Loading...
ORD 2008-36 - Amend Personnel Rules Ch. 4, 10, 11 & Other Provisions 09-16-2008ORDINANCE 2008 -36 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF HUNTSVILLE, TEXAS, AMENDING THE PERSONNEL RULES OF THE CITY OF HUNTSVILLE BY AMENDING CHAPTERS 4, 10, and 11; AND MAKING OTHER PROVISIONS RELATED THERETO. WHEREAS The City of Huntsville Employee Policies and Procedures were originally adopted on September 20, 2005, by Ordinance No. 2005 -17; and WHEREAS Sections Four, Ten and Eleven of the Employee Policies and Procedures are recommended to be amended; and WHEREAS the Personnel Committee of the City Council has reviewed the recommended amendments as proposed by the City Manager and Director of Administrative Services; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT HEREBY ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF HUNTSVILLE, TEXAS, that: SECTION 1: Chapter 4, Section 4.02 (c), Vacation Leave of the Personnel Rules of the City of Huntsville, Texas, is hereby amended as set out on Exhibit A. SECTION 2: Chapter 10, Section 10.05, Conflict of Interest, Bribery of the Personnel Rules of the City of Huntsville, Texas is hereby amended as set out on Exhibit B. SECTION 3: Chapter 10, Section 10.09, Travel and Business Expense Reimbursement of the Personnel Rules of the City of Huntsville, Texas is hereby amended as set out on Exhibit C. SECTION 4: Chapter 1, Section 11.01, Retirement of the Personnel Rules of the City of Huntsville, Texas is hereby amended as set out on Exhibit D. SECTION 5: If any portion of this Ordinance shall, for any reason, be declared invalid by any court of competent jurisdiction, such invalidity shall not affect the remaining provisions hereof and the City Council determines that it would have adopted this Ordinance without the invalid provision. SECTION 6: This Ordinance shall take effective immediately from and after the date of its passage. PASSED AND APPROVED THIS 16TH DAY OF SEPTEMBER 2008. TEXAS J. Turner, Mayor Z: Steph ie Brim, City Secretary APPROVED AS TO FORM: Thomas A. Lee , Citf Attorney EXHIBIT A 4.02 (c) Vacation Leave Effective Date: 9 -20 -2005 Revision Date: 9 -16 -2008 C. Vacation Buvback Option: If an employee has taken at least ten (10) days of vacation time off during the previous fiscal year and so elects, he /she may buyback up to five (5) days of unused vacation time. The buyback option may be used to make a one time contribute to the employee's deferred compensation plan for that year. 1. Completed forms must be submitted to Human Resources for approval by the first Monday in November. 2. All requests for buyback will be reimbursed during the second payroll in November. EXHIBIT B 10.05 Conflict of Interest, Bribery Effective Date: 9 -20 -2005 Revision Date: 9 -16 -2008 Policy No employee of the City shall have any substantial interest in, directly or indirectly, or engage in any business transaction or professional activity, or incur any obligation of any nature which is in conflict with the proper discharge of his /her duties in the public interest. No employee of the City shall use his /her position to secure special privileges or exemptions, personally or for others. No employee of the City shall directly or indirectly receive or agree to receive any compensation, gift, reward or gratuity from any source except the City of Huntsville for any matter or proceeding connected with, or related to, the duties of such employee. However, honoraria or expenses paid for papers, talks, demonstrations or appearance made by employees on their own time shall not be deemed a violation of this section provided such activity is approved in advance and in writing by the department head. No employee may solicit or accept certain gifts or benefits given in exchange for a decision, opinion, recommendation, vote, or other exercise of official discretion. Employees may accept certain gifts or benefits that are unrelated to the employee's duties, including (1) an item with a value of less than $50 (excluding cash or a negotiable instrument); (2) a gift given by a person with whom the employee has a familial, personal, business, or professional relationship, independent of the employee's status or work; (3) any benefit that the employee is entitled to receive by law or for which the person has performed a duty independent of the person's status as a public servant. A city employee may accept an unsolicited gift or benefit of food, lodging, transportation, or entertainment, so long as the gift is not related to the employee's duties. A city employee may not solicit, accept, or agree to accept a gift or payment (known as an "honorarium ") in return for services that would not have been requested but for the employee's position or duties. EXHIBIT C 10.09 Travel and Business Expense Reimbursement Effective Date: 9 -20 -2005 Revision Date: 9 -16 -2008 12. Overtime Consideration - An employee attending a training session may and/or may not be eligible for overtime compensation as outlined below: a. Time spent attending training facilities and /or a school is not compensable if attendance at the facility is not required, even if the classes or training session in question may incidentally improve the employee's work performance or prepare the employee for advancement. This is true even if the City pays for all or part of the training. b. Whether travel time is counted as hours worked depends upon the kind of travel included. Out -of -town travel is covered by two sets of rules, depending upon whether the assignment is for one day or requires an overnight stay. (1) If an employee is given a one -day assignment in another City that does not require an overnight stay out of town, all the time spent traveling between cities is counted as "hours worked ". (2) If the employee's out of town assignment requires an overnight stay, time spent traveling to and from the other City is counted as hours worked only to the extent that is coincides with the employee's regular workday hours. Overtime consideration and travel payment follow Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) guidelines pursuant to Sections 785.37 — 785.41. FLSA