City of Sheboygan logo
Recent troubles within the ranks of those charged with fundamental operations of City of Sheboygan Government have given rise to rumors of numerous resignations and firings. By at least one account, departures were described to WHBL by one anonymous City employee as that of the proverbial “rats leaving a sinking ship.” Having examined the hard data of departures both before, and since those troubles arose, it would be difficult to qualify any of those rumors as accurate.
After learning of such accounts, WHBL News reached out to the City of Sheboygan Director of Human Resources, Adam Westbrook, in order to get some official information concerning the facts, and the data forwarded to us concerning departures within the past six months does provide valuable insight.
The earliest “termination” on that list, a term used herein to describe any departure from City employment, was on December 29th of 2022 when a temporary tax collector left her seasonal employment. In all, 28 persons were included in the list that began at that point, and ended with the voluntary retirement of the Manager of Planning and Zoning, Steven Sokolowski effective on May 18th, a period covering 141 days.
Sokolowski’s departure followed by six days the departure of the Director of Planning and Development, Chad Pelishek, who resigned his position effective May 12th. Pelishek’s reporting of racism during a community meeting was one of several “wedge issues” wielded by DEIB proponents in their alleged efforts to exert influence over City Hall, the fallout of which reportedly contributed to his decision to resign. It was the rumor of Pelishek’s stepping down that prompted a look into the resignations, and HR Director Westbrook indicated that notice of Pelishek’s resignation was received on May 1st. Another notable voluntary departure that could relate to former Administrator Wolf’s issues with the Common Council was that of Management Analyst Carrie Arenz effective on April 28th.
Of the 28 persons included in the initial list, and excluding those who left for reasons of seasonal employment, end of assignment, or retirement, there were a remaining three who were dismissed involuntarily, and another eleven who chose to leave on their own terms. Reasons for involuntary termination were not included in the information provided by Director Westbrook.
Those terminated involuntarily by the initiative of the City were:
1. City Administrator Todd Wolf, the subject of a highly-publicized set of procedures by the Common Council in late 2022 and early this year, which ended in his termination without cause on January 10, 2023. Associated legal action continues.
2. Community Service Officer Angelica Torres of the Sheboygan Police Department on February 16, 2023.
3. Katherine Kobs, a Benefits Generalist in the Human Resources Department, whose departure became effective on May 11th.
Without having a prior gauge on the frequency or nature of those leaving the City, there is no fair way to determine if the 28 on the list who left their jobs during the 141 days between December 29, 2022 and May 18, 2023 were exceptional or not, and so we then requested a list of departures from 2022 that would provide perspective.
The second list provided to us covered a period beginning January 6 and ending on October 31st, 2022. In order for a “close” comparison, and something that would most closely precede the administrative struggles at City Hall, we looked at the last 141 days on that list…that period that began on June 12, 2022…and 48 persons were found to have left City employment. 17 of those were voluntary. Three were involuntary terminations, those of DPW employees Joshua Henschel and Gregory Melin on June 14th and 15th respectively, and that of a worker within the transit system, Glenn Bell on September 21st. The remainder, once again, were either seasonal, end-of-assignment or retirement.
For the record, there was no information given to us covering November 1 through December 28 last year. However, based upon our research comparing apples-to-apples, departures within City of Sheboygan employment so far this year, with notable individual exceptions, have been unremarkable by the numbers.
Comments