Police union joins fray, blaming mayor for “mass exodus” at Gig Harbor city hall

The union representing Gig Harbor police officers has joined the fray over high turnover at city hall with a blistering letter accusing Mayor Kit Kuhn of fostering a “totalitarian regime.”

The letter, which claims to represent “100 percent of the officers, sergeants and detectives” on the force, was emailed to City Council members last Friday by Matthew House, the officer’s representative with Teamster’s Union Local 117.

In the letter, the officers complain that “the current leadership style can only be described as totalitarianism, fostering an environment of chronic daily instability, stress, and concern over department function, positions, officer safety, and job security.”

“This current leadership style radiates volatility, frustration, and exhaustion throughout the employees of this city and our fear is that this mass exodus will continue if not corrected,” the unsigned letter asserts.

The officers complained that Kuhn, “in his continued effort to assert control and power, has unilaterally circumvented the chief of police,” Kelley Busey, in matters of safety and training.

City’s response

Kuhn did not respond to an email request for comment. City administrator Bob Larson sent this statement:

“The City has a process in place for our employees and their unions to raise their grievances. We’d welcome discussion with the police union in that environment, however, the newspaper is not the place for those conversations. We will continue to address ideas and concerns from all our employees and we’ll do so with open and candid discussions, which we believe fosters innovation and collaboration. Our employees are dedicated professionals and we all want the City to continue to be a great place to work.”

Loss of key employees at City Hall has become an issue since the resignation of the city’s parks manager last week, after only a year on the job. Nicole Jones-Vogel has told at least one council member her job was complicated by frequent conflicts with the mayor.

She was the latest in more than 20 employees, many of them department heads or supervisors, who have left City Hall since Kuhn was elected in 2016.

Among them have been the previous city administrator, Wade Farris; the former planning director, Jennifer Kester; her chief planner, Lindsey Sehmel; and the city engineer for 19 years, Steve Misiurak. Greg Foote, the city’s operation manager, took retirement after 32 years. The latest to leave, Kay Johnson, the city’s information technology manager, retired earlier this year.

“I am truly frustrated and stymied at why our city keeps losing our talented employees,” said Council Member Le Rodenberg during a council meeting July 16.

Rodenberg asked the council to name a three-member committee to oversee an outside survey of staff morale, and took the unusual step of asking that the survey be supervised, not by city staff, but by the council itself. The council agreed to consider the idea at its August 10 meeting.

Officers want survey

The police officers’ letter praised Rodenberg for the proposal: “We are confident this opportunity will shed a great deal of light,” the letter said.

House and the officers also outlined a number of longstanding complaints, including the failure to bring the department up to its budgeted strength, “toying” by the mayor in operational details, and restricting out-of-town training, which officers may need to advance in rank.

The department has lost five officers in the last 18 months, according to a list provided by the city, and is chronically undermanned.

The police department is budgeted for 21 officers, but currently has only 19, and has shrunk to 17 on some weeks, when there was sick leave or training absences.

Kuhn announced in January the two vacant positions would be filled, but so far, officers say, that has not happened. He has also not signed a new contract with the Teamster’s local, though it has been approved by both sides, officers complain.

Larson said Tuesday the contract has now been signed.

Before 2016, the officer’s letter said, police enjoyed a good relationship with the city’s leaders.

Back then, the city “welcomed new ideas, benefit-driven missions, and questioning the way we do business. There was a true enforced open-door policy, void of fear of retaliation or discipline for professional disagreement,” the officers wrote.

“The current leadership model implemented by Mayor Kit Kuhn, and supported City Administrator Bob Larson, and Human Resource Director Kameil Borders, is so far outside the cohesive core administrative employee relationship driven success story that built our great city,“ they added.

Related story: Mayor Kuhn says the city has “done nothing wrong” in its relations with employees.

This story was originally published July 22, 2020 at 12:00 AM.