Two more City of Magnolia employees have lost their jobs after the city recently voted to do away with the positions in the midst of amending the budget.

Margaret Williamson, a 16-year veteran of the court department and Sandra Wilcox, a dispatcher in the police department, both departed the city recently after learning their jobs were being cut.

“It’s just totally unbelievable,” Williamson said in an interview with the Tribune. “I’ve worked there that long. It would be 16 years in June.”

Williamson, 62, said she believes the city chose her and Wilcox because, among other reasons, they were the oldest and closest to retirement age.

Though the city took no action following Williamson’s personnel evaluation at a March 9 council meeting, the former clerk said she was told to leave after refusing an offer of a part-time position with no benefits.

 “I know why I was chosen,” she said. “Because I make more than the other girls other than Karla (Bussey) and I receive vacation time and that costs them more money.”

She said she would only be able to receive $400 per month from Social Security if she retired.

“My only choice right now, because I have to be able to pay my bills, is I’m going to try and get unemployment and I’m also going to file an EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) complaint,” Williamson said. “I feel it’s a clear cut case of age discrimination because Sandra and I were the ones let go.”

Wilcox was unable to be reached for comment as of press time.

City Administrator Ryan Kelley said Williamson was chosen by head clerk Karla Bussey after direction from the council to cut one and a half people from the court department.

“Margie, being the nice person she was, came to the council meeting and asked for certain things and the council did not give those to her,” Kelley said.

He added that Williamson’s request for retirement was too high for the city.

“The amount of money that it would have been to pay for her retirement was cost-prohibited,” he said. “It was a lot.”

He said he discussed with Williamson the possibility of extending her insurance for awhile, but that she declined.

In other city council news:

At a March 9 meeting, the council voted to give a 30-day notice to its current IT company, GB Tech, and retain new IT services with Avatar Business Computer Consultants.

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