COLUMN: Why The Tuscaloosa County Commission Can't Really Freeze Hiring

*This is an opinion column*

TUSCALOOSA, AL — District 4 County Commissioner Reginald Murray glanced down at his iPad, reading aloud from the Book of Matthew as he leaned forward in his seat during Wednesday's regular meeting of the Tuscaloosa County Commission.

Specifically, he focused on Chapter 6, which tells of Jesus commanding his followers to consider those in need — the hungry, the poor, etc.

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In essence, the parable conveys that it is righteous to think about those who are often forgotten — an easy enough concept to agree on.

While I have no doubt Murray's words were sincere, I admit I've never been good at staying awake during sermons. By no fault of the commissioner's, I caught my eyes getting heavy as I tried to read through emails on my laptop in a vain attempt to stay awake during the meeting.

As his lecture concluded, the Commission voted to adopt a long list of recommendations aimed at promoting diversity among employees in county departments, most notably with respect to hiring practices.

By all accounts, it could be viewed as something of a win for Murray, who has been an outspoken champion and unceasing foot soldier for racial equality in Tuscaloosa. And at the same time, I'll even admit it wasn't an exciting headline, primarily because stories about policymakers exercising common sense by doing the right thing are rare and hardly grab the public's attention.

But as I tried to keep my head up during that early-morning meeting, my eyes quickly snapped wide open when Murray, immediately following the vote on his committee's recommendations, exercised a point of personal privilege when he called for the Commission to implement a hiring freeze, effective immediately, until racial inequities could be addressed and rectified.

"We've been getting a plan in place and I know it's been discussed. It's going to take some time to do that, but given we are dealing with hiring on a daily basis, weekly, monthly, I offer the motion that we freeze hiring until we get a plan in place as to how we are going to bring equity within our county. '

- District 4 Commissioner Reginald Murray on Wednesday

Commissioner Murray is obviously not a gambling man, because the concept of overplaying one's hand appeared completely lost on the longtime politician when his motion was met only by the four confused faces of his White Republican colleagues.

I've covered local politics all over the southeast, reporting on the good, bad, controversial and inspiring. Despite a Republican majority outnumbering Murray 3-1, in my year and a half of covering the Commission, I have seen this group work better across idealogical lines than just about any other elected body I've ever followed. So when a disconnect of this magnitude broke the calm of an otherwise uneventful morning, it was impossible for me to ignore.

Mind you, it's worth mentioning that less than half an hour before, a representative from Waste Management informed the Commission that staffing issues were at the worst they had seen. For example, all Waste Management drivers on county routes are working overtime right now to keep pace with the demand of the company's contract with the county, which is coupled with the industrywide labor shortage.

A representative from the waste disposal contractor said these jobs, while not the most glamorous, can start out making as much as $81,000 a year. However, finding qualified candidates has proven a sustained challenge as the company desperately works to fill positions.

Not including the Tuscaloosa County Jail, there are currently 20 full-time openings with the county. In total, the county employs approximately 470 people in full-time roles, which shows Tuscaloosa County to be in a better position than many with respect to workforce demand issues.

Tuscaloosa County Sheriff Ron Abernathy told Patch this week that the County Jail was at full staffing, despite other county officials openly acknowledging the historic problems relating to turnover among guards — an issue that is, by many accounts, cultural in nature and one that pre-dates the labor market anomalies spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The jail, along with the county's Maintenance Department, are the only two county departments with a predominantly Black workforce — another notion Murray has justifiably cited as underscoring the need to promote diversity in the county's other departments.

Murray's intentions are noble, I have no doubt, and I have a great deal of respect for how hard he fights on behalf of the less fortunate, regardless of race. And I even agree that hiring practices should be modernized in our public institutions, with more of an emphasis placed on promoting diversity in the workplace.

In what seemed to be a Hail Mary toss to drive the point home, Murray was joined in solidarity by Rev. James Williams of the Tuscaloosa chapter of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference — another well-respected pillar of the community and local Civil Rights icon who delivered an impassioned plea for the Commission to act immediately on addressing racial inequalities in the staffing of county departments.

"When it comes to poverty, you've got violence," he said. "We can solve many of these problems if we work together. We have been proactive, not reactive, so let's work together and make things better."

Again, I get all of that and have written other opinion columns in the past supporting similar initiatives aimed at leveling the playing field and making the workforce more accessible.

If I'm being honest, I agreed with just about every word that Williams said. He was calling for unity, action and for progress — all things I holler when I'm stomping around my living room.

The heart is in the right place, but the position is misinformed.

What the pastor failed to mention was how putting a temporary halt to hiring would help any of the aforementioned shortfalls — be it the obvious racial disparities or garbage routes running on time.

