Human Resources to Be Dept. of One

    A restructuring of East Hampton Town’s Human Resources Department, expected to be put to a vote at a town board meeting tonight, will eliminate the department head position held by Pat Breen, and, after the transfer of two department staffers, leave just one person in the department.

Ms. Breen, who has been the town personnel officer for 12 years, said she was told on March 28 of the move, and will be working at Town Hall until Friday. She will remain on call, as needed, with 48 hours’ notice, until May 1, to provide any help needed with the transition. After that, the Springs resident said Tuesday, her future is unknown. “I didn’t plan on leaving, but I have no choice,” she said.

“I don’t know how one person is going to do four people’s jobs,” she said of the restructuring, which has been in the works for some time as part of Town Supervisor Bill Wilkinson’s efforts to trim the town’s work force as well as costs.

Ms. Breen said she had been told that the elimination of her position was “not about performance” but instead just part of the effort to streamline government services.

Since taking office in 2012, Mr. Wilkinson’s administration has taken several similar steps, incorporating the harbor patrol into the Police Department, and creating a Division of Public Safety that encompasses the Ordinance Enforcement and Animal Control Departments.