Thurston County resident Jon Pettit accused the Board of Thurston County Commissioners of “covering up for somebody on your own board” and called for the resignation of Commissioner Wayne Fournier from either his elected seat or as a firefighter, citing county policies he said prohibits him from doing both.
Pettit spoke in front of the commissioners during their Tuesday afternoon meeting and directed Fournier to make a decision between being a commissioner or a fireman.
“I think you guys have been covering up for somebody else here on your own board. Somebody’s working as a full-time fireman as their first position job and coming here and playing commissioner during the other time,” Pettit said. “That’s not allowed by your own policies. Integrity would say you’d resign your position here if you want to stay a fireman or you would resign your position as a fireman if you want to be a commissioner.”
But there's no rule against a commissioner having a second job, and Fournier has been a firefighter for going on three decades.
While Pettit did not cite a specific county policy during his comments to the board, Chapter 5.3 of the county’s personnel rules and policies, titled “Outside Employment or Other Outside Activity,” states that “Thurston County employees shall not engage in employment or other outside activity, such as volunteering or participating on an external board or committee, that in any way interferes with or compromises their ability to perform their work for the County.”
The county’s rules also note that an employee must provide written notice to the appointing authority prior to engaging in employment other than with the county. Additionally, it reads that if the outside activity results in a conflict of interest or the appearance of a conflict of interest; goods or services purchased by the county; work or activity related to outside employment during an employee’s hours of work at the county; the use of county equipment or supplies; the potential impact of the employee’s ability to perform the duties of the county job; or a compromise of the employee’s credibility and objectivity in performing the duties of the county job; the employment or activity will not be allowed.
Fournier, who did not respond to Pettit’s claims during the meeting, told The Chronicle after Tuesday’s session that there is not and has not been an issue with him serving as both a firefighter in Grays Harbor County and an elected official in Thurston County.
“I’ve been a public office holder for going on 15 years, and I’ve been a firefighter for going on 30 years. There’s no issue,” Fournier said. “I’m very open and I’m very honest about that. I put it on all of my campaign literature that I work as a firefighter. I was elected with full knowledge of what I do and how I do it. I think that actually is probably one of the things that people appreciate about me as a candidate.”
Pettit added that, through his conversations with county staff, he has seen the levels of respect for the commissioners from staff hit “a low point,” citing the idea that county commissioners are “somehow above and more important than all of these other employees out here with the county.”
He said the commissioners are employees just the same as the rest of the staff.
“As county employees, we get into a couple of issues. Are you holding yourselves accountable or each other accountable to the same level you would any other county employee?” Pettit said. “My answer to that is right now, I’m quite sure you’re not … It’s up to you guys to take the appropriate action to remove (Fournier) if he doesn’t want to end his position. The best way to lead other people is to follow the rules and guidelines you expect them to follow.”
During his time as a firefighter, Fournier served on the Tenino City Council from 2012 to 2015 before being elected as mayor of the city from 2015 to 2023. He is in his second term as a county commissioner as he defeated Rob Laymon in November 2024 to retain his District No. 4 seat.