guidelines are to be used in the interpretation of this section. EXHIBIT D 11.01 Retirement Effective Date: 9 -20 -2005 Revision Date: 9 -16 -2008 Policy Employees retiring from the City of Huntsville shall be afforded the maximum consideration relating to personal counseling well in advance of their proposed retirement date. Employees eligible to retire under the Texas Municipal Retirement System may continue participation in the City of Huntsville Medical and Dental Insurance programs. Purpose The purpose of this section is to apprise the retiring employee of all entitlements and benefits they may be eligible to receive. Insurance Group Levels Defined Platinum Level is defined as employees hired prior to October 1, 2008 Gold Level is defined as employees hired on or after October 1, 2008 Procedure Applicable To All Employees A. Where practical, Human Resources will apprise the retiring employee of available community counseling and activity- oriented programs for retirees. B. Retiring employees should be directed to Human Resources at least six (6) months prior to the expected date of retirement. In addition to the completion of necessary forms, Human Resources shall brief such employees relative to the benefits to be received. During the six (6) month time frame Human Resources shall make available to the employee such pertinent information regarding retirement as may be appropriate. C. Employees who wish to know the amount of their pension from the Texas Municipal Retirement System may contact Human Resources one (1) month prior to the expected date of retirement and receive an estimate of this benefit amount. D. The retiring employee, employee's spouse and /or dependent(s) must be covered under the city's health plan at the time of the employee's retirement from the City to be eligible for retiree health plan coverage. The City will not permit the addition of new dependents to the health plan after the employee's retirement. If a retired employee, or that retired employee's spouse and /or dependents discontinue health plan coverage for any reason, then the City will not permit the retired employee and /or spouse or dependent, to re- enroll in the City health plan. E. Retiring employees have a maximum of 31 days from the effective City of Huntsville retirement date to complete and submit retiree health insurance enrollment paperwork. F. The retired employee, spouse and /or dependent(s), must pay the health plan cost established by the City according to these policies in advance, by the 5`° of the month by bank draft. Payments more than one (1) month delinquent will result in retiree, spouse and/or dependents being dropped from the plan. A certified letter will be mailed to the retiree's address on file with the details of the policy termination; and required COBRA notifications. G. The scope of health plan coverage for retirees and their spouses or dependents will be subject to the same terms and conditions, and changes to terms and conditions, as those for regular employees and/or dependents. H. Retirees and their eligible dependent(s) upon becoming Medicare eligible MUST enroll in one of the Medicare Supplement plans available through the City of Huntsville or an alternate plan approved by the City of Huntsville. I. A retiree who returns to full -time employment must enroll in that employer's health plan, if one is offered, thus making the City of Huntsville coverage secondary. J. A retiree who retires through another employer, and has health plan coverage through that employer, and is eligible to remain on said coverage, may continue with the City of Huntsville health plan as secondary coverage. K. Retiring employees will be eligible for any earned and accumulated vacation, holiday and /or sick leave compensation benefits and any compensatory or overtime payments due. L. All benefits compensable at the time of retirement are to be paid at the employee's current rate of pay and paid in the same pay period in which the employee's last day of actual work occurred. M. Retiring employees will have payroll deductions from final checks of all pre- authorized requests. Payment and Cost Sharing Platinum Level Employees 1. Retiring Platinum Level employees may continue health plan coverage at the same cost that the City sets for regular employees, not to exceed 10% of the cost, or employee dependents if the retired employee retires with eighty or more points (age plus service). The City will continue to pay the retired employee's health plan cost as if the retired employee were an employee of the City while that retired employee remains a member of the City's health plan. 2. Retiring Platinum Level employees with less than 80 points (age plus service) may continue health plan coverage at the rate of one - hundred (100 %) percent of the City's actual cost plus a two (2 %) percent administrative fee - according to the policy above. Gold Level Employees I. Retiring Gold Level employees may continue health plan coverage if receiving the TMRS benefit annuity, normal or disability retirement as defined by T.M.R.S. and have at least five (5) years of continuous full time City of Huntsville service. 2. Retiring Gold Level employees who meet the eligibility requirements and have at least ten (10) years of continuous full time employment with the City of Huntsville will qualify for an 85% reduction in premium. 3. Gold Level employees that meet the above eligibility requirements will be offered the base plan unless they elect to purchase up to a higher level plan at an increased cost. Retiree Life Insurance A. Eligible retirees are provided with life insurance equal to one (1) times annual salary, with a maximum of $25,000 (based on a declining scale according to age) of life insurance at no cost to the retiree. Employees that remain covered under the health insurance plan, who retire under the early, normal, late or disability provisions, with at least ten (10) years of continuous full -time employment with the City of Huntsville are eligible. B. A written document indicating the value of the life insurance and effective date will be provided to each retiree during the out processing meeting.