Winter Haven City Manager Fires 2 Employees: Mishandling of a city utility billing error cost the women their jobs - Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport (KGIF), Florida

WINTER HAVEN | Winter Haven City Manager Deric Feacher fired two employees Friday, including the city’s airport director, for mistakes they made that led to the Abbey Lane Apartments lawsuit.

Chasity Hall, account service manager, and Debbie Murphy, utility account and field services director and airport division director, met with Feacher on Friday, according to a city news release.

Both also turned in letters Wednesday that asked the city not to fire them. Murphy provided the city with her past eight years of employee evaluations, almost all of which were extremely positive.

Feacher issued the two employees identical termination letters Friday afternoon.

“Continuing your employment offers no benefit to the Utility Account Services Department or the city as a whole,” Feacher wrote to both.

Attempts to reach Murphy and Hall for comment Friday were unsuccessful.

The firings come less than two weeks after the City Commission agreed to settle with Abbey Lane Associates for nearly $135,000.

The owners of the Abbey Lane Apartments at 100 Evergreen Place SE filed a lawsuit in June alleging that the city overbilled them for water used by the complex’s office building. A city internal investigation conducted by executive and support services director Michele Stayner last month confirmed an overbilling occurred.

The investigation concluded that the error was caused by a meter incompatibility issue and that Hall and Murphy made numerous mistakes in dealing with the issue.

Hall deleted a message, at Murphy’s request, that seemed to indicate the reason for the overbilling. The investigation report noted the message could be considered a public record.

The investigation also concluded that both women looked to deflect responsi­bility for the overbilling error onto the customers.

The letter Hall returned Wednesday blamed her errors on Murphy, while Murphy’s letter focused on the amount of responsibility the city placed on her between her utilities services and airport positions.

Murphy recommended the city separate the two jobs, which it plans to do. Winter Haven’s proposed budget for the coming fiscal year includes a full-time airport director, separate from the utilities account services position.

Murphy asked to become the airport director at the end of her letter, but her request was denied. City spokeswoman Joy Townsend confirmed that the city terminated Murphy completely, not just from one of her posts.

Hall and Murphy have both been on paid suspension since July 25, leaving the city slightly shorthanded. Growth Management Department staff are sharing leadership duties at the airport. Finance director Cal Bowen is managing the account and field services unit.

Townsend declined to estimate how long the positions will be vacant.

Utilities Services staff have begun auditing all city utility meters to “validate proper meter operation,” Feacher said Friday.

Hall and Murphy will now schedule an exit interview with human resources director Shawn Dykes and arrange for a final check and payout of benefits.

Townsend said the city has no appeals process for the fired workers.

How much both employees will receive on their way out is still unclear.

“Any type of calculation of the final check has not been calculated yet,” Townsend said. “So that’s unavailable right now.”

Murphy’s annual salary was $88,026, and she was hired by the city in 2001. Hall’s salary was $41,683, and she was hired in 2009.

- Source: http://www.theledger.com