A legislative committee will hold a hearing next week on a bill that would overhaul Wisconsin’s civil service system.
Republican state Senator Steve Nass (R-Whitewater) has scheduled the hearing for next Tuesday, October 6 at the Capitol, starting at 8:30 in the morning. The Whitewater Republican said he plans for the Senate’s government reform panel to hear about seven hours of testimony on the bill, which would make numerous changes to the state’s 110-year-old civil service system.
The legislation calls for tougher discipline standards, speeding up the hiring process, and eliminating the civil service exam job applicants are currently required to take. It also creates a shorter appeals process for actions against employees, creates a clearer definition of “just cause” in firing workers, and subjects new hires to a two year probationary period, instead of the current six months.
Republicans say the changes will make it easier for the state to handle on upcoming wave of baby boom retirements, while also modernizing a system that’s seen little change in over a century. Democrats contend it will open up the hiring process to corruption and cronyism.