Public Employee
I wrote this almost two years ago and never hit “publish”. I was a City employee for five years until 2020. Here is a synopsis of my thoughts, without spilling tea.
On my first day at the City of Tallahassee Customer Operations I was so very excited about the opportunity to learn new things and start a new career. We were expected to engage in a sixty-day training before we went from temp agency employees to OPS City employees. In that 60-day time I filled up a three-subject notebook with information. I had our training manual printed and bound at Target Copy. My goal was to learn the job and be the best that I can be at it.
I worked in the call center answering calls for 891-4YOU. I got the impression that many citizens did not have a clue where we were located. Some even hinted at us not understanding because we aren't from here. Keeping professionalism in mind, I connected with customers. I am a customer myself. I live here, I rent here, and I work here. I am a working-class mother navigating the same school system, healthcare system and public assistance system as the rest of us.
In my time at the city, I noticed that many of us have our complaints and things we take issue with but are not how these things could be made better. Frankly, we don't know because we were not meant to know. We are not involved in the decision-making process at the city. The decisions are presented to us after they are made, and we are taught how to navigate the systems/processes/plans put in place for us. Some of us get upset and we create online petitions, we attend a few commission meetings, and we send some emails out. But who is really making decisions about the day-to-day things that grind our gears, inconvenience our lives, or even hinder our growth? Most of us know the names of our commissioners, but what about our appointed officials? What about the heads of departments? The ones who have final say, the ones who are charged with interpreting policy then applying them in a practical way to get the job done.
Sure, there are requirements of the people we put in positions to make decisions. An education, experience, expertise…but the lived experiences of those most impacted by these decisions is important too. The people who take the bus everyday should know why routes are changed, or how we can go about addressing safety and access concerns around transportation. The people who pay for utilities should understand when and why rates are going up, and maybe even have an outlet to try to make things more equitable for their communities as well. It is no secret that Tallahassee is one of the most economically segregated cities in the United States, well it is time we start to chip away at that and work on equity. Not from a city staff standpoint. But with a co-governance framework.
Outside of the halls of City office buildings, people are confused about what policies and procedures are. But people are also confused inside those walls. There tends to be miscommunication where there should be collaboration and division where there should be coworking. Departments should be able to function well together, and as technology progresses in one space, it should have a positive impact on others. Departments shouldn’t be at odds with one another. That dysfunction spreads through our workforce and thus into our community. People are aggravated and upset with the process because they do not understand it and can't seem to get a handle on it. It shouldn’t be this complicated! We should be able to interact with our city and not leave even more confused, overwhelmed or angry then we were when we approached it. We should be able to know what the new parking system means, and how to navigate it. Employees should have confidence that when something new is presented to them, they will be equipped with the right tools, information and training to adequately do their jobs.
This means that we need a shared framework under which city employees, community, community groups, stakeholders, appointed and elected officials can all coalesce. An understanding we all have of the world as it is and the world as it should be. Sure, it may sound naïve and even a bit foolish to say, but for us all to work on the same plan, we do need to be on the same page. We might not agree on everything, but it is about time the people who make this city run, have a chance to make this city work.