8. Discussion on Personnel Policy updateSC DILA
Staff Report
Date of Meeting: June 6, 2018
To: City Council
From: Neil Soltis, Administrator
Re: Personnel Policy update for Statute changes
Background: The League of Minnesota Cities recently sent out a note regarding a change that was
made to their model Personnel Policy has been updated to include whistleblower protection
language. Lida Bannink of Ekberg Lammers reviewed our policy and suggested the addition of such
language along with updating it to include the Minnesota Wage Disclosure Protection Law which
was enacted in 2014 which mandates inclusion in a personnel policy.
Following this cover memo are the 2 sections of the Personnel Policy that would change. The
changes are in bold and underlined.
If there are no comments or modifications from the Council, the amended policy will be on the
agenda for the June 19 Council meeting.
Attachment to Resolution 03-16-10-06/ as Amended Resolutions 10-19-01-03, 02-21-12-05 & 08-19-14-04, and
11-17-15
City of Scandia Personnel Policy
6. COMPENSATION
a) Pay Plan. Employees of the City will be compensated according to schedules adopted
from time to time by the City Council or at a pay rate set at the time of hire. Unless
approved by the Council, employees will not receive any amount from the City in
addition to the pay authorized for the positions to which they have been appointed.
Expense reimbursement or travel expenses may be authorized in addition to regular pay,
in accordance with the city's Expense Reimbursement Policy.
b) Paychecks. Paychecks are issued twice each month, for bi-monthly pay periods ending
the 15th and the last day of each month. Pay periods may vary for the Fire and Rescue
Department. Distribution of paychecks to City employees is to be accomplished in a
timely manner using accurate, consistent procedures. Payday will typically be the second
business day following the end of the pay period. Paychecks will not be given to anyone
other than the person for whom they were prepared, unless the person has a note signed
by the employee authorizing the City to give the other person the check. Checks will be
given to the spouse, or another appropriate immediate family member, in the case of a
deceased employee. Employees are responsible for notifying the City of Scandia of any
change in status including changes in address, phone number, names of beneficiaries,
marital status, etc. The City may provide the option of direct deposit of payroll checks.
c) Time Reporting. Employees will be paid according to the time reported on their time
sheets. To comply with the provisions of the federal and state Fair Labor Standards Acts,
hours worked and any leave time used by non-exempt employees are to be recorded daily
and submitted to payroll on a bimonthly basis, not later than 9:00 a.m. on the first
business day following the end of the pay period. Compensation for hours on time
reports submitted after the deadline may be paid in the next payroll cycle. Each time
reporting form must include the signature of the employee and immediate supervisor.
Reporting false information on a time sheet may be cause for immediate termination.
d) Clothing and Footwear. Each full-time Public Works Department employee shall be
reimbursed the sum of three hundred dollars ($300.00) per year for costs incurred toward
clothing and footwear purchased for work purposes. Regular part-time employees
working more than twenty (20) but less than forty (40) hours per week shall be
reimbursed the sum of one hundred fifty dollars ($150.00) per year for costs incurred
toward clothing and footwear purchased for work purposes. Documentation of costs
incurred shall be submitted to the City by December 1 of each year to be eligible for
reimbursement.
e) Minnesota Wage Disclosure Protection Law. Protection Under the Minnesota Wage
Disclosure Protection Law, employees have the right to tell any person the amount
of their own wages. While the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act (Minn.
Stat. §13.43), specifically lists an employee's actual gross salary and salary range as
public personnel data, Minnesota law also requires wage disclosure protection
rights and remedies to be included in employer personnel handbooks. To that end,
and in accordance with Minn. Stat. &181.172, employers may not:
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Attachment to Resolution 03-16-10-06/ as Amended Resolutions 10-19-01-03, 02-21-12-05 & 08-19-14-04, and
11-17-15
City of Scandia Personnel Policy
f) • Require nondisclosure by an employee of his or her wages as a condition of
employment.
g) • Require an employee to sign a waiver or other document which purports to
deny an employee the right to disclose the employee's wages.
h) • Take any adverse employment action against an employee for disclosing the
employee's own wages or discussing another employee's wages which have been
disclosed voluntarily.
i) • Retaliate against an employee for asserting rights or remedies under Minn.
Stat. X181.172, subd. 3.
The city cannot retaliate against an employee for disclosing his/her own wages. An
employee's remedies under the Wage Disclosure Protection Law are to bring a civil
action against the city and/or file a complaint with the Minnesota Department of Labor
and Industry at (651) 284-5070 or (800) 342-5354.
