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HomeMy WebLinkAboutREsolution 7805 RESOLUTION 7805 CITY OF MOUNDS VIEW COUNTY OF RAMSEY STATE OF MINNESOTA RESOLUTION REVISING THE SECTION 4 OF THE CITY OF MOUNDS VIEW PERSONNEL MANUAL WHEREAS, the City Council has been systematically reviewing and updating the City's Personnel Manual since December of 2010; and, WHEREAS, the City Council reviewed Section 4 of the Personnel Manual entitled "Separations" at its Work Session on May 2, 2011 and again at its regular meeting on June 27, 2011; and, WHEREAS, at the June 27, 2011 meeting, the City Council requested additional feedback from the City Attorney, outlining several areas to be clarified; and, WHEREAS, the City Attorney has concluded his review and responded to the Council inquiries, submitting revisions as shown in the attached "Exhibit A". NOW,THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED,that the Mounds View City Council approves the proposed revisions to Section 4 of the Mounds View Personnel Manual, as shown in Exhibit A. Adopted this 25th day of July, 2011. J Flahe y, ayor ATTEST: James Ericson, City Administrator (seal) EXHIBIT "A" Section Four: Separations POLICY: SEPARATION OF EMPLOYMENT SECTION: 4.05 Separation of employment from the City can occur as a result of an employee's discharge, termination, retirement, layoff or death. The following policies identify each type of separation of employment as well as the procedures and payments to be made to the employee upon separation. A. DISCHARGE Employees who are involuntarily terminated will be paid through their termination date. In addition, employees will receive the value of any accrued vacation and sick leave, under the conditions of Section 4.35, Separation Procedures and Policies. Employees will be paid for wages earned within 24 hours of their termination if requested by the employee. The basis of a discharge shall not be predicated on the employee's race, sex, creed, religion, color, age, national origin, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, political affiliation, or status with regard to public assistance. New probationary employees may be terminated at any time for any reason that does not violate local, state or federal law with or without notice subject to the rights of veterans. For additional information regarding just cause and termination procedures, see Section 1.05 Discipline. B. LAYOFF The City Administrator, with approval of the City Council, may lay-off any employee whenever such action is deemed necessary by reason of shortage of work or funds, the elimination of a position, changes in organization, or other causes. The duties performed by any employee laid off may be reassigned to other employees who occupy positions in other classifications, except the duties performed by veterans covered by the Veterans Preference Act shall not in bad faith be transferred to non veterans. No r-eegular-empleyee shag be laid off wh4e another-provisional appoin ment i9F an appeh3hnept to tempeFaFy position exists in the same Glass in the sange Revised: July 25,2011 Order of Layoff It is recognized that reductions in force may not impact all departments or divisions to the same extent. Therefore, it may be necessary to transfer employees from one department or division to another. When all other factors are equal, longevity shall be the determining criterion for layoffs of employees in their respective classifications. Reductions in grade, i.e., demotions may be made in conjunction with layoffs. Past performance and longevity shall be considered in the event of a reduction in grade instead of a layoff. An employee being demoted must be qualified for the position in which the employee will be employed. No regular employee shall be laid off or reduced in grade while another provisional appointment or probationary appointment or an appointment to a temporary position exists in the same classification. Notice of Layoff The City Administrator shall give written notice of a layoff to a regular or probationary employee at least 14 calendar days before the effective date of the Layoff. A copy of the notice shall be provided to the Human Resource Representative. This policy only applies to regular part-time and full-time employees. Written notice of layoff may be given to provisional or temporary employees at any time prior to the effective date of layoff. C. RESIGNATION When an employee voluntarily resigns from employment with the City, he or she must submit a written notice at least two weeks in advance. Advance notice will assist the City in preparing to fill the position. Procedures The letter of resignation is submitted to the immediate Supervisor, and should include the following: • An indication that the resignation is voluntary. • The reason for leaving • The last day of actual work • The employee's signature Failure to Give Notice If an employee fails to submit a letter of resignation two weeks prior to their actual last day of work, it may result in loss of "good standing" and influence future employment opportunities with the City. In addition, it may impact the content of future reference reports on the individual. ' If an employee quits, but refuses to submit a letter of resignation, the Supervisor will need to complete a written report on the circumstances surrounding the matter. 2 Revised: July 25,2011 Unauthorized Absence Unauthorized absences from work for a period of three (3) consecutive work days may be considered as a resignation without proper notice. Checking Out The letter of resignation is given to the Human Resource Representative. See Section 4.35 for check-out procedures and further information. D. RETIREMENT Retirement is defined as separation from City employment when the employee is immediately eligible, based on age and/or service requirements, for an annuity from a Minnesota public pension plan such as Public Employees Retirement Association (PERA). Service can be all PERA service credits, or combined service with one or more of the other state covered funds. Employees who intend to retire are encouraged to obtain forms and benefit information from their retirement program administrator well in advance of their estimated retirement date. E. DEATH If termination of employment is caused by death of the employee, any wages earned but not paid and any unused vacation benefits will be paid to the estate of the deceased employee. All such payments are subject to ordinary State and Federal payroll deductions. In some instances the guidelines listed above may not be practicable. The City Administrator reserves the right to make exceptions to the above policy in unusual circumstances. POLICY: INSURANCE AND BENEFIT CONTINUATION SECTION: 4.10 The City is required under federal and state laws to offer employees the continuation of certain benefits when qualifying events have occurred, such as termination of employment, retirement, disability or death. This policy is intended to be a general summary of the applicable continuation