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HomeMy WebLinkAbout8495RESOLUTION NO. 8495 A RESOLUTION APPROVING EMPLOYEE GUIDELINES FOR THE PUEBLO REGIONAL BUILDING DEPARTMENT WHEREAS, the Intergovernmental Agreement between the City of Pueblo and the County of Pueblo creating the Pueblo Regional Building Department requires the City Council and the Board of County Commissioners to approve personnel policies before they can be implemented by the Pueblo Regional Building Commission, and WHEREAS, the Pueblo Regional Building Commission has modified and adopted Personnel Guidelines of the Pueblo Regional Building Department ( "Personnel Guidelines "), copies of which have been previously distributed to the City Council, and are on file with the Pueblo Regional Building Department, and WHEREAS, the Pueblo Regional Building Commission has requested the City Council and Board of County Commissioners to approve the Personnel Guidelines. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF PUEBLO, that: The Personnel Guidelines of the Pueblo Regional Building Department, copies of which have previously been distributed to the City Council and are on file with the Pueblo Regional Building Department are hereby approved with such effective date as the Pueblo Regional Building Commission shall determine. ATTEST: City Cler INTRODUCED: August 24, 1998 By Corinne Koehler Councilperson APPROVED: &x4 1� President o e C' Council on fl m, ��n REGIONAL BUILDING DEPARTMENT 316 W. 15th Street - Pueblo, Colorado 81003 • (719) 543 -0002 July 31, 1998 Cathy Garcia, President Kathy Farley, Chairperson Pueblo City Council Board of County Commissioners One City Hall Place Pueblo County Courthouse Pueblo, CO 81003 Pueblo, CO 81003 RE: Updated Employee Guidelines for the Pueblo Regional Building Department Dear Cathy and Kathy: The Pueblo Regional Building Commission approved the attached Employee Guidelines for the Pueblo Regional Building Department. The present personnel policy is out of date and needs to be expanded to include Family Medical Leave Act provisions and other changes in the law. The Intergovernmental Agreement between the City and the County, which created the Building Department in 1981, requires that the City Council and Board of Commissioners approve personnel policies before they can be implemented by the Building Commission. It is therefore requested that your respective bodies review and approve the attached updated employee guidelines so they can be implemented by the Building Commission, if possible, on September 1, 1998. Please let Clint Tawse, Rob Ragulsky, Linda Roof, or me know if you have any questions concerning these Employee Guidelines. Thank you for your time and consideration. Enclosure pc: Lew Quigley w /enc. Mark Carmel w /enc. Tom Jagger w /enc. Terry Hart w /enc. Clint Tawse w/o enc. Yours very truly, G� Jut Reimar von Kalben, Chairperson Pueblo Regional Building Commission EMPLOYEE GUIDELINES OF THE PUEBLO REGIONAL BUILDING DEPARTMENT EFFECTIVE 1998 E- A PERSONNEL GUIDELINES OF THE PUEBLO REGIONAL BUILDING DEPARTMENT MISSION STATEMENT The Pueblo Regional Building Department is dedicated to promoting and preserving building safety through professional and courteous service. The purpose of the Department is to educate the public, enforce minimum building code standards through team work and personal pride, and to enhance the relationship with the public and building community. SECTION 1. INTRODUCTION Legislation: By legislative action of the City Council of the City of Pueblo (City) and the Board of County Commissioners of Pueblo County (County) , the Pueblo Regional Building Department (Department) was established as a separate legal entity under the Colorado Intergovernmental Relationships Act, Section 29- 1 -201, Colorado Revised Statutes. Purpose: The Department administers and enforces the building, construction, and contractors' licensing and administrative codes of the City and the County. The Pueblo Regional Building Commission (Commission) is appointed by the City and County and is responsible for providing the general supervision and administration of the Department and establishing Department guidelines. The Commission by the budgetary process regulates the number of positions, salary schedule, functions and duties of the employees. The Building Official of the Dep i .a pointed by and serves at t11e_ scretion of th comet; aai on -._"" �'h°e Building Official is su 7ect to the general supervision of the Commission and acts as the chief executive and administrative officer of the Department. The Building Official supervises all Department employees. In addition to enforcing the building and licensing codes, the Department is also established to protect the public and assist architects, engineers, contractors and other persons requiring such assistance in issuing building permits and securing compliance with applicable building and life safety codes. The purpose of these guidelines is to establish and maintain a uniform system to manage personnel matters, to comply with applicable employment laws and to provide employment guidelines to maximize the efficiency of the employees of the Department. It is also intended by adopting and periodically amending these guidelines that such serve as a guide for Department employees in their work activities and relationships. Intent: These guidelines are subject to change as provided in City- County Agreement which created the Department. Therefore, these guidelines are neither intended nor to be construed as a contract between the Department and any of its employees. These guidelines describe the general philosophy of the Commission on personnel guidelines and procedures. The following provisions are meant to be flexible guidelines, and not rigid rules to be applied to every employee in each situation that may arise. 