FAIRHOPE, Alabama— The city has changed the way it will handle some employee disciplinary cases, bringing greater transparency to personnel decisions, according to some staff and officials.

At a Wednesday meeting last week, the personnel board heard advice from the city’s employment attorney, who indicated that appeals of termination and suspension decisions by some employees should occur in open meetings, not in executive sessions as done in the past.

Although a new rule to open the personnel process to the public was not formally adopted Wednesday, the board will use the new procedure this week when it hears the appeal of a water department employee’s suspension, according to staff.

A public notice about the Nov. 17 open meeting had not yet occurred by deadline.

Open meetings are required for cases involving the job performance of certain employees, said Paul Myrick, a private attorney who provides employment law advice to the city. Executive sessions are still permitted where the employee’s character and reputation are discussed, he said.

“One of the things we’ve learned in the last few months is that where an employee has filed an ethics form, hearings involving their cases must be in an open session,” said City Administrator Gregg Mims, who attended the Nov. 9 meeting, along with Mayor Tim Kant, Police Chief Bill Press, and Pandora Heathcoe, the city’s new human resources director.

The state Open Meetings Act requires public sessions in most situations. And though it allows executive sessions in some situations, it does not require closed meetings in any cases.