maintenance technician

custodian

library assistant

recreation coordinator

planner

Manatee County Government

County portrays progressive image and I think with new-ish Administrator and HR Director they genuinely want to be there, but they have a LOOOOOONNNNNGGGGG way to go to get there.  The benefit plan is great and a big selling point.  I was an out of state candidate and interview process was good. If I had been local I could have done more in-depth due diligence. But it is what it is. 
First, within my first 90 days the County changed their pay band structure. They actually lowered the band of the newly created position I was in. Not the take home pay but actual earning potential for the position. There was no discussion about it, just "accept it and we may address this with HR next year." Felt like a bait and switch. Wow. Strike one. 
Work Life Balance is a big thing they like to promote.  Nope, not in the department I was in.  Even for an exempt managerial position the expectation was well beyond 8-5. The culture (prepandemic) was flexibility was generally frowned upon an the expectation was a 45 hour+ work week, every week. You stay late for a meeting and need to come in late, you were made to feel like a pariah for even suggesting it. This was pre-pandemic mind you but still an ingrained way of thinking by a Boomer department director (several of the directors needed to just retire) and even other department's personnel would allude to lack of flexibility as being a con of employment with the county. Strike two. 
The pay was lower than all the surrounding counties for the position I was in BEFORE they lowered the pay band. That accompanied by nearly no flexibility (this was a biggie) and the bait and switch with the reduction of the pay band and we have a Strike three. 
I lasted a year. I hope with the pandemic that more of the old-time-dinosaur department directors learn a lesson on the need for flexibility. 

Great beach patrol lifeguards come and go from this agency. They are pulled in by all the bells and “whistles” a beach patrol could ask for. New towers, rescue vehicles, equipment and the list goes on! Manatee county loves spending money on having the best equipment and facilities and that’s wonderful for it’s community and visitors But management likes to claim credit of it’s rise to beach patrol glory and even wining beach patrol of the year multiple times by the Florida beach patrol chiefs association ( beach patrol chiefs from around Florida) the chief that runs this association (manatee county beach patrol chief) not sure if that’s a coincidence? On paper this agency sets the bar for budget and resources but can’t keep guards in the towers. Million dollar towers sit empty on the #1 beach in America due to poor management. They claim no one wants to work or be lifeguards but the beach patrol community is close and tight nit. The word around the beach is to stay away. Old out of  date water rescue techniques,  training staff on information that’s sub par beach patrol standards. If you have any type of experience, stay away from this agency, you’ll be reduced to nothing but a butt for a seat and take orders from lazy incompetent leaders that have to call the cheif for any decision making because they just don’t know what to do in emergencies. Very sad situation at this beach patrol station when it comes to professionalism, lazy guards are rewarded and professional career guards are reduced to a yearly evaluation of being a bare minimum employee due to egos of management with no accomplishments throughout their careers and bring strong beach patrol staff down and remind them they are just butts for seats. 

I will not comment on the entire county because I am only familiar with one department. Transit is poorly managed and poorly run to the detriment of the clients and the staff. They will work you whatever hours they feel like, regardless of your schedule. They will force you to work weekends IN ADDITION to your regular work week as they see fit. They will keep you out as late as they want, sometimes an hour or two PAST the official end of your workday. They do not fairly divide the workload. They will have their "pets" do less work and come back to the yard early while deliberately making others do forced overtime. There is definite, BLATANT favoritism. Their opinion of you PERSONALLY will make them treat you vindictively regardless of your job performance. They will go out of their way to find reasons to get rid of you if they don't like you. They will ignore positive comments about you given by the clients so as to not have to give you proper recognition for a job well done. Management does NOT want to hear any suggestions about bettering or streamlining the services. They take it as personal insult. They will even ignore their own rules and regulations if it serves them to. What applies to one client or employee does not necessarily apply to another. Day to day, you are unaware of which rules are at play and you can be dressed down for not guessing correctly. The pay is okay. It's more than minimum wage, but less than almost any other transportation department within the surrounding areas. The absolute saving grace of this department is the fantastic benefits.