1 ( I' SECTION 2. WORK SCHEDULE Work Week: The standard work week will consist of 40 hours per week. The work week shall begin at 7:30 a.m. on Monday and end at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. Alternate Work Week: The Building Official may require alternate work days or work times provided the employee is within a forty (40) hour work week. Emergencies: The Building Official may adjust the work schedule for an unexpected occurrence fulfilling a statutorily required duty which demands immediate actions. An example of this is a building fire. Pay Periods: The regular pay periods for the Department will be the 15th day and the last day of each month. If the 15th or the last day of the month is on a Saturday, paychecks will be issued on the preceding Friday. If the 15th or the last day of the month is on a Sunday or a holiday Monday, paychecks will be issued on the following Tuesday. SECTION 3. OVERTIME All employees will be paid a monthly salary based on a forty hour work week. Exempt employees, that is, executive, administrative and professional personnel, are not eligible for overtime. All non - exempt employees are entitled to earn overtime and will receive it when they work more than forty hours in a work week. Overtime will be compensated at one and one half times an employee's regular rate of pay for time worked in excess of forty hours or compensatory time may be taken. Except in case of emergency, all overtime will be scheduled by the Building Official or the employee's supervisor. Choice of Overtime Pay or Compensatory Time: The Building Official may within the limits of this policy and the Department's budget, determine the manner of payment for overtime worked. Overtime payment decisions will be guided by the requirements of applicable Federal Law. Requirement for Approval: The Building Official is authorized to require reasonable overtime work from all employees in an emergency situation or if there is an unscheduled event. All overtime, regardless of the manner of payment (cash at 1 1/2 times the regular rate of pay or compensatory time off at 1 1/2 times the overtime hours) must be approved in advance by the Building Official or his /her authorized representative. The employee's supervisor must approve, in writing, all overtime worked on a daily timekeeping form. Payment of Compensatory Time: Compensatory time shall be scheduled with the employee's supervisor. It must be taken within two months after it is earned or it will be paid in cash. If the employee leaves the Department for any reason with unused compensatory time, the employee will be paid in cash for such time. Limits of Compensatory Time Off: Compensatory time for all employees must not exceed 168 compensatory hours per employee per year. All overtime worked after the accumulation of 168 compensatory hours by a non - exempt employee must be paid for iir� - cash. One hundred sixty -eight (168) hours of compensatory time represents 112 hours of actual time worked. �A SECTION 4. DISCRIMINATION /AFFIRMATIVE ACTION Equal Opportunity: These guidelines are to promote equal opportunity to all persons on the basis of individual merit. The policy of the Department is to assure equal opportunity in employment, promotion and provision of services. No Discrimination: Discrimination will not be tolerated on the basis of race, creed, national origin, ancestry, sex, age, disability or religion. Sexual Harassment: Unwelcome sexual advances, request for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature will constitute sexual harassment when (1) submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual's employment, (2) submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment decisions affecting such individual, or (3) such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an employee's work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment. Any employee who violates this policy is subject to disciplinary action, up to and including discharge. Sexual Harassment Complaint Procedures: Any employee who feels he or she is being subjected to sexual harassment should immediately contact his or her supervisor. If the supervisor is the harasser, the employee should immediately contact the Building Official. Upon notification of such harassment, the supervisor shall investigate and report his or her findings to the Building Official. The Building Official shall take action deemed necessary to prevent any further harassment, and shall report his or her findings and course of action to the Commission. If the employee is dissatisfied with the action of the Building Official, the employee may use the appeal process in Section it to have the Commission review the action of the Building Official. SECTION 5. CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM The Building Official will annually prepare in conjunction with the annual budget, a classification system for all positions in the Department. The classification system should be based on position evaluation methods which provide for occupational groupings of classes and alignment of classes and salaries. Positions having comparable duties and responsibilities are grouped into classes subject to the same descriptive title. Classes of positions are grouped and related to occupational levels of work which can be clearly distinguished and logically related to a compensation system. Each job description may include the following: the nature of work, examples of work, knowledge, skills and abilities, minimum preparation for work, including education and experience, and necessary special requirements that may be required by law or custom. SECTION- COMPENSATION The Building Official will recommend the salary for each class of positions at 3 im an established