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The Cowan City Council took steps at its July 11 meeting to mitigate turnover in its Street and Sanitation Department by hiring three new employees.

Hired were August Gregory as a full-time certified driver and Garrett Dayett and Brandon Bawley as fill-time laborers.

New Mayor Richard Hunt said the department has six employees. However, dealing with turnover has been difficult.

He said 14 employees have circulated through the department recently and have moved on to other jobs.

Hunt said drivers with certified licenses are in demand, and those the city has hired have tended to move on to other jobs with higher pay scales.

“We’ve gone through a lot of them,” he said, referring to the turnover rate.

Hunt said he hopes the pattern will change with Gregory, Dayett and Bawley.

“These guys seem like really good workers,” he said. “This board wants to do what the people want from their city government, and we hope we can meet their expectations.”