While I'm not an economic development expert, it doesn't take an economist to see that now, more than ever, should be a time for finding any way possible to open up the workforce in a simple effort to get people to want to come back to work.

I also have no problem with making a concerted effort to elevate more minority candidates into leadership positions — another one of Murray's longtime soapbox issues. But it has to be acknowledged that an immediate hiring freeze would inadvertently put more of a strain on those dedicated employees still on the job who will have little choice other than to continue working with no hope of reprieve until we can rectify our problems — all of which are completely out of the control of the blue-collar folks who keep our county on the rails.

The systemic problems rooted in historically racist and bias hiring practices are very real, still exist in many forms and need to be addressed with empathy and forward-thinking action. But, again, I fail to see how that can be done with a county hiring freeze at a time when we desperately need those who can to get back to work.

At this point, I don't think any Tuscaloosa County officials would care if the labor pool was made up of Black, White, Purple or Polka Dot applicants. One of the most consistent talking points I’ve noticed, whether the commissioners realize it or not, can be seen in frustrations with the labor market — be it a fast food drive-thru or finding qualified applicants for respectable county jobs.

Regardless of how quickly we address the longstanding issues, there is no doubt that garbage will still pile up, people will still commit crimes and roads will still need to be paved.

There's just no sense in making the current economic climate anymore difficult or inaccessible than it needs to be right now.

And to quote Commissioner Murray, who recalled being taught the difference between "wants" and "needs" in Home Economics, I think our most pressing needs right now should be continuity and consistency with our daily county operations.

For the sake of my point, I’ll admit my own bias here and say I "want" to see a complete progressive overhaul of the way our county does business. But even I can see that it's just not the right time to throw a hand grenade into the establishment to prove a point. We’re still very much in the early stages of recovery mode, and while Tuscaloosa County might swing the biggest stick, it just simply isn’t the right time to grandstand.

Thankfully, common sense prevailed when Murray's measure failed to make it to a vote.

I'm sure I was the only person who found any humor in the statement, but I had to lower my head to hide a surprised laugh when District 2 Commissioner Jerry Tingle turned to Murray and flatly said of the proposed hiring freeze in his thick, distinct accent: "I'm not even sure that's legal."

It was obvious that Murray didn't have a confident answer to Tingle's reaction and he quickly pivoted to say he would seek out the legal guidance of County Attorney Robert Spence, before returning to the Commission on Dec. 1 to further discuss the matter.

By this reporter's observations, the debate will remain a sensitive and mostly-political one, with a range of perspectives when it comes to the interpretation of the law and what powers the County Commission actually possess.

Can They Do That?

Before considering the Commission's ability to freeze hiring for the county, it's important to note that while the Commission does serve as the primary lawmaking body and financial custodian for the county, the four Commissioners do not exercise full dominion over all facets of county government.

Other elected offices at the county level include the Tuscaloosa County Probate Judge — who independently chairs the County Commission — the Tuscaloosa County Sheriff, County Tax Assessor and County Tax Collector.

These offices are elected by the public and do not serve at the pleasure of the Commission — which is the case for crucial appointed positions such as county administrator and county attorney.

In instances where elected officials head up a department, the official - such as a sheriff — are responsible for formulating their own budgets, before then receiving final approval from the County Commission.

What's most damning to Murray's proposed hiring freeze, though, is the fact that hiring for public jobs is subject to the exclusive oversight of the Tuscaloosa County Civil Service Board and not the whims of the County Commission.

Tuscaloosa County Attorney Robert Spence told Patch Thursday that he had yet to take a hard look at the statutes on behalf of Murray's request, but said with the highest degree of confidence that the County Commission is in no way involved in the hiring process for county employees who are not Commission appointees.

It's not to say the Commission doesn't have the power to royally screw with the other elected offices in their orbit. Indeed, as Spence pointed out, the Commission has the authority to amend departmental budgets at any time, thus having the technical "final say" when it comes to departments hammering out their payrolls.

This is an unheard of practice in the era of modern government for Tuscaloosa County, though, and a tactic that one county official referred to on background as "just mean-spirited ... not something we've ever seen here."

After digesting the most important aspects of the legalese in the debate, it's clear that a county hiring freeze would not be as simple as a motion made by a single commissioner. Yes, the Commission does hold considerable unilateral authority, but checks and balances ensure the operations of other essential county departments can move forward relatively unimpeded by elected officials and political tumult outside of their offices.

Again, I applaud Commissioner Murray for how much energy he dedicates to doing the most good he can in his community and I fully support his push to update technology and hiring practices for the county.

Rather, my hope is simply that this column will add clarity to the debate, to where we can move on and focus on tangible and practical measures we can take to make our community as inclusive as possible and a place that anyone would want to live.

Ryan Phillips is the founder and field editor of Tuscaloosa Patch. The views expressed in this opinion column are his and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of our parent company or staff.