Agenda Packets - 2000/02/14 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Mounds View City Council March 8, 1999 Regular Meeting Page 14 City Administrator Whiting advised that the only employees that currently have the option of utilizing accumulated sick leave for ongoing health insurance premium payments upon retirement are the Police Union and the Public Works Department employees. He stated in his understanding, all employees, upon separation, could cash in 50 percent of their accumulated sick leave up to 960 hours, for a severance check. City Administrator Whiting indicated the second reason for implementing this policy was that it serves the dual purpose of rewarding longevity and non-use of sick leave. He pointed out that without this policy, at some point, if employees achieve enough accumulated sick leave, there is no incentive for them not to utilize it. He commented that they have not had problems in this regard, however, he recognized that this could be a possibility, and the policy could assist in minimizing that. City Administrator Whiting stated the 65 percent leaves the matter somewhat open-ended, however, those funds would be paid down over time, and would provide the City a present value that they do not necessarily realize by making a large payment up front. He indicated that Council Member Thomason had made calculations in this regard. He pointed out that this would still be a judgement call, because you would not necessarily know what the final cost would be. He explained however, the City would be, by retaining the funds, earning interest on the funds, and so forth, and the employee would be paying for any increases in their premium out of this fund. City Administrator Whiting stated the third rationale for this policy was in regard to the Police contract. He explained that Police Officers were earning 15 days of sick leave per year, and he thought this was somewhat excessive, in that all other employees earn 12 days per year. He advised that when he proposed this as an alternative, it was contingent upon the Police Officers agreeing to 12 days of sick leave per year. He explained that they agreed to have their sick leave reduced to 13 days, instead of 12, in exchange for this policy, which was part of its purpose at that point. City Administrator Whiting stated the logic for not proceeding with the full 2700 hours of accumulated sick leave Chief Ramacher has accumulated, was because he has been earning 15 days of sick leave the entire time. He pointed out that Chief Ramacher has obviously been very good about not using his sick leave, however, it has also been accruing at a higher rate. He noted that as a salaried Department Head, the Police Chief has somewhat more discretion over his time than hourly employees do, therefore, he decided to proceed with an amount less than 2700 hours, which in his opinion, would be a reasonable policy to apply to Department Heads. He commented that this has not yet been tested in terms of the non-Union rank and file, and he would not venture an opinion in this regard, at this time, but rather, would discuss this with the City Council if the circumstance were to arise. At this time, Mayor Coughlin requested Council Member Stigney temporarily chair the meeting. Council Member Marty stated the staff report from Finance Director Bruce Kessel that was provided to the Council on February 16, indicates “Employees not covered by collective bargaining agreements have been granted 8 hours of sick leave per month, 12 days, per year, with a maximum accrual of 960 hours. The current policy for employees not covered by a collective bargaining agreement is that an employee leaving service of the City is entitled to 100