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HomeMy WebLinkAboutRes 10-08 Approving Amendments to the Personnel ManualTOWN OF WESTLAKE RESOLUTION NO. 10-08 APPROVING AMENDMENTS TO THE TOWN OF WESTLAKE PERSONNEL MANUAL AND EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PACKAGE. WHEREAS, the Town of Westlake recognizes that ongoing updates to the Town's Personnel Manual are necessary to ensure legal best practices; and, WHEREAS, the goal of the Town of Westlake is to provide policies and benefits that are competitive to surrounding cities; and, WHEREAS, the Town of Westlake desires is to provide employees with a Personnel Manual that reflects the goals and vision of the Town's leaders; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE TOWN COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF WESTLAKE: SECTION 1. That the Town of Westlake Town Council does hereby approve the proposed policy amendments and additions, attached as Exhibit "A", and its inclusion of these policies into the Town of Westlake Personnel Manual. SECTION 2. That this Resolution shall become effective upon the date of its passage. PASSED AND APPROVED ON THIS 22nd DAY OF MARCH 2010. ff Laura Wheat, Mayor 3-17NUJIGXCM)a�77255Y 9--f KeO Edw s, Town Secretary Thomas E. ryfUr, Town Manager APPROVED AS TO FORM: 124 L. anton own Attorney Resolution 10-08 Page 1 of 6 Exhibit “A” Town of Westlake Employee Personnel manual Amended Policies: 2.09 HIRING OF RELATIVES (NEPOTISM) No person related within the second degree of affinity or within the third degree by consanguinity to any elected officer of the Town, or to the Town Manager, shall be appointed any office, position, or clerkship, or other service of the Town. Relatives of all other persons employed by the Town of Westlake may not be hired if the relative is within the second degree of affinity or within the second degree of consanguinity. This policy applies to all Town departments, and may not be circumvented in cases where a relative would not be supervised by the existing Town employee. Exemptions to this policy may be made by the Town Manager for temporary, part-time positions. In the event that two employees enter into a marital relationship, one employee will be required to resign their employment with the Town within thirty (30) days. Present or future employees may not be promoted nor transferred to a position that would be in violation of this policy. For the purposes of this policy, a relative is defined to include: First degree affinity – spouse, spouse’s mother, father, brother, sister, son, daughter; Second degree affinity – spouse’s aunt, uncle, niece, nephew, grandmother, grandfather, granddaughter, grandson, first cousins; First degree of consanguinity – employee’s mother, father, daughter, son, sister, brother; Second degree of consanguinity – employee’s aunt, uncle, niece, nephew, grandmother, grandfather, granddaughter, grandson, first cousins; Third degree of consanguinity – employee’s great aunt, great uncle, great niece, great nephew, great grandmother, great grandfather, great granddaughter, great grandson, second cousins. 3.08 IMMIGRATION LAW COMPLIANCE The Town of Westlake is committed to employing only United States citizens and aliens who are authorized to work in the United States and who comply with the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. Each employee must properly complete, sign, and date the first section of Department of Homeland Security Form I-9 and provide the appropriate documentation required on section two of the form. The documentation provided will be used to verify employment eligibility through the federal government’s E-Verify system. Rehired employees must also complete the I-9 form if the previous form on file is more than three (3) years old, or if the employee is rehired after 90 days from their initial termination date. 4.13 performance Evaluations Performance evaluations permit the supervisor and the employee to discuss the job responsibilities, standards, performance requirements, and any existing or anticipated problems. Using a standardized performance evaluation instrument, all employees will be evaluated not less than once per year. Supervisors should conduct reviews on or around the employee’s anniversary date. Employees may be evaluated more frequently at the discretion of the Department Head. 6.05 HOLIDAYS The Town of Westlake will grant paid time off to regular full-time and full-time probationary/introductory employees for ten (10) designated holidays or shifts per annum according to the following criteria. Regular full-time and full-time probationary/introductory employees in pay status shall be compensated at their regular hourly rate and for the number of hours they would have worked had it not been a holiday. Regular full-time employees whose regular day off falls on a Town-designated holiday may receive pay for the holiday or, subject to Department Head approval, may elect to take a paid day off at a later time. Employees will receive holiday pay based on the number of hours they are scheduled to work on the day they take off. Each department is responsible for documenting saved holidays and when holidays are taken on the employee’s timesheet before submitting the timesheet to payroll for processing. Regular full-time and regular part-time employees who are scheduled to work on a Town- designated holiday will receive pay for the hours worked on the holiday plus holiday pay for the number of hours they are scheduled to work. Based on department operations and subject to Department Head approval, employees may elect to save their holiday and take a paid day off at a later time. Employees will receive pay for the saved holiday based on the number of hours they are scheduled to work on the day they take off. Each department is responsible for tracking saved holidays and when holidays are taken. To receive holiday pay, employees must be in pay status on their scheduled workday preceding and following the designated holiday. If a designated holiday falls during an eligible employee’s paid absence (i.e., vacation, sick leave), holiday pay shall take precedence and the leave period shall not be extended because of the holiday. DPS personnel are permitted