Contracted work sparks controversy

The issue of using outside social workers received a second vote in a month at Monday's Carlton County board meeting, where one commissioner continued to vote "no."

Commissioner Tom Proulx was the lone dissenting vote in the board's 4-1 approval to use case management services from TLC of Duluth to help address a surge in cases involving people on elderly and disability waivers.

Unlike at the meeting Nov. 14, when Proulx conducted an in-depth inquiry of county staff and administration and told them at one point he didn't believe them, Proulx offered only his vote this time.

The county board has voted twice on the issue - once on Nov. 14 to request board permission to enter into the outside contract and again Monday to enter into the actual contract.

A lone dissenting vote isn't always newsworthy. But Proulx's rejection of the contract dovetails with the position of the union overseeing caseworkers in Carlton County public health and human services.

Proulx is a member of the same union, AFSCME Council 65. While Proulx is not part of the local unit representing county case workers, the Pine Knot News received multiple confirmations that he is a steward for AFSCME Council 65's paraprofessional unit in Cloquet Public Schools and is invited to participate in bargaining discussions. Proulx is also a retired probation officer with the county, but it's unclear if he was part of the union then.

When asked at Monday's meeting if he would address the boundary between his roles as commissioner and union member, Proulx declined an interview, saying he didn't like the "tone" of questions that were offerd to him in advance.

Minnesota law related to conflicts of interest by public officials centers on financial interests of the official and their associates. Statute prevents officials who take part in a contract from having a personal interest in the contract, punishable by a gross misdemeanor charge.

While it seems unlikely Proulx broke the letter of the law, he did not disclose his ties with the union when advocating for the county to hire new union caseworkers. And his advocacy of the union left county administration to defend the use of contracted services and their own business practices. Under heavy questioning from Proulx earlier this month, county administrators repeatedly explained that the county's contract with the union allows for the use of contracted services, provided doing so does not displace any current county employees.

Tom Whiteside, one of three northeastern Minnesota labor representatives for AFSCME Council 65, didn't like the perception that the union signed off on the use of contracted services.

"We are never in favor of contracting out our members' work," Whiteside said. "I don't like that the county is trying to say, 'Oh, the union is OK with it.' Our members can do better. It's going to be a disaster and they'll come back to our membership to do the work. That's what's going to happen."

Proulx's public defense of the union comes at a time of collective bargaining with case workers served by AFSCME Council 65. During the Nov. 14 meeting, county coordinator Dennis Genereau cautioned Proulx from "talking too much in the public arena," calling the topic of contracted services "borderline" sensitive. But Proulx persisted with further questioning.

County human resources manager Gary Jackson confirmed to the newspaper that the union is making requests that would raise the levy at a time when administrators are under board edict to hold the line on costs.

Regarding negotiations, Whiteside said the county has delivered a "last offer" he's taking back to membership.

"There was an 8-percent inflation rate in 2022 and if they're only offering a 3-percent raise, our membership is going backwards," Whiteside said. "What we'll see happen is people go to other organizations. That's the bottom line. That's just how markets work."

Whiteside said he likes working with the county administrators and that it's not personal.

"I hope we can work through these issues," he said.

When it comes to the county administration's side, Genereau said the union "never expressed disagreement to us," about using contracted services, and that he's going to agree to disagree with Whiteside on the matter.

While it sought approval from the county board to use contracted case management, county administration has been loath to seek approval of the union. Doing so, they say, would amount to agreeing that the county requires union consent when contractually it does not.

Later Monday, following approval of the use of contracted services, Proulx did bring up the topic of a supposed county hiring freeze.

"I just wanted to be on the same page," Proulx said. "I've been hearing things from different staff that we're under a hiring freeze."

Genereau read from a statement, outlining the administration's position on that topic, which, he said, includes managing labor costs.

"The actual cost of labor for 2024 is not currently known, as the county is in the midst of negotiating the CBAs with all eight units," Genereau said. "Until that number is known, it would be prudent to only fill positions through internal hiring or, for those that no qualified internal candidate exists, only for positions that are statutorily required or could expose the county to serious liability or expense if not filled. This is the position of HR at this time."

Adding employees would seem to strengthen the union at a time when union contracts already hold sway over the way things are done.

"Union contracts are very significant directors in the way ... we do the majority of business," Genereau said Nov. 14.

As District 3 commissioner, Proulx represents a large majority of the city of Cloquet on the Carlton County board.