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HomeMy WebLinkAboutRes 82224> I RESOLUTION NO. 8222 OF THE TRUCKEE DONNER PUBLIC UTILITY DISTRICT RESCINDING RESOLUTION NO. 8210 REGARDING SUSPENSION AND/OR TERMINATION OF EMPLOYEES AND ADOPTING A REVISED PROCEDURE REGARDING SUSPENSION AND/OR TERMINATION OF EMPLOYEES WHEREAS, on March 1, 1982, at a regular meeting of the Board of Directors of the Truckee Donner Public Utility District the Board, by adoption of Reso- lution No. 8210, adopted and established a Civil Service System and Disciplin- ary Procedure; and WHEREAS, after the adoption of Resolution No. 8210 and at the request of Local Union 1245, I.B.E.W., representatives of the District corresponded with representatives of the Union and met on April 27, 1982, for the purpose of satisfying any obligation of the District to meet and confer with the Union concerning the Civil Service System and Disciplinary Procedure; and WHEREAS, the Board of Directors has considered those changes recommended by the Union; and I WHEREAS, a revised Civil Service System and Disciplinary Procedure has been drafted and attached hereto, and each incorporates those recommendations made by the Union; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Board of Directors of the Truckee Donner Public Utility District that Resolution No. 8210 is hereby rescinded; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the attached Civil Service System and Dis- ciplinary Procedure are adopted as the Civil Service System and Disciplinary Procedure of the District. PASSED AND ADOPTED by the Board of Directors of the Truckee Donner Public Utility District at a meeting held within said District on the 3rd day of May, 1982, by the following roll call vote: AYES: NOES: ABSENT: Corbett, Huber, Kuttel, Monsun and Maass. None. None. TRUCKEE DONNER PUBLIC UTILITY DISTRICT By_ i ,?ft,.vyi-?u • yaCfcasaat: Jart^s A Maass, President I ATTEST: Susan M. Craig, Deputy Dis €rict Clerk IP TRUCKEE - DONNER PUD Policy and Operating Procedure I DEPARTMENT REFERENCE Subject: Civil No. Supersedes No. System Date Date Object: The principal objective of the Civil service System is to establish a system which provides for Fa ini a nd con s i st en c \ in the a ti.'iii n is (.ration of all District personnel matters; dif Hid, Equitable and peaceful procedures for the resolution ot The means by which employees can exercise individual right ler the law. The following provisions shall apply throughou written personnel policies as may be adopted •■■ltd a he Di: ■let. Othi to time by the Civil Service Coinm District's Civil Service System. , s ion shall nded from time part of the I Pol icy 1. Civ within !he Truckee I which slial 1 b .■rvice Cownission: There is her> Public Uti1 District, a civil Kiministerec Civil Service Commission. ;rvice Commission shall consist of the Board of Director; officio. :stab] i .shed rvice system The Civil ;, act i ng ex Adoption of Policy; Change in Policii The C ivi 1 i ion sha 1 1 hi: ;o adopt, wri i ten no lo District •r son no 1 al 1 pol i •i f 3a r t o f the CjviI U,n of [XJlicies or of an) ;!•..• 1 1 b( ven in a< a, and such polic i e lervice System. Roasc oposed changes in Dig of adoption by the 1ieies with s when adopted nable notice of trict personnel C i v i 1 ervice COBOT] ss i on . •a] Manag< I t has adop d sn other proposed pe any policy that it has adopted. <ioes not conflict with Board-approved policy, it may be era 1 iger or such designee as he/s! item the power to modify inel action ;-.on by the le may elect; however. iUCll iction will not be in contravention of any > 1 i c a b 1 e 1. nor any bonafide memorandum of understanding executed between the District and a recognized employee organization. '1. Conflicts of Interest: No employee shall have any financial interest in any activity outside the Truckee Donner Public Utility District which does business for profit with the Truckee Donner Public Utility District. A I Performance Reports: 'Die General Manage shall establish 2ma tic m«: :hod of evaluationg otnplO} >erf ormance which shall be used to influence ,:h decisions as merit fc war and/or salary advancement, need for training, promotion, performance unprovemen probationers, and order of layoff. The system shall Mice standards: retep.;. ion of the follt wing It shall be systematically applied to all jmpioyei wno are si ibordinate to the position of Gc *al Manager. b. It shall require regul; lodic report: 1 east once period• ,'oar and at least thn durinu at iroba ti onarv Reports shall be in writing anc -.hall be n i i i." i for at least two years after termination of employment with the District. Rating criteria shall be job related. Employees shall have an opportunity to review a nd respc >nd to the written report of evaluation. Disciplinary Procedure! The General Manager al 1 procedure for administering 1 nrovido, onabli I or not11 bla Dun i t ive ion in advance of taking the action. In addition, it- shall provide for protection of employee rights under the I Grievance dure a: Th ill r e i/.Q lh< Understanding* In connection with all griev; policy of the commission that: Itlinod in the Title 14 of the Memorandum of s filed, it shal1 be the Prompt attention be given to all grievances filing a g b. r i'-'vance; The be freedom f row rum i nst those iini, That • ry effort be de to r o 1 v f :he grievance a t the lowest pas iible level within the Distm Employee Records.1 era I nnager sha 1 1 iuse to have established and maintained for each employi liinel record which fairly represents the employe if the District, a work history with the District. Such records shall be accessible to the Board of Directors, the