County Engineer Shae Kosmalski has resigned from the Cook County Highway Department after an apparent dispute with the county board led to a legal document outlining the terms of her resignation. Under the agreement, she could stay until the end of September, but she is not allowed to say anything negative about the county – ever. While she has been here, a lot has been accomplished in the department.
There’s big news in the Cook County Highway Department, but data privacy laws are going to keep the full story from being made known publicly. On Tuesday, February 16, 2010, the county board voted unanimously to enter into a “Voluntary Resignation of Employment Agreement and General Release” with Highway Engineer Shae Kosmalski, a six-page document outlining terms of Kosmalski’s “resignation.”
Plenty of inferences could be made from the document, but it prohibits Kosmalski from telling her side of the story if that side includes anything “negative.”
The document, signed by Kosmalski on February 12, states that the highway engineer “has decided to voluntarily terminate her employment.” Unless she finds another job in the meantime, Kosmalski will work for the county at full pay until September 30, but her job duties will be reduced. Kosmalski will continue to fulfill her responsibilities as the county’s registered engineer and agriculture inspector.
The document states Kosmalski “will be relieved…of all job duties related to (i) day-to-day management of the Cook County Highway Department, (ii) supervision of Highway Department employees, and (iii) participation in county management activities, including committee meetings, county commissioner meetings, and department head meetings… for the remainder of her employment as the highway engineer…other than as may be necessary to complete her engineer and agriculture inspector duties.”
According to the county’s job description, managing personnel accounts for 10% of the engineer’s job.
A highway department worker who preferred to remain anonymous spoke to the News-Herald
by phone on February 16. He said numerous highway department employees had complained to their commissioners that they had difficulty working with Kosmalski. He said that while she encouraged them to go to her with problems, when they did, she would not help them find solutions. He said they also felt that she would not acknowledge their expertise. “She was always right,” he said. “She was always way up there, bigger than life, better than everybody.”
The agreement with the county board appears to be in lieu of litigation. “This agreement,” it says, “does not mean and cannot be interpreted to mean that the county or the highway engineer acted wrongfully toward the other or anyone else.” It is, rather, “intended to resolve all disputes known to the parties as of the effective date [February 12].”
In addition, the document effectively keeps Kosmalski from defending herself publicly. It states, “…The highway engineer hereby agrees that she shall not disparage or defame or in any way speak negatively of the county, its commissioners, elected and non-elected officials, employees, insurers, representatives, counsel, successors, and assigns in any respect or make any negative comments concerning her employment relationship with county, throughout the remainder of her employment with the county, and after her employment with the county terminates.”
According to the document, Kosmalski must adhere to all policies and procedures governing the county’s workplace. It states, “Highway engineer acknowledges and agrees that if she fails to reasonably conduct herself in accordance with these policies and procedures the county may schedule a hearing to assess whether the highway engineer’s conduct constitutes misconduct and/or incompetence, in accordance with the county’s written policies and procedures.”
The document advised Kosmalski to consult with an attorney and acknowledged that she was represented in negotiating the agreement. County Board Chair Fritz Sobanja directed media inquiries to County Attorney Tim Scannell. According to Scannell, the process of negotiation has been going on for months. He does not know when the search for a new engineer will begin, but he thinks it will be soon.
Kosmalski was invited to comment. She said, “While I’d originally hoped to be the county engineer for many years to come, I’ll be able to leave this position knowing I did the best I could for the taxpayers and the county, carefully weighing projects and dollars, successfully lobbying for over $5,000,000 for roadwork, with another $3,000,000 still in the hopper under the pending federal transportation bill, managing the flood event and reconstruction projects, improving the department’s efficiency and accountability, bringing in some great new staff, improving safety, standing toe-to-toe with contractors to keep costs in line, increasing the county’s face value with Congressman Oberstar, head of the transportation committee, and ensuring rural Cook County’s unique transportation needs had a strong voice statewide. I’ll be keeping up those efforts during the remainder of my time in office.
“What next?” Kosmalski continued. “I’m pursuing a number of exciting opportunities right now, some within the county. Time will tell!”
The highway department employee who preferred to remain anonymous had praise for one thing Kosmalski did while she was here: hire Russell Klegstad as maintenance supervisor. “He’s a very sharp man,” he said. “He knows equipment, he knows road maintenance.” Klegstad has excellent people skills, he said, something he hopes to see in Kosmalski’s replacement.
“We’re hoping we get a nice, fresh one out of college that’s open to learning,” the employee said. “It won’t work if you come in here thinking you know it all,” he said. “You have to work with people, not ramrod them.”
The anonymous employee did not wish anything bad for Kosmalski, rather, he hoped her experience here would equip her for a better experience in her next job. Kosmalski has been county engineer since October 1, 2007.
Leave a Reply