Fire chief to track work hours

County Fire Chief Michael Nickerson said he will start using a daily log to track his hours, even though he is an "exempt" employee and not required to do so under the terms of county policy.
Nickerson said he decided to do it after being notified by a Hernando Today reporter of a complaint that he was not spending enough time on the job and that he was delegating his duties to Assistant County Fire Chief Frank DeFrancesco.
This is the second time the question of Nickerson's work schedule has been broached.
Nickerson said he routinely works more than 40 hours weekly but, because of the nature of his job, is not in the office all the time.
Often he is at meetings or away from his desk but always accessible by cell phone, he said.
"I do have a laptop and on occasion I work from home and other locations," Nickerson said.
Hernando Today received a complaint about Nickerson's lack of visibility in his office, a tip that was backed up by at least one person in the county fire department.
DeFrancesco said he had not heard any complaints about his boss.
"Me and the chief communicate constantly," DeFrancesco said. "I have not ever had a problem not being able to reach him. We consult each other on a lot of the issues both administratively and operationally."
Nickerson said he has divided the workload of the department between him and his assistant chief. Nickerson said he handles the administrative end of things while DeFrancesco looks after operations.
That arrangement has gone on for awhile, he said.
Nickerson, hired in January 1985, makes $94,400 annually, according to the county. With benefits, he makes about $129,400.
County policy states that exempt employees are paid regardless of hours worked and not required to keep time sheets for payroll purposes.
"However, individual departments can, if desired, track time of exempt employees for their own interdepartmental operations," the policy states.
Human Resources Director Cheryl Marsden said it is permissible for exempt employees to keep work logs as long as they are not done for payroll purposes. Such employees have to be careful not to cross the line from exempt to hourly employee, she said.
Nickerson said this is not the first time he has had to deflect criticism, referring to an earlier complaint he believes was lodged by an anonymous person to former County Administrator Gary Kuhl.
At that time, Nickerson said he also had to defend his work schedule.
Nickerson said he believes that original complaint is where the disparaging term "Casper" was first used to describe his lack of visibility in the department. That term, he said, is the "perception of very few employees."
Nickerson said the term doesn't bother him nor does the criticism, which he calls unfounded. He said he stands by his 20-plus years in the department.
"I'm going to continue to do my job until I'm ready to retire," Nickerson said. "If my bosses, the county commissioners or the county administrator, wish to question me, I stand in their judgment. I have nothing to hide."
Nickerson encouraged Hernando Today to call Jason Brazinski, president of the Hernando County Professional Firefighters, for further comment about his work record and reputation.
Brazinski praised Nickerson's record and said "he has definitely got a full plate," especially since he has taken on extra duties forced on him by the cutback of one extra assistant chief.
"If he was not showing up to work and not doing his job, I think it would be glaringly obvious," Brazinski said. "There would be some huge deficiencies, be it at budget time or through the year."
Brazinski said he has heard the criticism and the disparaging comments leveled against Nickerson. But that comes with the territory, he said.
Brazinski said the daily work log may help deflect some but probably not all of that criticism.
"You're always going to have your critics, one way or another," he said.
Commissioner Jim Adkins said it is commendable that Nickerson is going to start filling out a work log.
"I'd like for others to do the same and to be accountable," Adkins said. "That makes it very transparent so we don't have these types of issues coming up. They all need to keep track of their time."