pay grade which includes the salary rates attached for each pay grade. The salary rates for the salary schedule may include five incremental steps. The increment between steps will be approximately three percent. The Building Official may periodically survey private and other public employment in Pueblo County, or the Building Official may use a survey of a reputable employer association to determine the prevailing salary rate and fringe benefits for positions comparable to those in the Department. When the pay grade assigned to a class is changed upon implementation of a salary survey, the pay of all employees in the class may be comparably changed to the new grade. Persons initially appointed to a position in the Department are normally hired at the entrance salary for that class. When there are recruiting difficulties or other unusual conditions, the Building Official may authorize appointment at a step higher than the entry level for that class. Any employee who substitutes and works at a higher position for at least ten (10) consecutive working days, will be appropriately compensated by the Department for such added responsibility. SECTION 7. RECRUITMENT PROCESS The recruiting process for vacant entry level positions will generally use the following procedure. Recruitment for a position will be authorized by the Building Official- after approval by the Commission. Employees will be given preference consistent with qualifications for the position. Vacant positions with salary level duties, experience and educational level will be posted on the employee bulletin board for five (5) business days and advertised in the local newspaper. When a vacant position is above an entry level, it will first be posted on the bulletin board to allow current employees to apply. If, in the opinion of the Building Official, there are no qualified employees, or if only minimally qualified, the Department may advertise in newspapers and in the appropriate trade journals if the need is indicated. All persons may be permitted to for the position. Applicants who become employees of the Department and do not live in the county of Pueblo, will have six months to establish and maintain residency in Pueblo county. Failure to do so will cause the employee to be discharged from employment. Veterans of U.S. military service will have preference only if all other job qualifications are equal. SECTION 8. EMPLOYEE STATUS A probationary period of six months will be required for all persons hired. After satisfactory completion of the probationary period, the person will be conside -red a regular full or part time employee. Any unsatisfactory performance during'the introductory period will be grounds for dismissal without right of appeal. Classification of an employee as "regular" is intended to distinguish 4 such employee from temporary and probationary employees. Any employee who is promoted to a higher level position will serve a six month trial service period. Upon successful completion, the individual continues as a regular employee in the new class. If the performance during the trial period is unsatisfactory, the employee will return to his or her previous position, at the former rate of pay, without any appeal rights. All regular full time and regular part time employees will be eligible for normal fringe benefits such as vacation, sick leave, holiday pay, insurance programs and retirement. Temporary full time and temporary part time employees will not be eligible for fringe benefits. All temporary employees will not have any rights of appeal under any Department complaint procedure. SECTION 9. EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE, EVALUATION AND PAY INCREASE The Department will endeavor to evaluate employee performance before adopting the annual budget for the following year. The performance evaluation may be used to assist in personnel decisions. Employees are expected to perform their duties and conduct themselves in accordance with generally accepted standards and with such standards as may be specified by the Commission. Employee evaluations will become a permanent part of the employee's personnel file. No employee will engage in any other employment or activity which creates a conflict of interest or the appearance of impropriety with his or her duties as an employee of the Department. Employment with the Department will be the principal occupation of regular full time employees. If an employee wishes to engage in outside employment, the employee will first receive written approval from the Building Official. The employee must show the outside employment will not interfere with efficient performance of the employee's duties, nor will there be a conflict of interest or criticism directed to the Department. No Department employee may use Department time, property, vehicles, equipment or supplies for private use. Any employee who steals Department property or the property of any other employee, or who abuses, misuses, damages or destroys Department property may be subject to discipline, up to and including immediate discharge. No Department employee may disclose any confidential information acquired by virtue of his or her employment with the Department, nor use such information, or permit others to use it, to benefit a private interest. Any regular employee full or part time may be discharged, suspended or otherwise disciplined with written findings, by the Building Official or the employee's supervisor, or failure to comply with standards of efficient service or competence, or for misconduct, failure or inability to perform the employee's duties, or conviction of a felony or any offense that involves moral turpitude. 