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Attachment to Resolution 03-16-10-06/ as Amended Resolutions 10-19-01-03, 02-21-12-05 & 08-19-14-04, and
11-17-15
City of Scandia Personnel Policy
9. Open Door Policy/Resolution of Complaints
The City is concerned about every employee, and about every employee's concerns, questions, or
complaints. The City has the following procedure for responding to employee concerns or
complaints. The City's procedure has two main goals:
1. Goals
a. To ensure that the City responds to every complaint or concern raised by
employees. While employees may not always agree with the City's response
to a concern or complaint, employees should be assured that the City will give
all complaints and concerns appropriate consideration.
b. To improve communication within the City and provide a means for concerns
and complaints to be resolved as described in the following section regarding
proper complaint procedure.
Employees who have complaints, concerns or questions about any aspect of their employment at the
City, including concerns about compensation or legal compliance by the City, should use the
following procedure:
2. Procedure
a. In most cases, the procedure for employees who have any concerns,
complaints, or questions regarding employment at the City, is to first talk with
their direct supervisor. Often, an informal discussion of such issues will lead
to their quick, effective resolution. Employees should be polite, but direct
about their concerns. If employees have a concern, complaint, or question
which isn't resolved after such an informal discussion, they should proceed
as described in Paragraph b. If employees don't feel comfortable approaching
their supervisor about their concerns, the employee should bring his/her
concerns to the City Administrator.
b. Employees are asked to give complaints to their supervisor in writing or by
email within 14 calendar days of the date the problem occurred. If for any
reason the employee is not comfortable submitting a written complaint to
his/her supervisor, the employee should bring the complaint (orally or in
writing) to the City Administrator within 14 calendar days of the date of the
problem. A copy of all complaints will be forwarded to the City
Administrator.
C. Complaint
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Attachment to Resolution 03-16-10-06/ as Amended Resolutions 10-19-01-03, 02-21-12-05 & 08-19-14-04, and
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City of Scandia Personnel Policy
The complaint should indicate, in writing or by email:
(i) Employee's name, position or department, and schedule.
(ii) What the employee is concerned about. Employees should set forth
a clear statement of what happened, who was involved, when it
happened, why the employee believes it happened and why it is a
problem for the employee.
(iii) Any other information the employee thinks is relevant to his/her
complaint.
(iv) What the employee thinks should be done to correct the problem.
d. The City will generally investigate and respond to an employee's complaint
within 10 to 14 days. This period may be extended, depending on the facts
and circumstances of each case (such as the number of people who need to
be interviewed or facts to be investigated).
C. Employees should keep the following additional guidelines in mind:
(i) Employees must not be afraid to speak for themselves. This is an
informal procedure and employees may present concerns in their own
words. No formal representation of employees by other employees
or non -employees is necessary and no retaliation will be permitted
against employees who raise concerns or complaints.
(ii) Complaints and actions taken in response will be handled as
confidentially as possible given City's obligation to investigate and
act upon such complaints or reports.
(iii) Employees may bring complaints, ask questions, and raise concerns
under this policy without fear of reprisal or retaliation. All employees
are responsible for understanding, adhering to and strictly enforcing
this policy. Violations of this policy may result in discipline, up to
and including termination.
3. Reporting Illegal or Dishonest conduct
a. An employee of the City who, in good faith, reports an activity that he/she
considers to be illegal or dishonest to one or more of the parties may have
whistleblower protections. Examples of illegal or dishonest activities include
violations of federal, state or local laws; billing for services not performed or for
goods not delivered; and other fraudulent financial reporting. If an employee has
knowledge of or a concern of illegal or dishonest fraudulent activity, the employee is
to contact his/her immediate supervisor or the City Administrator. The employee
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Attachment to Resolution 03-16-10-06/ as Amended Resolutions 10-19-01-03, 02-21-12-05 & 08-19-14-04, and
11-17-15
City of Scandia Personnel Policy
must exercise sound iudgment to avoid baseless allegations. An employee who
intentionally files a false report of wrongdoing may be subiect to discipline up to
and including termination.
4. Confidentiality and anti -retaliation policy
With regards to anv comblaint to the Citv. emblovees should keeb the following guidelines
in mind:
(i) Employees must not be afraid to speak for themselves. This is an informal
procedure and employees may present concerns in their own words. No formal
representation of employees by other employees or non -employees is necessary and
no retaliation will be permitted against employees who raise concerns or complaints.
(ii) Complaints and actions taken in response will be handled as confidentially as
possible given City's obligation to investigate and act upon such complaints or reports.
(iii) Employees may bring complaints, ask questions, and raise concerns under this
policy without fear of reprisal or retaliation. All employees are responsible for
understanding, adhering to and strictly enforcing this policy. Violations of this
policy may result in discipline, up to and including termination.
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