A report released by Jacksonville’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG[1]) urges Mayor Donna Deegan’s Office[2] to more closely define what is and isn’t allowed for remote workers.
The investigation was frustrated to some degree, as it was “initiated but not completed, partially due to a lack of unilateral adherence to the policy by city of Jacksonville Departments, and “that some departments had their own policy.”
Yet improvements are on the way, as “the Mayor’s Office was aware of the confusion surrounding this policy and had taken steps to draft a new policy that would provide a framework for employees to telecommute.”
We’ve reached out to the Mayor’s Office for an update in that drafting process, but did not get an immediate response. When we hear back, the piece will be updated.
The OIG noted that remote permission should be reserved for “short-term work under circumstances such as an employee being unable to travel to work due to a mobility issue, which may include medical reasons” and that it should be reserved for two weeks at a time, though extension is possible “on an intermittent basis for the benefit of the city.”
However, executive branch employees deviated in some cases from the intent, with 11 known examples spotlighted in the report.
Public Works Director Nina Sickler had five employees in work from home status. Per the OIG report, she “did not respond to repeated requests for information” and OIG doesn’t “know if Public Works is complying with the HR Directive.”
“The Jacksonville Ethics Code, Part 3, Section 602.303(H) requires all city officials to provide records upon request to the OIG. Since we chose to curtail this review, we did not seek to compel Director Sickler to provide the requested information.”
Finance Director Anna Brosche could only “provide one signed agreement for an employee who had a medical reason for intermittent telework,” and she was able to telework herself since November 2024 despite not having a formal agreement since Deegan allowed her to do so for family reasons.
The report states she did so from South Carolina and Virginia. Further research revealed material omissions from the investigation on the part of the Finance Director.
“Records reviews discovered numerous other work-from-home requests submitted for Finance employees since January 1, 2025, that were not reported by Director Brosche,” the report reads.
“We reviewed these approved agreements and found a concerted effort to comply with the policy. We did find one instance where an employee received approval to work from a location in Illinois. The current directive does not prohibit this, but we believe that it is implied that the employee will work from their primary residence.”
Post Views: 0
References
- ^ OIG (www.jacksonville.gov)
- ^ Mayor Donna Deegan’s Office (www.jacksonville.gov)