08-23-10 Common Council Meeting Minutes

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REGULAR MEETING AUGUST 23, 2010 NEW BUSINESS Councilmember Varner, Chairperson, Information and Technology Committee th announced that he would be calling a meeting of that committee for either September 13 th or September 27 to discuss the concerns with “breaking in the new video system” relative to starting and stopping the recordings so that all Council meetings are properly recorded. Councilmember Oliver Davis thanked Gary Gilot, Director of Public Works and the Street Department for the paving of Falcon Street. He stated that it was done in a timely manner with minimal disruption to the residents of the area. PRIVILEGE OF THE FLOOR COMMENTS REGARDING BILL 30-10 Raul Jara, 317 Napoleon, South Bend, Indiana, spoke regarding proposed Bill No. 30-10 Amending Various Sections of Chapter 2, Article 9 of the South Bend Municipal Code addressing the Human Rights Ordinance by the inclusion of new provisions for employment fairness. He thanked the Council for hearing both sides of the bill and those that supported continuing the bill. He stated that discussion were held in a very respectful manner, however wounds were open by some comments made. Mr. Jara urged the Council to further explain themselves on their decision in voting on this bill and hoped that some of those wounds could be healed. Amber Pardu, 2815 Erskine, South Bend, Indiana, stated that she is speaking in support of Bill No. 30-10. First as a Christian she is in favor of any bill that bans discrimination. She noted that she is a registered voter who has been voting since she was eighteen years old. She stated that she is speaking tonight regarding what happened to her at her previous place of employment. She stated that she used to work for a company in South Bend who had branches in several other states. They only hired permanent workers after hiring temporary workers for a period of 90 days. She stated that she thought it was odd that someone hired in after her was hired in permanently before she was. She stated that someone else who was hired two months after her and was not receiving a very good review let it slip that they were preparing her paperwork to be hired in full time. It was then that she started asking questions. She stated that she was told that it was common knowledge within the company that the HR Manager that had a real problem with gay people particularly lesbians. She stated that he was known for harassment and for encouraging situations that could get slightly out of hand so that someone would be encouraged to quit. Finally after 5 months they started her paperwork and immediately after they had a corporate wide hiring freeze. During this time there were two more gay females employees who were hired as temporary agents that were gone one day when the rest came into work and no one new why not even their supervisors. And the only time that this happened was to gay female employees. When the hiring freeze was lifted according to her supervisor she was to be in the first group hired in. But there was only one single solitary person hired in and when she questioned why she was told that this was a special case and the freeze was still in place. She stated that the company had decided to send her to Chicago for some advanced training on some new products that they were going to get. She stated that she felt good that the company trusted her enough to stay with the company to send for a months worth of additional training and she questioned whether or not this was going to hold up the people in her hiring group because they had finally started the final paperwork. She stated that she was told no that it would not hold up her paperwork and if it would they would bring her back. Well low and behold when she came back her paperwork was weeks behind everyone else’s in her group and that people in her group were already hired in. She stated that this continued for quite some time and the biggest single thing that came from this is that all the employees came to her to tell her to get a lawyer because this is wrong and illegal and were shocked to learn that it wasn’t. 7