its own, a fact that drew scrutiny — and discussions about a fix — during a Tuesday meeting of the Joint Legislative Management Committee.
Legislators met to gather feedback about a report by the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), commissioned by the Vermont Legislature. The report evaluated legislative staff compensation competitiveness and staffing resources compared to other states.
It found, among other concerns, that the general assembly “has no central personnel office or authority” to manage employee concerns, such as grievance mediation and compensation planning. And it “does not have a formal employee pay plan with market-based ranges designed to promote internal pay equity and external competitiveness.”
It is common for state legislatures to run without HR offices, the report said, but in the wake of the #MeToo movement, the urgency to create protective structures for employees in government is gaining traction. Going without an HR director, the report warned, could leave the Legislature open to legal risks.
“In today’s very litigious and complex world of employment law,” the report stated, “all organizations need guidance, advice and workplace solutions offered by human resources professionals.”
Jennifer Carbee, deputy chief counsel at Vermont Office of Legislative Council, told the committee that she thinks the legislature “desperately needs” an HR director.
She said she’s witnessed other employees take on HR functions outside of their employment responsibilities, which has created unfair work burdens. She said she has also noticed that without an HR director, some employment requirements are not being met. Federally mandated employment notices at one point were not posted, for example.
“I don’t know what else we don’t have because we don’t know that we need,” Carbee said.
She also said she had witnessed conflicts involving legislators that would have benefitted from professional intervention.
“We do have members who may treat each other and staff in ways that may or may not be as they should be in the workplace,” Carbee said. “And I think we need avenues to deal with that and to have somebody who is knowledgeable about what is appropriate and permissible in a workplace … would be very useful.”
Seven Days detailed a number of alleged instances of sexual harassment in the Statehouse in 2017. Lawmakers have since updated sexual harassment policies.
Steve Klein, the Legislature’s chief fiscal officer, said that beyond employee mediation needs, he thinks the addition of an HR director could also help diversify staff hires through strategic efforts to recruit and retain underrepresented employees.
Until the report identified that the Legislature didn’t have a central human resources office, Speaker of the House Mitzi Johnson, D-South Hero, who chairs the management committee, said many weren’t aware the position didn’t exist. That’s because the functions of an HR staff member, like payroll organization and employment law assistance, were being taken care of by other employees, she said.
“We’re asking, ‘What’s the best way to do this important work?’” Johnson said. “There aren’t pieces missing now, but there is a more effective, more professional and more uniform way of doing it.”
The report also analyzed legislative staff compensation competitiveness, and found that the General Assembly has “mostly maintained” competitive pay rates.
However, the assembly does not have a formal employee pay plan which would guide salary adjustments, ensure that employees are being paid equitably and keep the legislative positions competitive. These practices have introduced concerns about pay fairness among legislative employees, the report found.
There was also general support during the meeting for the report’s recommendation to hire another full-time information technology staff member. The report found that most other state legislatures employ more IT staff than Vermont does.
Committee members concluded the meeting by agreeing that more information needs to be collected before making a recommendation to add the IT and HR positions. A final recommendation based on the NCSL report is expected in November or December, Johnson said. The recommendation will then come before the Legislature in January, when lawmakers reconvene.
