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Home My WebLink AboutItem #1 Personnel PolicyPersonnel Policy Updates April 2025 Topic Section Change Department Policies 1.15 Clarifies what policy manuals require approval by City Council Exempt PTO Policy 2.2.4 Allows the negotiation of PTO when the City initiates a job change or offer for exempt jobs Bereavement Pay 2.3 Increases and updates bereavement from a static benefit to a variable benefit Personal Benefits 2.11 Adds the existing 457(b) to the summary of benefits College Tuition Aid 2.14 Increases tuition aid based on inflation and bachelor vs masters programs Retirment 457(b) 2.19 Adds general policy regarding the 457(b) Retirement Plan Flexed Schedule Overtime 3.16 Adds existing practice to document approval by Council Service Anniversary Awards 3.17 Adds existing practice to document approval by Council Attendance 4.7 Clarifies policy for late arrivals and allows flexibility for operations Information Systems 4.11 Clarifies employee responsibilites for cell phones and other communication devices 1.15 Department -Specific Policies The Personnel Policy applies to all employees. Any City policy that applies to all employees requires approval by the City Council. However, departmental policies and operating procedures that do not apply to all City employees are deemed administrative and only require approval by the Department Head with written notice to the Mayor who may require revisions to the department -specific policies. Examples include the Public Works Safety Manual and Confined Space Policy, the Police Law Enforcement Manual and the Fire Operations Policy. (renumbering the remainder of section 1) 2.2.4 Exempt Employee PTO Policy PTO accumulates and applies for exempt employees in the same manner as it does for non-exempt employees with exception that for exempt employees, accrued PTO or accumulated sick pay must be taken only for absences of 4 consecutive hours or more in a single day. Exempt employees receive regular pay for any absence of less than 4 consecutive hours. In accordance with the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act, once an exempt employee exhausts their PTO and sick pay as applicable, no deduction will be made from the exempt employee's salary for any partial day absences. An exempt employee may be advanced in the PTO accrual schedule posted in section 2.2.1 of the Personnel Policy only if the City is offering a position to a newly hired exempt employee or if the City offers a new exempt position or revised exempt position to an existing employee. Any agreement to deviate from the PTO accrual schedule posted in section 2.2.1 of the Personnel Policy must be documented in writing and signed by the employee, the department head and the Mayor. 2.3 Bereavement Pay The City will provide up to 24 hours of paid leave of absence per incident for a death in the immediate family (spouse, parents, grandparents, children, grandchildren, brothers and sisters). Step relationships and in-law relationships for immediately family qualify. Additional leave may be granted from accrued PTO or Comp time. 2/28/24.10:31 AM RE: Bereavement Leave - Scott Gummersall - Outlook li Delete 8 Archive Q! Report v Reply Reply all Forward v Q Zoom 0 Read/ Unread Categorize v F RE: Bereavement Leave BH Buchanan, Heather Reply <E-� Reply all t—> Forward (0 o0 To: Alissa Clark <alissa.clark@bonnercountyid.gov>; April Forrest <aforrest@cityofammon.us>; Carol Anderson <canderson@burle, wed 2/28/2024 10:11 AM Here is our most recent policy, I am very happy with this update. Benefit eligible employees are eligible for bereavement leave for members of their family as defined below. A spouse's parent, sibling, grandparent, niece, nephew, aunt, and uncle are also applicable to this policy. Employees may request additional time from their department using their own leave accruals. • 40 -hour week employees are eligible for the hours per the chart below. • 30 -hour week employees are eligible for 75% of the listed hours. • 20 -hour week emr)lovees are eligible for 50% of the listed hours. IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER HOURS Spouse 120 intermittent hours Domestic Partner covered on City Medical Plan 120 intermittent hours Child: biological, adopted, step, foster, legal ward 80 consecutive hours Parent/Step Parent 40 consecutive hours Sibling/StepSibling/Step Sibling 40 consecutive hours Grand parent/Great Grand parent 24 consecutive hours Grandchild: biological, adopted, foster, step 24 consecutive hours Great Grandchild: biolo ical, adopted, foster, step 24 consecutive hours Uncle/Aunt 24 consecutive hours Nephew/Niece 24 consecutive hours Beginning date of leave must be within 2 weeks of date of knowledge of death. Exceptions require approval from the Mayor's office. Intermittent leave for the loss of a spouse or domestic partner covered on the City sponsored medical plan will be available for use for 6 months from the beginning date of the leave. Documentation of the death of the family member may be required upon request, within 30 days of the first day of the leave. If proof of documentation is not submitted the employee's used bereavement leave time will be applied to their sick leave accruals, then vacation accruals if necessary. Examples of acceptable documentation include "a death certificate, a published obituary, or written verification of death, burial, or memorial services from a mortuary, funeral home, burial society, crematorium, religious institution, or governmental agency." Heather Buchanan, MPA, IPMA-SCP, CLRP Human Resources Director about:blank 1/1 2.3 BEREAVEMENT PAY The City will