The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has ruled that Schuylkill County was wrong when it restructured the tax assessment office.

In March the board voted 2-1 to take away tax claim director duties from the chief assessor, changing the salary from $68,852 to $53,732.36. The assistant director tax assessment/claim office is now the deputy chief assessor, lowering the salary from $47,057 to $39,727.18.

Commissioners George Halcovage and Barron “Boots” Hetherington voted in favor of the transfer. Commissioner Gary Hess voted no, saying it was a demotion.

Human Resources Director Heidi Zula said previously the motions are made “after a review by the Human Resources office and county administration and part of a plan to maximize efficiency and operations of these offices.”

Opponents argued that it was retaliation for a lawsuit against Halcovage.

The EEOC agreed.

In an Oct. 21 letter, Deputy District Director Dana R. Hutter said, “The evidence secured during the course of the investigation also indicates that the restructuring of the Office of Tax Assessment was based on pretextual reasons to retaliate against charging party and the class of females who were similarly harassed and engaged in the protected activity of filing EEOC charges.”

The EEOC letter says the county denies the allegations of retaliation, “asserting she did not suffer any material adverse employment actions, and that the restructuring of the Office of Tax Assessment was not retaliatory, but rather based on the needs of the respondent (Schuylkill County).”

Hutter writes, “there is reasonable cause to believe that respondent violated Title VII when it subjected charging party, and a class of females, to discrimination and retaliation by subjecting, and continuing to subject, them to sex-based harassment/sexual harassment and a hostile work environment. Further, I have determined that there is reasonable cause to believe respondent violated Title VII by subjecting charging party to retaliation via job reassignment, which resulted in charging party’s wage losses.”

Both parties are invited to decide in conciliation within 10 days. Failure to do so, or if the commission decides that conciliation has been unsuccessful, the deputy director will tell both of the court-enforcement alternatives available.

Neither party has been willing to comment on the status of conciliation efforts for a prior EEOC determination issued Sept. 30 that found the county should have known of Halcovage’s “harassing and unprofessional conduct before charging party’s formal complaint, but failed to take reasonable or timely action to prevent Halcovage from engaging in further harassment.”

Oct. 10 was the deadline.

Halcovage, who has been commissioner since 2012, has been sued in federal court by four women, all Schuylkill County employees, who have accused him of sexual harassment.

Their names are not identified in the lawsuit, but they are identified as Jane Doe 1, Jane Doe 2, Jane Doe 3 and Jane Doe 4. Other defendants are named in the suit.

United States District Judge Malachy E. Mannion reassigned the federal lawsuit to United States Magistrate Judge Martin C. Carlson, Harrisburg, on Oct. 13. All parties had agreed to a magistrate judge. Another telephone case management conference is set for Oct. 29 unless an in-person one is requested, a 1 p.m. Oct. 15 order from Carlson reads.