5 SECTION 10. DISCIPLINE The Department, through the Building Official and the Commission, retains the right to take such disciplinary action as it deems appropriate in any given circumstance. The disciplinary guidelines and rules of the Department are intended to place employees on notice that specified conduct is likely to have serious consequences in the work place, not to limit the Department's right to take such action as it may deem appropriate in any given instance. A. Disciplinary Rules The following conduct may result in disciplinary action, up to and including immediate discharge. This list is not all inclusive. The Department reserves the right to discipline, suspend or discharge employees for any reason, at any time. 1. Inadequate job performance. 2. Insubordination or refusal to perform assigned duties. 3. Fighting or threats of physical violence. 4. Conviction of, a plea of guilty to, or failure to contest a charged felony. 5. Falsification of-or material omission from an employment application, payroll records, time reports, or other Department documents. 6. Violation of the Department's drug and alcohol guidelines. 7. Carelessness, negligence, or misuse of Department property. 8. Theft, vandalism, or destruction of Department property. 9. Improper use of Department vehicles or equipment, including Communications equipment. 10. Violation of safety rules or practices. il. Unauthorized absence or excessive absences. 12. Frequent or habitual tardiness. 13. Leaving assigned work area without prior authorization. 14. Violation of the Department's conflict of interest policy. 15. Possession of firearms or dangerous weapons on Department property. 16. _M }suse of sick leave. 17. Misuse of break periods. 6 18. Release of confidential information of the Department. 19. Violation of the Department's sexual harassment policy. 20. Failure to report for work without proper notification. 21. Inducing or encouraging any employee of the Department to violate any Department rule, policy or directive. 22. Engaging in any unauthorized interruption of work. 23. Loss of any license, certificate, or other credential required for the performance of a job responsibility. B. Disciplinary Action The level of discipline to be imposed for an infraction will be that which the Building Official deems appropriate under the circumstances. The Building Official may determine that any of the following disciplinary actions is appropriate. Disciplinary action may include any or all of the following: 1. An oral warning or reprimand, which will be accompanied by a written notation in the employee's personnel file. 2. A written reprimand, signed by the employee's supervisor or the Building Official and acknowledged by the employee. Written reprimands are intended to be place in the reprimanded employee's personnel file. Within five (5) working days, Employees may provide written explanations or responses to reprimands for placement in their personnel file. 3. Suspension without pay. A suspension without pay will be accompanied by a written statement, signed by the employee and the Building Official setting forth the fact of the suspension, the reason for the suspension and the duration of the suspension. 4. Demotion. All disciplinary demotions will be reflected by a written statement placed in the demoted employee's personnel file stating'that the demotion was for disciplinary purposes and setting forth the reason for the discipline. 5. Discharge. NOTE: Any action taken on an individual case should not be assumed to establish a precedent in other circumstances. SECTION 11. APPEALS (GRIEVANCES) Disciplinary action, complaints, disputes or concerns regarding the interpretation or application of Department guidelines may be appealed to the Building Official. The appeal must be made within three working days after the 7 action was taken. The Building Official will respond to the employee within five working days of receipt of the appeal. If away from the Department, the Building official will respond within five working days after the Building Official returns. Before any employee is discharged, the Building Official will provide a pretermination hearing to give the employee an opportunity to respond to the reasons stated for the employee's discharge. If the employee is dissatisfied with the action or decision of the Building Official, the employee may appeal such decision or action to the Commission within 5 working days of receipt of the Building Official's action or decision. The Commission will consider the appeal at its next regular monthly meeting and will give its decision within ten working days to the employee. The decision of the Commission shall be final subject only to judicial review pursuant to Rule 106(a)(4) of the Colorado Rules of Civil Procedure. SECTION 12. DRUGS AND ALCOHOL The Department strictly prohibits the use or possession on Department premises of alcoholic beverages of any kind and drugs other than those prescribed by a physician or obtained from a legal over the counter source. Employees are expected to use prescription or legal over the counter drugs in an appropriate manner and dosage and are expected to know whether the appropriate use of such drugs may impair their ability to perform their jobs safely and competently. No employee is permitted to report for duty while impaired by or under the apparent influence of alcohol or drugs to the slightest degree. Any employee who reports to work impaired by or under the apparent influence of drugs or alcohol shall be relieved of his or her duties immediately. Any violation of this policy will subject an employee to discipline, up to and including immediate discharge. SECTION 13. SEPARATION FROM SERVICE An employee who resigns from the Department is asked to submit a written resignation to the Building Official at least ten working days before the effective date of the resignation. Any employee who is absent