AGENDA DATE: 11/20/2024
TITLE:
Title
Personnel Policy Amendments
BODY
SUBJECT/PROPOSAL/REQUEST: Consider amendments to County personnel policies to comply with federal and state laws, best practices, and reflect organizational values
ITEM TYPE: Consent Action Item
STAFF CONTACT(S): Richardson, Herrick, Bessette, Shifflett, Rice
PRESENTER (S): N/A
LEGAL REVIEW: Yes
REVIEWED BY: Jeffrey B. Richardson
BACKGROUND: Albemarle County ended the shared service Human Resources (HR) model in Fiscal Year 2023 (FY 23) and approved the formation of a HR Department dedicated to local government operations. Foundational work in establishing a government-focused HR Department includes a full review and revision of all County Personnel Policies, which is now underway. During this review, staff identified opportunities to modernize existing Personnel Policies to align with changes in legislation and public sector best practices.
Under the County Code, personnel policies and amendments are adopted by the Board of Supervisors.
STRATEGIC PLAN: Workforce & Customer Service - Recruit & retain engaged public servants who provide quality government services to advance our mission
DISCUSSION: Staff is proposing updates to the personnel policies listed below with a summary of the proposed changes for each. The revised policies have been renumbered to improve ease of use and accessibility for all staff. The personnel policies utilize a new template in an effort to standardize the appearance of the documents.
§P-17 Classification and Compensation
Previously § P-60 Salary Administration and Position Classification (Attachment A), the proposed changes include: added sections for Roles and Responsibilities and Definitions; added section clarifying allowable types of employment in accordance with federal law and County operations; modernized the policy to reflect the County’s market-based compensation philosophy; removed payroll processing procedures; removed pay types and administration, to be reflected in a separate policy.
The following personnel policies are proposed to be archived, as they are no longer relevant, as described below.
§P-02 Definition of Employee Status
This policy provided explanations of various types of employment that could be used by the County. Some of the information pertained to school personnel only. The relevant remainder of the policy has been incorporated in §P-17, as discussed above, and other County policy revisions.
§P-41 Release Time for Advanced Study
This policy, last updated in 1996, allowed staff to attend college classes in pursuit of an Advanced college degree, in lieu of dedicating the hours to fulfilling the work expectations of the job. The policy was written for and utilized by school educators at the time. It is no longer a best practice among school divisions, has never been a best practice for local government personnel, and is not currently being used by government personnel.
BUDGET IMPACT: There is no budget impact associated with the proposed adoption of these amendments.
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
Staff recommends that the Board adopt the Resolution (Attachment B), to amend personnel policy § P-17, and archive policies § P-02 and § P-41.
ATTACHMENTS:
A - Proposed § P-17
B - Resolution