General Manager, the employee, and such other persons agreed to by the employee. may be I Subject: Object: DISCIPLINARY PROCEDURES Disciplinary Procedure I The principal objectives of this policy are to (1) promote orderly job conduct and the longer range development of a goal-oriented and productive personnel team; (2) help ensure compliance with state and federal laws prohibiting discriminatory practices relating to sex, race, etc., and, (3) establish the procedural means of protecting employment riqhts of employees. Scope: This policy applies to all permanent employees, except those positions listed in §161]1 of the Public Utility District Act, to wit, the clerk/ex officio secretary of the Board, the accountant, the treasurer, and the cteneral manager. Policy: 1. Definition. The term discipline will be understood as meaning "a state of orderliness" such as in a "disciplined team" or in a "disciplined performance". Therefore, disciplinary action is action taken to maintain an orderly way of doing things. The following provisions are generally confined to negative actions or sanctions to be invoked in the event of unacceptable employee performance. It is well to recognize that they are no substitute for positive or constructive actions (such as counseling and goalsetting) . 2. Grounds for Discipline. The following are examples of conduct, for which discipline may be imposed. This list is not exclusive and discipline may be imposed for conduct not sot forth below: (a) Fraud in securing employment. (b) Incompetency. (c) Inefficiency. (d) Inexcusable neglect of duty. (e) Insubordination. * I I (f) Dishonesty. (g) Intoxication on duty. (h) Illegal use of narcotics or other controlled substances. (i) Inexcusable absence without leave. (j) Conviction of a felony or conviction of a misdemeanor involving the following criminal offenses against persons such as homicide and assault, and against property, such as arson, burglary, and theft. A plea or verdict of guilty, or a conviction following a plea of nolo contendere, to any of such criminal offenses is deemed to be a conviction within the meaning of this section. (k) Inappropriate treatment of the public or other employees. (1) Willful disobedience. (m) Misuse of District property. (n) Theft. (o) Tardiness. (p) Other failure of good behavior either during or outside of duty hours which is of such a serious nature that it reflects directly upon and causes discredit to the District or his employment. 3. Progressive supervisor's approach to Penalties. In matters requiring action will consist of the following: general, a disciplinary Offense First Action Verbal warning Penalty none I Second Third Fourth Written report in employee's file Written report in employee's file Written report in employee's file suspension without pay Discharge I The seriousness of the offense shall be taken into account by the supervisor, and the supervisor need not necessarily proceed to the next level of disciplinary action upon the repetition of the offense. In order for a supervisor to proceed to the next level of disciplinary action, the offense need not be a repetition of a prior offense. 4. Exceptions to Progressive Penalties. A supervisor need not always follow the progressive penalty schedule contained in paragraph 3, a. Instances in which supervisors may proceed directly to the third step include, but are not limited to, the following: Serious violation of District safety regulations, procedures, and/or a supervisor's instructions. b. Instances in which supervisors may proceed directly to the fourth step include, but are not limited to, the following: Intentional refusal to follow a supervisor's instructions; gross insubordination. Violations of the basic rules of conduct such as intoxication or theft. employees. Action affecting probationary or temporary 5. Post-Disciplinary Review. (To be conducted in any case involving a written report and/or a penalty amounting to an employee's loss of not more than five (5) days pay during a twelve month period - e.g., 3 days suspension 3 - I I without pay. No review is required in cases involving only a verbal warning.) NOTE: Employees who are members of the bargaining unit covered by a current Memorandum of Understanding between the District and the Union shall receive the notice provided in Subsection a(l),(2),(3) and (4), below, and shall further be notified of their right to initiate a grievance procedure under the Memorandum of Understanding; such employees shall proceed according to the grievance procedure rather than according to Subsections b, c, d, e, and f, below. Employees who are not members of the bargaining unit shall be governed by the terms of this Section 5 and shall not have recourse to the grievance procedure of the Memorandum of Understanding. a. In the case of a written report without any suspension, the written report shall immediately be placed in the employee's file. In the case of suspension without pay, a written report shall immediately be placed in the employee's file, the employee shall be suspended immediately, and the employee shall not be paid for the period of suspension. At the time that the discipline is initiated, the supervisor shall deliver to the employee a written notice containing the following: be taken; (1) a notice of the disciplinary action to (2) the reason or reasons for the action; (3) the charges and the materials upon which the disciplinary action is based, including dates and specific incidences; (4) a notification that the employee has the right to respond immediately, either orally or in writing, to the General Manager of the District, and to meet immediately with the General Manager