A two-time City Council candidate says city politics left him jobless when he didn't get a job, despite being told it was his.
By JON WILSON
Published January 11, 2004
ST. PETERSBURG - Dennis Homol Sr. twice experienced city politics as an unsuccessful candidate for City Council.
Now he claims that politics has cost him a job. He says the city dangled a job offer only to yank it away the day after he gave two weeks' notice at his old job. He has filed suit against the city in small claims court.
The situation left the 40-year-old maintenance worker unemployed with $846-per-month child support payments to pay.
Homol, who had sought a wastewater plant maintenance mechanic's job with the city, asks for $5,000 or fulfillment of the job offer.
"I'm not trying to get money out of the city. I'm trying to force them into a decision," said Homol, who was a city plant mechanic for about 10 years before resigning in 2001. He was named Employee of the Year in 1998.
He left the job after the 2001 City Council election for the District 1 seat, which he lost to Richard Kriseman. The parting was amicable, Homol said. He thought it better to resign to avoid conflicts should be decide again to seek city office.
He did so in 2003, again running against and losing to Kriseman while winning about 25 per cent of the vote.
In October he saw a newspaper advertisement for a plant mechanic's job and applied, getting an initial interview in November. The city job, said Homol, would have paid more than his job as an All Children's Hospital maintenance worker.
In December, he said he was called for a second interview with water resource supervisors. It was at that interview he was offered the job and accepted it, Homol said.
He said he called supervisors on Dec. 16 to make sure the offer still stood and was told it did.
On Dec. 17, he gave two weeks' notice to his bosses at All Children's. But the next day, a city supervisor called back and told him the job was on hold and might not be filled, Homol said.
About a week later, he called city supervisors again and was told the same thing.
Homol said that while he can't withdraw his resignation from All Children's, he will eventually get another job. Meanwhile, he is worried about making the child support payments to his ex-wife.
And he believes the city job offer withdrawal was a political payback.
"It ruffled feathers when I decided to run 21/2 years ago," Homol said.
Homol was an outspoken critic of city government during the 2001 and 2003 campaigns. During the 2003 campaign, he pulled no punches about opposing some of Mayor Rick Baker's policies.
Patricia Anderson is the city's water resources director, which puts her over the wastewater treatment plants where Homol applied to work.
Because a suit is pending, Anderson said she could say very little. But she disagreed that politics played a role in the situation.
Sometimes, she said, even during job recruiting or as a job is being filled, departmental organization can change.
"Dennis knew he was our top candidate," Anderson said. "I understand his perspective, I think. Internally, even when we're talking at a staff level, every offer we make is conditional based on lots of factors, one being on the salary we're going to pay.
"There was no decision made in Dennis's case."
Nor was there ever anything in writing about an offer or acceptance, Homol said.
Gary Cornwell, the city's employee relations director, said the water resources department is going through reorganization.
"My understanding is that they're not going to fill the job at all, and turn it into something else," Cornwell said.
Homol expects the case to go to mediation soon.
One of his goals, he said, is to show "something happened beyond my control" in case he falls behind on child support and has to answer to a judge.
"I don't want to hurt the city," Homol said. "I just want them to do what's right."
