Carissa Haas-Green, CSC Docket No. 2019-1593

BackgroundCarissa Haas-Green appeals the decision of the Division of Agency Services (Agency Services) which found that her position with Millville is properly classified as Senior Account Clerk. She seeks an Administrative Clerk classification in this proceeding.

The appellant was promoted to Account Clerk, a title in the non-competitive division, on December 1, 2015. Her position is assigned to the Department of Public Works, is supervised by an Assistant Municipal Engineer,1 and has no supervisory responsibility. Agency Services conducted a review of the appellant’s position and, after a review of her position classification questionnaire (PCQ), conducted a telephone audit. Based on a review of her current duties, Agency Services determined that the appellant’s position was properly classified as Senior Account Clerk, effective August 8, 2018.

Appellant's argumentOn appeal, the appellant argues that her supervisor is, and always was, the Municipal Engineer, and the Assistant Municipal Engineer is now the acting Municipal Engineer. She believes that the level of her supervisor entitles her to a higher classification. Also, she states that she prepares budgets, verifies budget balances, completes payments, requisitions, purchase orders and reimbursements, processes permits, schedules all meetings and events, takes calls from employees requesting leave, prepares payroll reports and personnel records, and approves time off for clerical staff. She states that she also assists the Purchasing Agent, Planner,

Background1 At the time of the audit, the Assistant Municipal Engineer was the acting Municipal Engineer.

City Clerk, and Chief Financial Officer. In support, her supervisor states that, upon her hire, the appellant implemented new systems and reorganized the department (Engineering). He states that he relies heavily on her to ensure daily operations are completed, and the department provides support for other departments on a daily basis. He states that, on many occasions, the appellant has provided support to the department heads of Water, Sewer, Streets and Roads, Parks and Public Property, Construction and Inspections, Planning and Zoning, and the City Clerk’s Office. Her supervisor submits an organizational chart from 2016. She also submits a letter of recommendation from a former Municipal Engineer which had been submitted to Agency Services.

CONCLUSION

RuleN.J.A.C. 4A:3-3.9(e) states that in classification appeals, the appellant shall provide copies of all materials submitted, the determination received from the lower level, statements as to which portions of the determination are being disputed, and the basis for appeal. Information and/or argument which was not presented at the prior level of appeal shall not be considered.

The definition section of the job specification for Senior Account Clerk states:

Under direction, performs a variety of responsible and difficult clerical tasks which involve computing, classifying, verifying, and recording numerical data and the reconciliation of accounts, records, and documents to keep sets of financial records complete and/or takes the lead over other employees in the maintenance of accounting records;

Analysisdoes other related duties as required.

RuleThe definition section of the job specification for Administrative Clerk states:

Assists an administrative official of a department or autonomous government agency at a level no lower than department head, by doing administrative clerical and related work, usually varied and involving some elements of trouble shooting; or, under the immediate direction of an administrative official at a level no lower than department head, supervises the office and other clerical and related operations of a department or autonomous agency; does related work as required.

AnalysisPursuant to established and uniform classification standards, the title of Administrative Clerk is the highest-level clerical job classification in local service. As such, an Administrative Clerk classification is used to classify those positions where the incumbent assists an administrative official of a department or autonomous government agency at a level no lower than department head. This method of designation is derived from the premise that as the rank of the superior increases, there is a corresponding increase for the associated support position. Additionally, this classification standard has been uniformly applied to prior final administrative reviews. The Department of Public Works is headed by a Director of Public Works. However, there are no support staff assigned to the Director. The Director’s direct report is the Municipal Engineer, a position that is currently vacant. The appellant’s supervisor, the Assistant Municipal Engineer, is acting as the Municipal Engineer and may be the de facto department head.

That issue aside, an incumbent Administrative Clerk performs such duties as assisting an administrative official in the formulation of policies and procedures for the office and other clerical and related operations; analyzing and directly or indirectly supervising the clerical and related work involved in preparing the annual budget for an entire department; collecting and analyzing data needed as a basis for administrative decisions; may directly or indirectly supervise some designated phase or phases of the clerical and related work involved in maintaining financial and/or personnel records, preparing payrolls, making purchases, compiling statistical and other data, checking and approving invoices and vouchers, and collecting and depositing money, and making special investigations for an administrative official.

The appellant’s duties are primarily of a technical nature, and her supervisor indicates that the most important duties of the position are reviewing, prioritizing and responding to correspondence, keeping him and others informed, and assisting in meeting departmental deadlines. It is not clear from the PCQ that the primary focus of the position is clerical. In fact, the majority of duties appears to be technical in nature. For example, for 59% of the time, the appellant performs the following duties: gathers information and examines records and documents to verify compliance with government regulations; monitors and reviews submittals for work performed for compliance with specifications; prepares project contracts; prepares project specifications; reviews submitted bids for content; assists in the preparation and submittal of grant applications; prepares summaries of bids; maintains bidder lists; prepares award recommendations and resolutions; communicates directly with contractors by telephone and correspondence; receives, reviews and resolves complaints and provides recommendations for resolutions, recommending legal or administrative actions if necessary; recommends payment or non-payment to contractors and verifies terms of contract; performs methane gas readings at the municipal landfill; photographs, documents and prepares reports regarding residential issues and complaints; processes and issues street opening permits; assists in the preparation of the annual budget; locates and investigates reputable sources of supply; assists in developing policies and procedures for the engineering office and the city; and drafts proposed ordinances are resolutions. These duties cannot be characterized by a clerical title. Additionally, for another 10% of the time, the appellant assists in providing “engineering support” for all city departments. The appellant is not stating that she is providing clerical support for other departments, but engineering support. The Mayor disagrees with the statements of the Acting Municipal Engineer, which adds to the uncertainty of whether the duties are clerical or technical.

A review of the definitions for Administrative Clerk indicates that this incumbent primarily acts in the capacity of an assistant to the department head performing clerical and related work, whereas the Senior Account Clerk performs moderately complex and non-routine clerical work. While the information collected in the classification review indicates that the appellant’s supervisor may be the head of the Department of Public Works, and that there is no support staff assigned to the Director of Public Works, the Commission cannot support the finding at this time that the position is properly classified by either title.

Accordingly, a thorough review of the entire record fails to establish that the appellant has presented a sufficient basis to warrant an Administrative Clerk classification of her position.

ORDER

Therefore, it is ordered that this appeal be denied, and that Agency Services re-review the classification of the position encumbered by Carissa Haas-Green consistent with this decision on an expedited basis.

ClosingThis is the final administrative determination in this matter. Any further review should be pursued in a judicial forum.