City of Windsor defends hiring mayor's wife for project manager role
Expert says strong mayor powers have 'muddied the waters' when it comes to hiring decisions
Windsor's Chief Administrative Officer said all rules were followed in the recent hiring of Jane Deneau, the mayor's wife, for a permanent, full-time, project manager role with the city.
According to Ray Mensour, Deneau was the top-scoring candidate for the job in the parks, recreation and facilities department, which has a posted salary range between $96,000 and $116,900.
The job opening was listed for six days, from April 4 to 10.
The CAO said Deneau was one of 278 people who applied for the position, and then one of three shortlisted candidates — who were all external submissions.
"This position does not have any direct reports and is not considered a manager level employee," said Mensour.
"Therefore, the recruitment does not require or involve mayoral participation or approval."
CBC News reached out to Deneau for comment, but did not receive a response.
Windsor mayor Drew Dilkens confirmed on AM800 that his wife had been hired, and said in a statement to CBC News that he "cannot speak to a recruitment process with which I was not involved."
Strong mayor powers can raise concerns
A municipal government expert believes that strong mayor powers have "muddied the waters" when it comes to hiring people who have a relationship with the mayor.
"The crux of the issue here relates to strong mayor powers over administration and how they could undermine the CAO-Council model that most municipalities in Ontario and Canada have adopted," said Joe Lyons, Director of the Local Government Project at Western University.
Strong mayor powers give Dilkens the ability to hire and fire nearly all staff members within the City of Windsor. However, Dilkens has delegated that authority to the CAO for any position below manager.
Lyons said the mayor's control of the employment of the people who lead the department that Deneau now works in, can create worrying perceptions.
"What this situation elicits, you know, is also concerns about how the powers over senior members of administration could leak kind of deeper into the organization, or affect the behaviour of people deeper within the organization when they're doing things like hiring people," said Lyons.
All paperwork and processes were followed, says CAO
In a statement issued to media on Tuesday, Mensour wrote: "As part of the recruitment, all required paperwork and processes were followed, including completion of a family relationship form."
"This process is in place to ensure that there is never a direct reporting relationship between related parties."
Mensour said that Deneau had applied to two other positions with the city in the past but was not hired.
On Deneau's LinkedIn profile, she lists 27 years of experience working as a project manager with a company called Creative Realities, Inc. — an IT consulting firm based out of Kentucky.
As a project manager with parks, recreation and facilities, Deneau "will provide overall management for every aspect of the design, development and implementation of Recreation & Facilities project management initiatives," according to the job posting.
The posting said that Deneau will be expected to create reports that she may be required to present to senior management or city council.
Deneau's first day of work was May 20.
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