provide paid leave as defined below for a death in the immediate family of an employee. Immediate family is defined in the chart below. Step relationships and in-law relationships for immediately family qualify. Employees should use only the bereavement hours needed. However, if more than the bereavement hours are needed, additional leave may be granted from other accrued leave time. Bereavement leave may be continuous or used intermittently subject to the limitations described below. • Employees regularly scheduled for 30 or more hours per week are eligible for the hours listed in the chart below. • Employees regularly scheduled for 20 or more hours per week, but less than 30 hours are eligible for 75% of the listed hours. • Employees regularly scheduled for less than 20 hours week employees are eligible for 50% of the listed hours. Immediate Family Member Bereavement Spouse 80 hours Domestic Partner 80 hours Child -biological, adopted, foster, legalward 80 hours Parent 40 hours Sibling 40 hours Grand Parent) Great Grand Parent 24 hours Grandchild ) Great Grandchild ; biological, adopted 24 hours Uncle/ Aunt 24 hours Nephew) Niece 24 hours The beginning date of bereavement leave must be within two weeks of the date of the employee's knowledge of the death. Bereavement leave for the loss of a spouse, domestic partner, or child will be available for use up to 60 days from the date of knowledge of the death. In all other cases, bereavement leave must be used within 30 days of the date of knowledge of the death. Documentation of the death may be required upon request by the City. If proof of documentation is not submitted, the used bereavement time will be applied to paid time off, vacation and/or compensatory time. Examples of acceptable documentation include a death certificate, or written verification of death, from a mortuary, funeral home, burial society, crematorium, religious institution, or governmental agency. 2.11 Personal Benefits The City recognizes the personal concern that employees may have for themselves and their dependents regarding medical, dental and vision expenses, disability income, life insurance, and behavioral counseling. While each of these areas may not be included in the available benefits, it is the policy of the City to provide eligible employees with a benefits package within the budgetary limitations approved by the City Council. The City periodically reviews benefit programs to provide reasonable benefits at a reasonable cost to both employees and the City. With approval of the City Council, the Mayor may continue, change or eliminate insurance or other benefits in accordance with existing laws. Approved benefits include: • Health Plan — Single plan offered with plan design eligible for a Health Savings Account • Health Savings Account - Annual contribution from the City of $1,500 per eligible employee paid bi-weekly for time employed. A portion of the City contribution to the HSA may be contingent upon the employee's participation in a wellness program. • Tele -medicine • Dental Plan • Vision Plan • Life Insurance • Long Term Disability Plan •_Employee Assistance Program • PERSI Retirement Plans (See Section 2.12) • 457(b) Retirement Savings Plan (See Section 2.19) Additional benefits may be available for purchase. Examples are voluntary life insurance, extended long term disability, and various AFLAC plans. Eligible to apply for benefits are full-time regular employees, the Mayor, City Council Members and part- time exempt salaried employees working at least 15 hours per week. Coverage is also offered to spouses and eligible dependents of these groups. Hourly part-time employees are not eligible for benefits unless regularly scheduled for 30 or more hours per week or as authorized in the approved plan for each benefit. Enrollment or changes in health, dental, vision, life insurance or long-term disability benefits may only be made at hire, during annual open enrollment or immediately subsequent teafter a qualifying life event as defined by the Internal Revenue Service. Benefits eligibility may include a waiting period before eligibility begins. Please contact Human Resources for details regarding insurance and other benefits. Employees should keep benefit information such as addresses, dependents and beneficiaries current. Contact Human Resources with any changes that could impact your available benefits. r " Formatted: Indent: Left: 0.5", No bullets or numbering 2.14 College Courses 2.14.1.1 Eligibility All full-time regular benefits -eligible employees who have been employed with the City of Chubbuck for twelve (12) consecutive months prior to the commencement of a work relateawork-related college course are eligible for college course education benefits. However, approval may be denied to an employee based on written discipline within the prior 12 months and all college course education benefits are subject to the availability of limited financial resources. Work related means that the college degree to which the course applies is applicable to the operations of the City as determined by the department head. Part-time employees are not eligible for college course education benefits. Courses that are required for a werk relatedwork-related Associate, BaGholnr or Master bachelor's or master's degree are eligible under the education program. Courses must be offered at an institution accredited by a body recognized by the Council on Higher Education Accreditation. Short-term training programs, seminars, workshops, conferences, conventions, and certification programs are not eligible for education benefits but may be paid by the City as described in Training section of the Personnel Policy. 