PORTAGE (WKZO-AM) — Portage City Manager Lawrence Shaffer retaliated against the human resources employee who authorized an investigation into inappropriate comments made to a female staffer, Portage City Council candidate Tim Earl claims.
Earl alleges, despite being a long-time city employee, the woman was laid off and her accrued benefits unfairly cut off.
“She was not allowed to use her accrued time and her benefits were terminated, leaving her and her family with no health insurance while she was ill and undergoing treatment,” Earl said.
The allegations may have been dismissed as campaign rhetoric — if council member Terry Urban didn’t concur.
“The way this employee has been treated does not represent the values of the city of Portage under past administrators, and the values that I’ve held during my involvement in 34 years with the city,” Urban said.
Shaffer defends the layoff, saying the consolidation of human resource functions saved the city $300,000.
“There’s no shell game about that at all — that’s real cash, that’s real money that can be utilized and transferred for services that have direct benefits for citizens,” Shaffer said.
But he declined to address the other allegations, saying it’s a personnel matter.
– John McNeill
