Employees, Colleagues Urge Commissioners Not to Remove HR Director Julie Guerra

At the April 27 meeting of the Nueces County Commissioners Court, a string of current and former county human-resources employees publicly urged the court to retain Human Resources Director Julie Guerra. Steven Byrne, who said he spoke on Ms. Guerra's behalf, described private conversations with five HR staffers and said the group considers Guerra a steady, experienced leader who helped the county avoid costly litigation.

"These five women are experienced, capable," Byrne said, urging the court to look beyond recent negative headlines involving other people. Dozens of coworkers followed, telling the court Ms. Guerra's management and the way she supported staff during the pandemic have been vital to county operations.

Why it matters: County HR runs recruiting, disciplinary processes and workers' compensation and is a key component of county operations. Multiple speakers said letting a permanent HR leader go at this moment would damage continuity and institutional knowledge.

Several employees recounted specific examples: Melinda Robertson and Paula Hernandez each spoke about Guerra's fairness in handling disciplinary and health-related issues; Jordy Schimmel, an attorney who served in the district attorney's office, characterized Guerra as indispensable during COVID-era employment and open-records matters.

Court response: Judge Barbara Canales thanked speakers and said the court would consider the comments alongside any agenda business. No formal action on Julie Guerra's employment was taken during the meeting; the public-comment period concluded with the judge noting that comments may inform later agenda items.

What's next: There was no motion or vote about Ms. Guerra on April 27; any personnel action would appear on a future agenda. The court did not commit to a specific next step in public session.