to bank unused holiday time. The maximum threshold in an employee’s holiday bank is 528 hours, equivalent to two (2) year’s holiday time. Any unused st holiday time above this threshold will be forfeited on October 1 when new holiday time is credited to the employee’s bank. The Town shall observe ten (11) official holidays per year, which include the following: Thanksgiving Day in November Friday after Thanksgiving in November th Christmas Eve, December 24 th Christmas Day, December 25 st New Year’s Day, January 1 Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in January Good Friday in March/April Memorial Day in May th Independence Day, July 4 st Labor Day, 1 Monday of September Floating Holiday Personal Leave Day (floating holiday): Regular full-time, regular part-time, and probationary/introductory employees are eligible to use their Personal Leave Day upon commencing employment and must use it before their first anniversary date. Payment shall be made for the Personal Leave Day upon separation, retirement, or death of the employee if not taken during the year, providing that the employee has not been discharged as a result of criminal or civil misconduct involving Town property, personnel, or official position. If employment lasts less than six months, no payment will be made for the floating holiday and will be deducted from the employee’s last check if used. Note: Holidays that fall on Saturday shall normally be observed on the preceding Friday and holidays that fall on Sunday shall normally be observed on the following Monday. Firefighters working twenty-four (24) hour shifts do not observe the Town’s designated holidays. They are eligible for eleven (11) floating holidays to be scheduled and taken throughout the twelve (12) month period beginning October 1 of each year. If a firefighter’s employment begins mid-year, the number of available holidays will be adjusted to reflect the number of th upcoming holidays through September 30. Firefighters who have not used all of their accrued holiday hours by the last pay period in the fiscal year shall be allowed to accrue holiday hours in the holiday bank until the maximum ceiling of 528 hours is reached. Firefighters may be paid at their current rate of pay for up to three (3) unused holidays upon separation, retirement, or death of the employee, provided however that the employee has given the appropriate two (2) week notice when applicable and is not being discharged as a result of criminal or civil misconduct involving Town property, personnel, or official position. Payment eligibility is as follows: st  Separation on October 1 through the day before Thanksgiving results in no payment of unused holidays. rd  Separation on Thanksgiving Day through December 23 results in the payment of 1 unused holiday. thst  Separation on December 24 through December 31 results in the payment of 2 unused holidays. st  Separation on or after January 1 results in the payment of 3 unused holidays. 7.05 PAY INCREASES AND TITLE CHANGES It is the policy of the Town of Westlake to conduct annual salary surveys of surrounding cities. Salary adjustments may be made in order to remain competitive. In circumstances such as promotion or merit based adjustments separate from the normal merit based annual adjustment, the adjustment date will become the new anniversary date for future pay increases. This policy does not apply to one-time merit payments. Any changes to an employee’s salary or job title must be approved by the Town Manager. Policy Additions: 3.05 Identity Theft Policy (FACTA) The Town of Westlake is committed to keeping the information received from citizens and customers safe from identity theft. This policy is designed to protect people from identity theft and to address the requirements of state and federal law. The methods used to prevent identity theft include ensuring that the information given to open an account with the Town is valid to prevent someone from using another person’s identity to open an account, monitoring already existing accounts for unusual or suspicious activity and, finally, providing for notification of account holders in the unlikely event of unauthorized release of sensitive information. The purpose of this policy is to set out procedures and practices to assist Town personnel in the prevention of identity theft and to comply with federal and state law requirements. Eliminating identity theft involves prevention, monitoring and notification. The Town will take measures to prevent fraudulent accounts from being opened, will monitor existing accounts for suspicious activity, and will notify individuals if an unauthorized release of information occurs. According to the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (“FACTA”) a municipal utility is a creditor subject to the requirements of the law. FACTA provides for certain “Red Flags” in its “Red Flag Rule” to assist in identifying and preventing identity theft. The Town of Westlake Identity Theft Prevention Policy contains procedures to: 1. Identify relevant Red Flags for new and existing covered accounts and incorporate those Red Flags into the Program; 2. Detect Red Flags that have been incorporated into the Program; 3. Respond appropriately to any Red Flags that are detected to prevent and mitigate Identity Theft; and 4. Ensure the Program is updated periodically, to reflect changes in risks to customers or to the safety and soundness of the creditor from Identity Theft. The Texas Local Government Code, section 205.010, provides that certain requirements of the Business and Commerce Code apply to cities. Those requirements generally concern notification in the event of an unauthorized breach of sensitive personal information, and those standards are contained in the Town of Westlake Identity Theft Prevention Policy. In compliance with federal law, employees performing certain job duties will be required to complete a training course for the purpose of Red Flag identification and identity theft prevention. Employees will be provided this training at the Town’s expense and will be coordinated by the Human Resources Department. In addition, all Town employees will receive a complete copy of Town of Westlake Identity Theft Prevention Policy.