By Sarah Opdahl

At the New Fairfield Board of Selectmen (BOS) meeting on Thursday, February 13, there was a lengthy discussion regarding a clause in the Town’s non-union management contracts that requires severance payments for six months, even if an employee is terminated for cause. Given that the clause was added in Selectman Ms. Pat Del Monaco’s tenure as first  selectman, Town Attorney Mr. Tim Herbst directed very pointed questions at her regarding the contracts.

The issues at hand are two-fold. First, that the clause was added to revised contracts at all, which Herbst was certain he and h is colleagues in municipal law have never encountered before. He said, “I think that the taxpayers of New Fairfield have every right to know that if an employee is terminated for cause and they have that provision in their contract, the taxpayers of New Fairfield are going to have to pay that employee six months salary.”

Secondly, there is a question of timing of the revisions, at least some of which appear to have been implemented just after the 2023 election, according to emails that he displayed. Del Monaco took the questioning in stride, explaining that the primary goal was to make the contracts “consistent,” so that everyone was treated equally, which is why it is in many of the non -union contracts. She believes that the Town attorney at the time reviewed them. Regarding timing, she recalls the handover as a very busy period and said she would need to talk with former Human Resources Dir ector Ms. Kara Mehler for her recollection regarding the clause placement’s timing.

There was confusion over whether sweeping contract changes had, or should have, gone to the full BOS for approval or whether that is within the purview of the first selectman to make broad changes without BOS input. In addition, there was a conflict over whether a former employee’s contract should have been shared on screen during this virtual meeting by Herbst. While early questions were mo re veiled, Herbst supposed that one administration could “handcuff” and hamper the forward movement of another by adding such a clause, which would make their choices regarding staff termination very difficult and costly. Del Monaco participat ed in the back-and-forth but acknowledged, “I see what you are trying to do,” and reiterated her recollections regarding the contracts.

Herbst left the matter by saying, “I need to find out how many of these contracts exist with this language. And I need to find out how many of these contracts were amended or edited in November of 2023 because I think that’s problematic.” He plans to reach out to Mehler.

A vote was split on the appointment to the Board of Finance (BOF) for an alternate position that opened when Mr. Greg Williams resigned last month. There were two candidates for the role, both parents of young children—Ms. Jessica Sanchez, a finance and management professional who has previously raised a hand for a position on the board and Mr. John Russo, who works in logistics at Apple, in addition to working as a local realtor. Russo had the votes for the position and will be joining the BOF at a critical hour. Ms. Sue Carbone was also reappointed to the Commission on the Aging.

Del Monaco asked First Selectman Ms. Melissa Lindsey if interviews have begun for the new sanitarian position, to which it was learned that the position was posted but no qualified candidates have applied.

The next regular New Fairfield Board of Selectmen meeting is scheduled for Thursday, February 27, 7:30 p.m.