2. 2.14.1.2 Approval All requests for education benefits are subject to the availability of financial resources and must be approved by the department head except that courses taken by a department head must be approved by the Mayor. Available financial resources is defined as funds available in the budget of the approving department. To facilitate budget preparation, employees must should submit applications before July 1 +n erder Leto be considered for college education benefits in the following fiscal year (October through September). 3. 2.14.1.3 Benefits College education benefits are payable upon credible evidence of satisfactory completion of the course, with the approval of the department head. Benefits are only payable on a reimbursement basis and are subject to the availability of financial resources. Full-time regular employees are eligible for a maximum of 1$-X=4,000 per fiscal year (October through September) toward the cost of tuition and required textbooks for eligible undergraduate courses and $5,000 per fiscal year for graduate courses. A per employee lifetime maximum of $12,000 16 000 -_applies. These amounts may he adjusted onn,,,ll., h„ the Mayor hosed on the finanni-al nnncfroinfc of the (`ifi, Employees may supplement education benefits provided by the City with other funding sources such as Veteran's benefits or scholarships; however, only if there is no personal financial gain. Additional funding sources must be disclosed when requesting education benefits. 2.19 Retirement Savings Plan 457(b) All eligible City employees may elect to participate in a 457(b) -retirement savings plan. Plan selection is recommended by Human Resources in consultation with the City Treasurer and must be approved by the Mayor and City Council. Employees contribute through payroll deduction. No matching contribution is made by the City. Eligibility, contribution options, withdrawals, investment performance and other details are part of the plan which is managed by the vendor and are dependent on the selected program. Employees should keep their beneficiaries and mailing address current. For questions regarding participation in the plan, please contact Human Resources. Contact Payroll in the Treasury Department for questions regarding payroll deductions. For details, Human Resources will refer you to a 457(b) -plan representative. Contact Payroll in the Treasury Department for questions regarding payroll deductions. 3.16 Flexed Schedule Overtime This policy only applies to Public Works employees. The purpose of this policy is to provide overtime compensation at 1.5 times the regular rate of pay when the employee's regular Monday through Friday schedule is temporarily changed to include a weekend day. The temporary change in schedule must be approved by the employee's supervisor as evidenced by approval of the overtime in the timekeeping system. The most common occurrence of this is the required change in the M -F schedule for sanitation drivers for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years Day. Other temporary schedule changes for Public Works employees may also apply. 3.17 Service Anniversary Awards The City may maintain a service anniversary award program to recognize the longevity of City employees. Awards are paid to employees at five-year intervals from their hire date, according to the following schedule. Payment of service anniversary awards is dependent upon available financial resources each budget year as determined by each Department Head in consultation with Human Resources and the Mayor. Service Anniversary Awards 5 Years $250 10 Years $500 15 Years $750 20+ Years $1,000 Awards are increased to cover taxes so that the employee actually receives the amount on the schedule. Department heads should make sure that awards are personally delivered to the employee. Department Heads and are also encouraged to take other actions to maximize recognition of each employee's service to the City. The program is administered by each Department Head, Human Resources, and the Treasury Department in consultation with the Mayor. 4.7 ATTENDANCE The City depends upon its employees to deliver services to the r^s�s up blic, so it is important that employees attend work as scheduled. Dependability, attendance, punctuality, and a commitment to do the job right are essential at all times. As such, employees are expected to be prompt and regular in attendance for defined work schedules or other required employer functions. The City provides employees with paid time off, compensatory time off and leave of absence time to address absences. Unpaid time off is not permitted unless protected by law or an exception is approved in advance by the department head. Patterns of unpaid time off not approved in advance or otherwise protected by law may result in corrective action. Employees must obtain supervisory approval in advance for any absence or deviation from their established schedules. This applies to all absences including arriving late to work. r ^^ +ham++horo w;'„ be 'Rfrequent Gesasiens whenthis isRet pess+ble—Any tome e#absence including late arrival, use of PTO, vacation, comp time or other paid leave must be rc^,d-requested by the employee as far in advance as practicable, but no later than the time the impacted shift begins. Absences of three or more days should be requested at least one week in advance. Department Heads may flex advance notice requirements as needed for operations . Fmn-.r use of PTO or Gornp time, employees are expeGted to request the time off at least A-Ine I.Ave-ek ad%ee^f +tee aQse-The request for an absence including