to discuss the discipline. (5) a notification that, if the employee requests in writing within ten (10) calendar days of the time that the discipline is initiated, then a review will be scheduled within ten (10) calendar days of the receipt of the employee's written request. ly I b. If a review is requested, the supervisor wil] arrange for a post-disciplinary review to be conducted by a Review Panel consisting of two members of the Board (who shall be appointed by the President of the Board) and a third person who shall not be affiliated with the District. The Union and the District shall agree, in advance, on a list of ten names, and the two members of the Board shall select three names from this list and deliver a list of those three names to the affected employee. The employee shall, within forty-eight (48) hours of receipt, of this list, select (in writing) one name, and the name selected shall be the unaffiliated member of the Review Panel. If the employee fails to select a name (in writing) within forty-eight (48) hours, then the two Board members shall select the unaffiliated member from the list of three names. The three members of the Review Panel shall select the member who shall chair the Review Panel. In the event the employee does not request a review within the time limit set forth above, then the disciplinary penalty will be sustained. c. When the date, time, and location of the review has been schedule, the employee will be accordingly notified. f d. At the post-disciplinary review, the employee will be provided with an opportunity to respond orally or in writing and to be represented by a person of his choice. The following rules shall govern the conduct of the review: (1) Oral evidence shall bo taken only on oath or affirmation. (2) Each party shall have these rights: to call and examine witnesses, to introduce exhibits; to cross-examine opposing witnesses on any matter relevant to the issues even though that matter was not covered in the direct examination; to impeach any witness regardless of which party first called him to testify; and to rebut the evidence against him. If the employee does not testify in his own behalf he may be called and examined as if under cross-examination. (3) The hearing need not be conducted according to technical rules relating to evidence and witnesses. Any relevant evidence shall be - 5 - It I I admitted if it is the sort of evidence on which responsible persons are accustomed to rely in the conduct of serious affairs, regardless of the existence of any common law or statutory rule which might make improper the admission of such evidence over the objection in civil actions. Hearsay evidence may be used for the purpose of supplementing or explaining other evidence but shall not be sufficient in itself to support a finding unless it would be admissible over objection in civil actions. The rules of privilege shall be effective to the extent that they are otherwise required by statute to be recognized at the hearing, and irrelevant and unduly repetitious evidence shall be excluded. e. The Review Panel shall issue a written determination as to whether the disciplinary penalty will be sustained, sustained in part and revoked in part, or revoked, within ten (10) days from the date of the post-disciplinary review. The Review Panel may determine to revoke the suspension but sustain the written report. A copy of the decision shall be delivered to the employee personally or sent by first class mail. f. In the event the employee does not appear at the post-disciplinary review, or notifies management that he does not wish to appear, the disciplinary penalty will be sustained. 6. Pre-disciplinary Review. (To be conducted when imposing a penalty which exceeds an employee's loss of more than five (5) days pay during a twelve month period — e.g., lengthy suspension or discharge). a. At the time that the discipline is proposed, a written report shall immediately be placed in the employee's file, and the supervisor shall deliver to the employee a written notice containing the following: (1) a notice of the disciplinary action proposed to be taken; action; (2) the reason or reasons for the I (3) the charges and the materials upon which the proposed disciplinary action is based, including dates and specific incidences; (4) a notification that the employee has the right to respond immediately, either orally or in writing, to the General Manager of the District, and to meet immediately with the General Manager to discuss the proposed discipline. (5) a notification that: I (i) If the proposed discipline is suspension without pay, the employee shall be suspended immediately but shall bo paid for a period of five (5) working days after the suspension takes effect. The Employee shall also be notified of the date, time and place of a pre-disciplinary review that shall take place prior to the end of said five (5) day period. The review shall be scheduled if possible toward the end of said five (5) day period to enable the employee to prepare; (ii) If the proposed discipline is discharge, the employee shall be suspended immediately but shall be paid for a period of five (5) working days after the suspension takes effect. The employee shall also be notified of the date, time, and place of a pre-disciplinary review that shall take place prior to the end of said five (5) day period. The review shall be scheduled if possible toward the end of said five (5) day period to enable the employee to prepare. b. The pre-disciplinary review may be continued upon the written request of the employee, but if continued the employee shall not be paid for any working days after the end of the