I have worked for manatee county for a  a few years now and  this review is only about my section/department/group that I work for. Not all places and/or department in the county areas are as like the one that I work for. I have heard good things about public works, but for where I worked I feel there is more bad than good. It has been some what tense and you are always having too watch your back. Everyone is trying to blame each other and not work together and and do the right thing. The work place area, OSHA would have a field day with. I know of several events where people got hurt and out of work for months and they did nothing to fix the issue and then it happens again to the same person and another have the same thing happen to them at the work site and they don't address the issue until 2 years later. The work place environment  can be sometimes toxic and counter productive. I strongly feel that I have been over worked and asked to above beyond for pay that is nothing near what other places are paying for much less, mainly due to management and the "higher ups." My experience at where I am has not been to good, but I do not speak for other jobs in the county.

Exceptional employees who were dedicated, knowledgeable, and genuinely committed to serving the community were the exception rather than the rule.

This is a typical government environment with compensation limitations appearing to impact the overall caliber, motivation, and accountability of team members.  These struggles will likely continue to be exacerbated by leadership philosophies that reward longevity over merit and performance. That mindset fosters a culture centered on maintaining the status quo, avoiding accountability, and “weathering the storm” rather than addressing issues directly or driving meaningful improvement.

The workplace culture itself could also be challenging at times. Favoritism, political maneuvering, and personality-driven leadership decisions too often overshadowed merit, collaboration, and innovation. Nepotism and inflated egos were more prevalent than they should have been, creating frustration for employees who were focused on performance, transparency, and continuous improvement.


I helped develop and train employees on the new Propety Managemen Automated Work Order System. I also did the general office duties of an Administrative Assistant, time cards, and worked with the scanning of all the old Manatee County Project Files into the computer files. I worked with a great team of co-workers, which working with them and the general public was the most enjoyable part of the job. Trying to teach our new work order system to the employees was the hardest part of the job, as some employees were opposed to change. Early in my career with Manatee County, I worked in the County Probation/Supervised Release Department. I was a clerk with County Probation and clerk/assistant with Supervised Relese. This was a very interesting place of employment as I learned more of the Criminal Justice System through this work.

At some point in history, the HR department neglected training, and those that stuck it out long enough were promoted to management positions based on fundamental skills in lieu of actual management competency. The organization is wrought with misleadership and mismanagement, people have formed work silos that have an isolated work agenda, and a culture of mistrust has developed. Morale is low and people have adopted a minimalist attitude as any inkling of ambition is squashed. Good ideas are stifled, and talent has an exit strategy priority ... get out if you want to get ahead. The HR function tries to implement great programs; however, the front-line managers wreck all that with blatant mismanagement. Most at an administrative level have developed a tolerance for this state of mismanagement, in fact, calling it the 'new normal' that is better than DeSoto county.

Formulate, implement and monitor new policy and procedures for the day to day activities of a newly hired Property Acquisition Division. Manage and supervise staff engaged in the acquisition and disposition of real property.  Analyze and resolve complex issues and problems for all aspects of property acquisition including environmental, mitigation, eminent domain, easements, right of ways, vacations and disposal of surplus properties. Inventoried county owned property to identify surplus properties that no longer serve a purpose and facilitated a county wide review process for possible disposal to generate revenue for the county. Manage, in accordance of Florida Statutes, the release and occupation of County easements and disposal of real property through Vacations, Request for Proposal, Invitation to Negotiate, and Public Notices.

Review correspondence, conduct various reviews, compliance, provide staff supervision. Learned a lot about legislative issues and how to appropriately institute for local compliance. Also learned to delegate. Direct management has an open door policy, checking calendars for availability. Management seeks to understand and supports staff in their work. In general the workplace culture follows ACE (accountability, civility, ethics). Issues with translation of various documents when verbiage is vague. Working with a great team to serve the community. The beat part is working with community organizations to bring service to the community. Community events are fantastic fun.

My direct manager treats me well. But throughout the year, you feel like you are doing poorly or like you aren't an asset and they will never go to bat for you. But then your evaluation exceeds expectations across the board. in my position, there is absolutely no career ladder and no hope for advancement beyond the top of your current position and they won't train you for other things that you want to be trained for that could help you in future endeavors even if you ask. Instead, they cross train you for work that you will likely never use. But I did like the paid time off and the health benefits. It's a trade off for that stuff. The most enjoyable part of the job is my coworkers. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Maintenance technician 31 salaries reported	$27.06 per hour
Custodian 26 salaries reported	$19.32 per hour
Library assistant 11 salaries reported	$24.20 per hour
Recreation coordinator 5 salaries reported	$25.85 per hour
Planner 15 salaries reported	$30.89 per hour

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