late arrival may be oral or written including lyvla e-mail, text, or the timekeeping software. The City recognizes that there will be infrequent occasions when advance notice of absences or schedule deviations is not possible. However, short notice of PTO or ^^,,,^ time useabsences including late arrival, ^r ^^+,„o after the faGt must be infrequent. Patterns of short notice of absences including late arrival may result in corrective action. unpa Not reporting to work and not calling to report the ahe^^^absence, is a no-call/no-show and is a serious matter. The first instance of a no call/no show may result in a written warning. The second separate offense may result in termination of employment with no additional corrective steps. A no call/no show lasting three days may be considered job abandonment and may be deemed an employee's voluntary resignation of employment. Extenuating circumstances will be considered. Absences due to illness of 40 or more hours in a week must be supported by a written statement from a medical provider. 4.11 INFORMATION SYSTEMS Formatted: Font color: Red The first line of defense in data security is eaGh iRdividaalevery person who uses City information I Formatted: Font color: Red systems. City information systems included any Sity-system that creates, maintains, stores, accesses, processes_-Grreceives or transmits information for City business. This includes but is not limited to Citv owned. leased. or rented computers. network systems. e-mail systems. radios. telephones tablets, watches, or other such devices. City information systems also include personally owned communication devices if business use of such devices is authorized by the City. City employees are responsible for the security of all data which they create or that may come to them City information systems'n _ vhatPvPr forrnat.-It is the responsibility of employees to see thatuse information systems a•e�croe.l^d in an efficient, ethical and lawful manner. Any information created or loaded on Cit v information the -systems becomes City property and is subject to document retention and protection in the same manner as any other City information. All software programs and documentation generated by or provided to employees, consultants, or contractors for the benefit of the City are the property of the City unless severed addressed otherwise by a contractual agreement. 2 City GOMP ,+e.S 'n+eMe+ e^^ess ^nd a ^•^'information systems are provided solely for prirnarily fer-work--related activities. However, incidental personal use reay-beis permitted on a limited basis within the guidelines established by this policy provided that such use does not result in a cost to the City and erdoes not C1g� g .f;santly interfere with City business operations, the availability of resources for business use or the employee's job performance., Formatted 3. The City may provide City -owned communication devices such as telephones and tablets to employees who have a valid business need for such devices as determined by the employee's direct supervisor and as approved by the department head. Eligibility for a City -owned communication device is based on benefit to the City as determined by the department head, rather than for the convenience of the employee. 4. Employees eligible for a City -owned cellular telephone may, as approved by the department head: a. Decline the City -owned phone and instead use their own personal phone for City business (not all departments allow use of personally owned devices); or b. Decide to use only use the City -owned phone. Formatted: Space After: Opt Formatted 5. Employees who choose to and are authorized to do so by the department head, may use their personal cellular phones for City business but do so entirely at their own expense with no reimbursement from the City. However, the department head may pay a stipend to employees who are duly authorized to use a personally owned cellular phone for City business. — Formatted: Font: (Default) Arial, 10 pt 6. The City reserves the right to access data on any personal communication devices used to conduct City business. There is no expectation of privacy in any information or activity conducted, sent, performed, or viewed on or with any communication device used for City business. This applies to both personally owned and City owned devices. 7. City information systems, including but not limited to laptops, cellular phones and tablets, must be cared for with due diligence by the employee and kept in good working order. The employee must adhere to all City and department requirements for use, maintenance, security and storage of the devices. 8. The use of communication devices while driving is prohibited as it can adversely affect safety. Safety must come before all other concerns. Reading or sending text messages while driving is strictly prohibited. However, employees may use hands-free communication devices while driving. In all other cases, the employee is expected to pull off to the side of the road and safely stop the vehicle before placing or accepting a call, text or other communication. Exceptions for the use of communication devices while driving applies to employees operating emergency vehicles but these employees are expected to restrict the use of these devices to matters of an urgent nature and should, where practicable, safely park the vehicle to use communication devices. 9. City -owned information systems are the property of the City. Employees must return all City - owned information systems immediately upon request by the City or upon separation from City employment. Formatted: Font color: Red Formatted: Font color: Red