King George County Seeking Proposals for "Human Resources Services"
It's not clear what is planned for the county's current HR department.
by Adele Uphaus
MANAGING EDITOR AND CORRESPONDENT
King George County is looking to contract out at least some of its human resources department.
The county last week published a request for proposals for human resources services on the Virginia state online procurement system eVA.
“The intent and purpose of this Request for Proposals is to establish a contract with one qualified firm to furnish [King George County] with professional services synonymous with human resources,” the RFP states.
The requested services include managing the county hiring process, to include creating and updating job postings, reviewing resumes, conducting interviews and determining appropriate salaries; onboarding new hires; developing a recruiting program; managing employee records; conducting disciplinary action against employees; creating professional development curriculum; securing health insurance; and processing payroll.
The RFP does not make clear how many positions the contract would cover.
The county currently directly employs one full-time and two part-time human resources positions, spokeswoman Amy Southall said.
According to the department website, these positions include an HR specialist and an HR assistant/records manager.
Southall directed further questions about the RFP—including what is planned for the existing HR positions—to the procurement manager, Kimberly Cook.
Earlier this year, according to emails the Advance received through a request under the Freedom of Information Act, Board of Supervisors Chair T.C. Collins informed Derrick Mestler—then the HR director—that he would not be involved in the hiring of the new county administrator.
“Your input regarding the selection process for the next county administrator is not required,” Collins wrote in a February 5 email.
Mestler’s name is not included in the county’s online staff directory.
None of the other jurisdictions in the region—Fredericksburg City and the counties of Stafford, Spotsylvania, and Caroline—use contracted human resources services.
In Caroline, as in King George until earlier this year, the deputy county administrator oversees the HR department, and the county also employs an HR manager. The county employs 357 people total.
In Fredericksburg City, which has 440 full-time employees, according to its website, the HR department has six positions, including a director, assistant director, an operations analyst, a risk and safety manager, a benefit analyst, and an admin support specialist.
Stafford County employs 10 people in the HR department, including a director, an assistant director, a manager, four analysts, two specialists, and an admin support specialist.
Spotsylvania’s HR department employs six people—a chief and deputy chief HR officer, an HR generalist and trainer, two analysts, and one assistant.
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