Pepperell Select Board unanimously backs COA director in kitchen supervisor firing

PEPPERELL — August 28, 2013 — Pepperell selectmen unanimously backed the Council on Aging director's termination of a senior center kitchen supervisor at a special August 28 session. The board voted three to zero to concur with Council on Aging Director Marsha Zanaboni's August 15 dismissal of kitchen supervisor Vidal Roberts, who had been hired on March 4, 2013 — placing the termination within the six-month probationary window defined by the town's personnel bylaw, under which a department head may discharge an employee "at any time without notice or hearing" with the appointing authority's concurrence. A labor attorney retained by the town advised the board to limit its review to process rather than the merits of the decision. A vocal audience of senior center supporters challenged the procedure and pressed for written documentation of Roberts's performance deficiencies; the town administrator confirmed such documentation existed. Board members directed dissatisfied residents to the COA board and, if still unsatisfied, to the selectmen's appointment process for COA vacancies.