without approved leave for more than one working day will be discharged from employment with the Department. SECTION 14. VACATION (ANNUAL) AND HOLIDAY LEAVE A. VACATION (ANNUAL) LEAVE: Full time, regular employees accrue annual leave after the date of hire but are not eligible to receive until one full year of service: 8 Years Completed Vacation Days Per Year 0 -5 Years 10 Days 5 -10 years 1 Day Added Per Year 10 years 15 Days (Maximum) Annual leave earned during periods of leave with pay, such as worker's compensation, will be credited only when the employee returns to work on a regular full time basis. Vacation will not be used in advance of accrual. Annual leave may be taken only when authorized by the Building Official. The Building Official may establish periods during which no annual leave may be taken. Leave without pay may be charged for any unauthorized leave. At least annually, the Building official will periodically inform eligible employees of their accumulated annual leave. Employees will not be permitted to carry over more than 120 hours from one year to the next. At the employee's written request the Building Official, in writing, may approve accrual of annual leave for up to two years or 2 _hours, nu whichever is less. Upon separation from employment, payment for unused anal leave will be at the employee's rate of pay on the employee's last working day. B. HOLIDAY LEAVE The following holidays will be observed by the Department: New Years Day Memorial Day Independence Day Labor Day Thanksgiving Day .Christmas Day Employees must be at work or on paid leave the day before and the day after a scheduled holiday to be paid for the holiday. Employees on paid leave when a holiday occurs shall not have that day charged as paid leave, but will be credited with the holiday. SECTION 15. PERSONAL LEAVE Each regular full time employee of the Department is allowed up to two days paid personal leave which may be used in case of emergency or upon approval of the Building Official. Such leave must be applied for in writing, in advance when possible, and will not accumulate from year to year. SECTION 16. SICK LEAVE All Department employees shall be treated equally with regard to sick leave. Sick leave for regular, full time employees shall accrue at the rate of 8 hours 9 per month. Maximum accrual of sick leave shall not exceed 90 days. Upon separation from employment, employees will not be paid for any accrued sick leave that is fewer than thirty days. Employees will be paid only for accrued sick of more than thirty days and fewer than ninety days (for a maximum possible total of sixty days). Sick leave shall be granted to an employee for his or her own illness. Sick leave is also granted for illness of an employee's family which requires the employee's absence. As regulated by the Family and Medical Leave Act and this Handbook. An Employee on sink leave for more than 16 working hours may be required to submit, upon return to work, a physician's statement of the employee's illness and the employee's fitness to return to work. Maternity leave for employees not eligible for FMLA will be granted as required. Leave status may include time before and after birth. Maternity leave shall be charged against compensatory time, sick and annual leave. After all accrued leave is used, the employee may be placed upon leave without pay. All allotted time for maternity leave shall not exceed 90 calendar days. During leave without pay, employees shall not accrue vacation or sick leave time. Any absence in excess of 90 calendar days must be substantiated by a medical certificate stating the employee is unable to perform her duties. Reemployment rights must be claimed within 90 days and must be in writing. The employee will be entitled to her former position if she returns within 90 days. Maternity leave shall not constitute a break in service. SECTION 17. FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE For eligible employees the Department grants leaves of absence for the following reasons: Medical Leaves: + Employee's serious health condition or pregnancy disability + Father's attendance at birth of child + Parent's care of child following birth + Placement of a child with employee for adoption or foster care + Serious health condition of employee's child under 18 years, or older child if disabled. + Serious health condition of employee's spouse or parent To be eligible for family and /or medical leave, an employee must be employed at least 12 months and have worked at least 1,250 hours during the 12 months preceding the commencement of Leave. Whenever possible, the employee must notify the Building Official or office manager" at least 30 days before the leave, so the Department can arrange for the necessary approval and find someone to perform the employee's work during the 10 absence. Requests for leaves must be made in writing to the office manager, stating the reason for the leave, the starting date, and the planned date for return to work. Appropriate certification for any serious health conditions is also required. Documentation confirming family relationship, adoption or foster care may be required. If notification and appropriate certification are not provided in a timely manner, approval for leave may be delayed. The maximum time allowed for Family and /or Medical leave is a total of 12 weeks in a 12 month period by the Department. The Department uses the 12 month period measured forward from the first day of an employee's leave. Although most leaves would be taken in•a single block of time, intermittent leaves or reduced leave schedules also may be approved, where required. Employees taking intermittent leave or reduced schedules may be required to temporarily transfer to another job with equivalent pay and benefits that better accommodates