laws but if this information conflicts with the applicable state or federal law, the law will supersede and be implemented by the City. A. HEALTH AND DENTAL INSURANCE State and federal laws allow for the continuation of health and dental insurance benefits for terminated or laid off employees of the City for up to 18 months at the former employee's expense. In the event an employee is separated from their employment with the City based on their total disability, health and dental insurance benefits will be available at the former employee's expense for an additional period of time as established by state and federal law. 3 Revised: July 25,2011 Pursuant to applicable state law, retired employees will be allowed to continue on the City's group health insurance plan and/or dental plan at their own expense as long as they are either (1) receiving disability benefits or retirement annuity benefits from a Minnesota public pension plan (such as PERA) other than a volunteer firefighter plan; or (2) have met the age and service requirements necessary to receive an annuity from a public pension plan, but have opted not to draw upon the funds at the time they retire. Employees who retire before age 65 must be allowed to stay in the group benefit plans at the same rate as the active employees until age 65. Retirees 65 and older will be offered an option to continue on some city-sponsored benefit plan but they do not have to be offered the same benefit plan as active employees and early retirees. The City will provide continued health insurance coverage pursuant to applicable Minnesota law for peace officers and firefighters disabled or killed in the line of duty and for dependants meeting the applicable eligibility criteria. GeYeFage The City will comply with all state and federal laws with regard to providing proper notice to former employees of their right to continued health and dental insurance coverage. B. LIFE INSURANCE Whenever a covered employee ceases employment with the City, insurance coverage will be discontinued on the first day of the month following the date of termination. An employee separated from their employment with the City may elect to continue life insurance for a period up to 18 months at the terminating employee's expense. C. FLEXIBLE BENEFITS Dependent Care Expenses Employees can submit claims for dependent care costs, which were incurred before leaving City employment, until December 31 of the plan year. Dependent care expenses incurred after the employee leaves the City are not eligible for reimbursement. Other Medical Costs Employees may continue to file reimbursement claim forms for "Other Medical Costs" after termination of employment or reduction in hours. Claim forms can be submitted through the end of the plan year on the Fridays, which are scheduled as Flex Claims Due days. 4 Revised: July 25,2011 OR Employees can continue to participate in the Flexible Benefits Plans on an after- tax basis for up to 18 months, in which case claims for expenses incurred after the termination/reduction in hours date may be submitted. Further information on continuing Flexible Benefits participation is provided when the employee leaves employment or reduces their hours below benefit earning levels. POLICY: SEPARATION PROCEDURES AND POLICIES SECTION: 4.35 A separated employee is someone who is leaving City employment as a result of discharge, retirement, layoff or resignation. The following procedures will assist the employee in a smooth transition when leaving the City of Mounds View. A. CHECK OUT The Supervisor/Department Head should notify Human Resources of the employee's separation of employment and forward the original letter of resignation to the Human Resources Department. In the event the termination is a discharge or layoff, a copy of the notice to the employee should be forwarded in place of the resignation letter. It is important to notify Finance well in advance of the last day of employment so arrangements may be made to prepare the final paycheck. The last day on the job is the last day the employee works a regularly scheduled shift. If the employee is eligible to receive vacation and/or compensatory accumulated time, that time will also be paid effective the last day. All outstanding expense reports or monetary advances shall also be resolved. B. EXIT INTERVIEW Exit interviews may be conducted by the City Administrator if deemed appropriate. C. RETURN OF CITY PROPERTY Employees leaving City employment are required to return all property and equipment issued by the City prior to his or her last day of employment. This equipment includes, but is not limited to, building keys, gas pump and vehicle keys, identification badges, and all such other property issued to employees during the course of their employment. Employees may be asked to sign a form indicating they have returned all such property. D. SEPARATION COMPENSATION Vacation 5 Revised: July 25,2011 An employee will be compensated for accrued vacation and compensatory time upon separation. Sick Leave Severance Severance pay shall be granted to employees who leave in good standing in the amount of fifty percent (50%) of unused sick leave to employees who have completed two years of service. Maximum accumulation of sick leave is 120 days. Additional banked sick leave hours will not be computed in severance pay, except as noted in Section 3.45. The spouse or family of an employee is eligible for severance benefits, if the following conditions are met: • Employee worked for the City for two years prior to the termination of employment; and; • The employee died while an employee of the City. Severance benefits will be paid at the employee's regular rate of pay on the last date as an employee. POLICY: UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION CLAIMS SECTION: 4.40 The policy on unemployment compensation claims is critical to the financial well-being of the City. This is because the City does not contribute to the unemployment compensation pool through the payment of premiums, but instead is charged directly for its share of any benefits paid. Therefore, any payment of claims is a direct cost to the affected department's budget. To avoid the payment of unemployment compensation to former employees who are ineligible, all notices of unemployment claims should be forwarded to the Finance Department. POLICY: REFERENCE CHECKS SECTION: 4.45 The City of Mounds View provides reference information on former employees within the scope of the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act. The laws regarding data privacy are carefully followed. If a former employee would like to authorize someone to have access to private data about them, he or she must complete an authorization form available from the Human Resources Representative. This form meets specific data practices requirements, including the informed consent provision, as outlined by State Law. For additional information on employee records and data privacy, see Section 1.15. 6 Revised: July 25,2011