initial five (5) day period. c. The supervisor will arrange for a pre-disciplinary review to bo conducted by a Review Panel consisting of two members of the Board (who shall be appointed by the President of the Board) and a third person who shall not be affiliated with the District. The Union and the District shall agree, in advance, on a list of ton 7 - I names, and the two members of the Board shall select three names from this list and deliver a list of those three names to the affected employee. The employee shall, within forty-eight (48) hours of receipt of this list, select (in writing) one name, and the name selected shall be the unaffiliated member of the Review Panel. If the employee fails to select a name (in writing) within forty-eight (48) hours, then the two Board members shall select the unaffiliated member from the list of three names. The three members of the Review Panel shall select the member who shall chair the Review Panel. I d. During the pre-disciplinary review, the employee will be provided with an opportunity to respond orally or in writing and to be represented by a person of his choice. The following rules shall govern the conduct of the review: (1) Oral evidence shall be taken only on oath or affirmation. (2) Each party shall have these riahts: to call and examine witnesses, to introduce exhibits; to cross-examine opposing witnesses on any matter relevant to the issues even though that matter was not covered in the direct examination; to impeach any witness regardless of which party first called him to testify; and to rebut the evidence against him. If the employee does not testify in his own behalf he may be called and examined as if under cross-examination. (3) The hearing need not be conducted according to technical rules relating to evidence and witnesses. Any relevant evidence shall be admitted if it is the sort of evidence on which responsible persons are accustomed to rely in the conduct of serious affairs, regardless of the existence of any common law or statutory rule which might make improper the admission of such evidence over objection in civil actions. Hearsav evidence may be used for the purpose of supplementing or explaining other evidence but shall not be sufficient in itself to support a finding unless it would be admissible over objection in civil actions. The rules of privilege shall be effective to the extent that - 8 1* I they are otherwise required by statute to be recoqnized at the hearing, and irrelevant and unduly repetitious evidence shall be excluded. d. The Review Panel shall issue a written determination as to whether the proposed disciplinary penalty will be sustained, sustained in part and revoked in part, or revoked, within one (1) day from the date of the pre-disciplinary review. A copy of the decision shall be delivered to the employee personally or sent bv first class mail. I e. In the event the employee does not appear at the pre-disciplinary review, or notifies tnanaqement that he will not appear, the penalty will be sustained and the supervisor will immediately proceed to effect the proposed disciplinary action. f. (1) If the proposed discipline is suspension without pay and the penalty is sustained, then the District shall, within the following thirty (30) days, withhold the pay that the employee would otherwise have earned for the period of the suspension. If the proposed discipline is suspension without pay and the penalty is revoked, the employee shall be immediate]v reinstated with no loss of pay. (2) If the proposed discipline is discharqe and the penalty is sustained, then the discharge shall become effective immediately upon issuance of the written determination, and the employee shall not receive any pay after the expiration of five (5) working days after the original suspension took effect. If the proposed discipline is discharge and the penalty is revoked, the employee shall be immediately reinstated with no loss of pay. 7• Removal of Written Report from Employee File If a written report is placed in an employee's file and the employee is not subiect to any further disciplinary action of a similar or related nature for a period of two years, then the written report shall be removed from the employee's file. - 9 - f I I 8. Administration a. Whenever any personnel problem occurs with respect to unsatisfactory performance, attendance, or any other matter affecting the orderly execution of iob requirements, the supervisor is expected to cope with the situation promptly, constructively, and in a tactful manner. Avoiding or putting off needed action of this nature constitutes neqlect of supervisory responsibility, undermines overall management effectiveness, and frequently results in an injustice to the employee. b. Each of the first steps of the disciplinary procedure is to be regarded as a corrective measure and is to be combined with appropriate instruction which, if followed, would make further steps unnecessary. c. The effect of this policy should be: II) the reduction of involuntary terminations, (?) the avoidance or minimizing of misunderstandings between supervisory and non-supervisory personnel, (3) ensuring that personnel are provided with notice of unacceptable conduct in sufficient time to permit self-correction and improvements; and (4) the ensuring that documentation is available to support management's position in the event of discriminatory charges with respect to sex, race, etc. d. Each written report will contain a description of the events requiring disciplinary action. Copies are expected to be distributed promptly to those concerned and will include one copy to be retained in the employee's personnel file. - 10 -