that type of leave. The Department continues medical insurance benefits for employees on leave as it does with other employees. Employees must continue to pay their portion of any insurance premium while on leave. If the employee is able but does not return to work after the expiration of the leave, the employee will be required to reimburse the Department for payment of insurance premiums during the family and /or medical Leave. Under a medical leave, employees must use any earned vacation and sick leave at the beginning of the leave, unless collecting worker's compensation disability payments. Employees on a family leave of absence must use any earned vacation at the Start of the leave. Accrued sick leave cannot be used during a family leave. A leave of absence is without pay when earned paid leaves are exhausted. As with other types of unpaid leaves, vacation and sick leave will not accrue during the unpaid leave. Holidays are not granted on unpaid leave. Employees on leave must contact the Building Official before the first day of return. If the leave is for an employee's own serious health condition, the employee must bring medical certification verifying ability to return to work. Failure to return to work on the day after the expiration of leave will result in termination of employment. Employees who return to work from family or medical leave of absence, except for certain highly compensated employees, will be returned to their same job or an equivalent position subject to the rules of FMLA. SECTION 18. MILITARY LEAVE Upon presenting proper military orders, an employee who is a member of the National Guard or military reserve shall be granted military training leave without pay for the annual encampment or equivalent reserve training period. Such miliary training leave shall not be charged as any part of annual leave. Upon presenting proper military orders, an employee who enters active military 11 service, including active service for training or declared emergency purposes, shall be granted military leave without pay. Military leave without pay shall only be granted for the entire period of initial service plus any period of additional service imposed by law. An employee who is a member of the National Guard must return to work, as provided in Section 24- 50- 302(2), Colorado Revised Statutes, within one week after release from active duty. Any employee on active federal military service shall apply for reinstatement within 90 days of discharge or within one year if hospitalized. All accrued annual leave shall be paid to the employee before the employee is placed on military leave without pay regardless of length of service. A Department employee who is separated from military service under honorable conditions, shall be entitled to the position the employee left or to a like position the employee had when the employee entered military service. The employee's salary shall be computed at the rate the employee would have attained had the employee remained in employment in the Department during the period of military service. An employee shall not earn vacation, holiday or sick leave while on military leave. SECTION 19. JURY DUTY AND COURT LEAVE Upon presenting a jury duty summons to the Building Official, a regular employee shall be granted jury leave with pay for the period he or she is required to serve on jury duty. Compensation received for jury duty shall be turned over to the Department, except for verified parking expenses and mileage allowance. When subpoenaed or at the direction of proper authority, an employee appears as a witness in a court or official governmental hearing, the employee shall be granted court leave with pay except when in court for personal reasons. SECTION 20. EDUCATIONAL LEAVE When requested by an employee and approved by the Building Official and the Building Commission, an employee may be granted educational leave where the subject matter will help the employee to improve or advance in Department employment, with full, partial or no pay for a specified period. SECTION 21. LEAVE WITHOUT PAY Leave without pay may be granted to an employee by the Building Official when it is in the best interests of the Department and the employee. An employee may be granted a leave of absence without pay for up to 6 months. Leave without pay shall be for specific periods of time and upon expiration, the employee must report to work or have secured a leave extension. Failure to report for work or secure an extension of leave time shall subject the employee to disciplinary action, up to and including discharge. Leave without pay may be granted only after all compensatory and annual leave has been used. Except as provided in Section 17, in case of injury or illness, all 12 sick leave must also be used before leave without pay may be granted by the Building Official. SECTION 22. INJURY LEAVE Job related Injury: Any employee who becomes incapable of performing his or her normal duties as a result of an injury or illness incurred within the scope of the employee's employment shall be deemed to be on injury leave until he or she is able to resume his or her normal duties, or any substitute duties as the circumstances may allow. An employee on injury leave, whether full or part time, shall receive from the date of injury, full compensation including benefits from the Department for one full year. Injured employee will surrender any Workers' Compensation checks and any short -term disability checks or long -term disability checks. After one year from date of injury, employee may be terminated. At that time the employee shall retain Workers' Compensation and long -term disability checks. Injury leave will be authorized only in cases in which: 1. An accident report form has been completed as required by state law. 2. An employee