A Jefferson Parish maintenance supervisor has been found to have significantly misused public resources according to a report from the Office of Inspector General, as FOX 8 Live detailed. The employee is accused of taking unauthorized breaks and involving other staff in personal errands, including using a parish vehicle for personal deliveries to their home.
The report, released by the parish's Inspector General Kim Chatelain, outlines the supervisor's routine of going to their house during work hours without clocking out, and taking breaks not accounted for in the official tracking, raising concerns highlighted by WWLTV, further investigation has indeed pinpointed a troubling pattern of this behavior, listing 32 specific instances where the supervisor left the workplace for extended periods. Despite this, upon first questioning the supervisor denied these activities, however, they later admitted to the misconduct when the details were presented.
Weak management oversight has also been flagged, with breaks not being properly monitored and GPS vehicle tracking not being consistently applied, creating an environment ripe for such abuses. Management's laxity in enforcing break schedules and vehicle use is cited as a contributory factor to the improper actions taken by the supervisor. "The SUBJECT is spending time at home on Parish time," the Inspector General's report states, "used a Parish vehicle for personal use ... such as delivering appliances and furniture to his house," as reported by WWLTV.
As a result of these findings Inspector General Chatelain is pressing for the Jefferson Parks and Recreation Department to appraise the employment status of the supervisor and for the parish to institute new policies to improve the tracking of parish vehicles and initiate ethics training for employees. Since 2022 when management was apparently made aware of potential issues Chatelain worries that the pattern of misusing parish time has been overlooked and potentially enabled, according to a statement given by WDSU.
The parish administration has acknowledged the report, stating the employee has admitted to the actions and will face disciplinary measures in accordance with personnel rules.