has provided a written statement from a designated physician concerning the employee's treatment and inability to return to work. 3. All Department guidelines relating to injury leave are complied with fully. An employee may be denied injury leave if it is determined the injury was not job related. Non -Job Related Injury: Employee may use compensatory time, sick or annual leave to cover injury leave. Employee may be terminated after 180 days from date of injury. An employee may qualify for short -term and long -term disability benefits as governed by the disability carrier. SECTION 23. FUNERAL The Department will grant regular, full time and part time employees (prorated) up to 24 working hours (3 days) with pay, plus the balance of the day if a death occurs while the employee is on duty, to attend the funeral of an immediate member of employee's or the employee's spouse's immediate family. Funeral attendance of a nonimmediate member of the family shall be charged to the employee's personal or vacation leave. "Immediate member of the family," shall mean wife, husband, children, parents, grandparents, grandchildren, brothers, sisters, brothers -in -law, sisters -in -law, daughters -in -law and sons -in -law, or other relatives residing on a permanent basis in the same household of the employee. Funeral leave shall not be granted to settle estates. 13 SECTION 24. NEPOTISM In the interest of maintaining impartial employment practices, no employee shall be hired, promoted, demoted or rehired to a position in the Department where a relative is also employed, if one of the relative members is in a supervisory capacity. Employees who marry may continue employment so long as their spouse is not their immediate supervisor. When feasible, one of the married employees will be transferred to a different section of the Department. If this is not feasible, one of the married employees may be asked to resign. "Immediate family" is defined in Section 23 and includes adopted persons to those family relationships. SECTION 25. TRAINING All employees are expected to maintain and improve their capabilities in their field of expertise. The use of continuing education video tapes is encouraged. Where continuing education is necessary to maintain a license or certificate, the Department may grant leave with pay to attend such educational meetings. Other employees may request training or educational leave with pay. The Department, however, may also pay conference fees, a per diem allowance and travel expenses when education video tapes are unavailable. All requests shall be made to the Building Official whose decision is final. SECTION 26. GIFTS No employee may accept a gift from any Department customer or a contractor that will in any way comprise his or her ability to carry out and implement the laws and rules under which the Department operates. No gift may be accepted that would advertise any customer or contractor, or the product of any customer or contractor. A gift, is anything that has intrinsic value to the giver or the recipient. SECTION 27. RETIREMENT BENEFITS The Department is exempt from and does not contribute to Social Security. The Department offers a retirement plan in which all regularly employed employees must participate. The plan is administered by a professional retirement plan administrator. The Department contributes an amount equal to the current FICA rate. Also, the Department will match on 1:2 basis any additional amount contributed by any employee to the retirement plan up to a maximum additional amount of 4 %. SECTION 28. HEALTH AND DENTAL INSURANCE The Department offers health and dental insurance for eligible employees and their families. The Department will pay 80% and the employee will pay 20% of the cost of the policy. SECTION 29. LIFE INSURANCE The Department will provide group term life insurance for all eligible employees 14 l in an amount not less than $10,000. SECTION 30. DRIVERS' LICENSES If a driver's license is a requirement for a given job, the employee must have a valid Colorado drivers license. Should the license be suspended or revoked for any reason: 1. The employee whose license is suspended or revoked must immediately notify his /her supervisor, who in turn will notify the Office Manager or Building Official. 2. The employee may be reassigned for the length of time the license is suspended or revoked for up to one (1) year. Employees who lose their license and such license is a requirement of the job, may be terminated by the Department. 3. If a vacancy is created because of reassignment, the position will be filled as provided by the Recruitment, Selection and Hiring processes in this Handbook. 4. When the employee's license is reinstated, the employee will be allowed to apply for positions as they become available. 5. If an employee fails to notify his or her supervisor about the loss of a driver's license and drives a Department vehicle, the employee may be subject to immediate termination. 6. The Building Department will periodically check driving records of all the Department employees who are required to have a driver's license, as a condition of continued employment. SECTION 31. LONG TERM - SHORT TERM DISABILITY The Department will provide a short term and long term disability policy for eligible employees. The policy shall apply to sick and injury leave. Terms of the policy shall be governed by the disability carrier. Certain conditions do apply to job related injuries or illness. (See Section 22, Injury Leave for conditions). SECTION 32. AMENDMENTS TO GUIDELINES The Building Commission reserves time when circumstances, a change in change which the Building commission Department. the right to amend these guidelines at any the law, or future situations warrant a deems is in the best interest of the 15