13-R-93 -Berevment Policy & employee classificationRESOLUTION NO. 13-R-93
A RESOLUTION BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
SCHERTZ, TEXAS AUTHORIZING CHANGES TO THE CITY'S
BEREAVMENT POLICY AS CONTAINED IN THE CITY OF SCHERTZ
EMPLOYEE POLICY HANDBOOK AND THE CREATION OF THE
EMPLOYItaE CLASSIFICATION POLICY TO BE ADDED TO THE
EMPLOYEE POLICY HANDBOOK.
WHEREAS, the City staff of the City of Schertz (the "City") has recommended that the
City review and approve the amendments to the proposed policies presented by city staff in
accordance with the City of Schertz Charter ;and
WHEREAS, the City Staff has identified areas of improvement within the current city
policies for the purpose of correction, compliance, and communication.
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SCHERTZ, TEXAS
THAT:
Section i. The City Council hereby authorizes the approval of staff recommendations
to amend the current Bereavement Policy and create a Classification of Employment Policy
within the City of Schertz Employee Policy Handbook.
Section 2. The recitals contained in the preamble hereof are hereby found to be true,
and such recitals are hereby made a part of this Resolution for all purposes and are adopted as a
part of the judgment and findings of the City Council.
Section 3. All resolutions, or parts thereof, which are in conflict or inconsistent with
any provision of this Resolution are hereby repealed to the extent of such conflict, and the
provisions of this Resolution shall be and remain controlling as to the matters resolved herein.
Section 4. This Resolution shall be construed and enforced in accordance with the
laws of the State of Texas and the United States of America.
Section 5. If any provision of this Resolution or the application thereof to any person
or circumstance shall be held to be invalid, the remainder of this Resolution and-the application
of such provision to other persons and cixcumstances shall nevertheless be valid, and the City
Council hereby declares that this Resolution would have been enacted without such invalid
provision.
Section 6. It is officially found, determined, and declared that the meeting at which
this Resolution is adopted was open to the public and public notice of the time, place, and subject
matter of the public business to be considered at such meeting, including this Resolution, was
given, all as required by Chapter 551, Texas Government Code, as amended.
Section 7. This Resolution shall be in force and effect from and after its fnal
passage, and it is so resolved.
PASSED AND ADOPTED, this 29th day of October, 2013.
ATTEST:
r
._ ~, ~
City Secretary, er~d ennis
(CITY SEAL}
CITY CHER ,TEXAS
is ael R. Carpenter, Mayor
sosos22i.~ - 2 -
SS~C]HI3C]Ri~]I' L I
CITY OF SCHERTZ
EMPLOYEE I3A.NDBOOK
Bereavement Leave
PREPARED BY: Human Resources
APPROVED BY: City Council
DATE APPROVED: 10/29/2013
EFFECTIVE DATE: 10/30/2013
REPLACES VERSION: July 9, 2009 Bereavement Policy
Pub
The purpose of this policy is to identify the rules and procedures in regard to the use of
bereavement leave.
Applicability
All regular full-time and regular part-time employees are eligible far paid bereavement leave
from the first day of employment.
Deftnitians
Immediate F~cmily Member -For the purposes of this policy, an immediate family member is
defined as an employee's spouse (including common-law), child {including foster and step),
parents (including current stepparents and current in-laws), siblings (including half, cuixent step,
and current in-laws), grandparents, grandchildren, or any other person living in the employee's
household.
Policy
Employees will receive bereavement leave in accordance with the time they would have
normally worked per their individual schedules.. b'or example, if a City employee requests
bereavement leave on a day where he/she is scheduled to work ten (10) hours, the employee
would receive ten (10} hours of bereavement leave. Bereavement leave is stand-alone paid leave
and shall not be charged to any other forms of leave.
It shall be the policy of the City that, in the event of the death of an employee's immediate
family member, the employee shall be entitled to bereavement leave in accordance with the
following schedule:
• Employees on 4-hour, 8-hour or 10-hour work dayslshifts = 3 work days/shifts of
bereavement leave
• Employees on 12-hour work dayslshifts = 2 work days/shifts of bereavement leave
• Employees on 24-hour work dayslshifts = 1 work day/shift of bereavement leave
SSCC]H[ICIRZ`]C~ I ~Ex ~,
CITY OF SCHERTZ
EMPLOYEE HANDBOOK
The schedule below lists a maximum number of days/shifts that may be approved by the City
Manager in the event the funeral of the immediate family member is out of state:
Employees on 4-hour, 8-hour or 10-hour work days/shifts = 5 work days/shifts of
bereavement leave
• Employees on 12-hour work dayslshifts = 4 work dayslshifts of bereavement Ieave
• Employees on 24-hour work days/shifts = 2 work daylshifts of bereavement leave
if an employee has two (2) or more immediate family members who pass away due to a single
event, the employee may be granted additional bereavement leave on a case-by-case basis upon
review and approval by the City Manager.
Memorial Trees
The City will honor deceased active duty and retired employees who have served the City for ten
(10) or more years and their deceased spouses by planting a tree in the City. These trees will be
placed in areas of the City in need of trees and will honor those deceased individuals.
A ro riate Use of Bereavement Leave
Bereavement leave may be used by an employee in the case of the death of an immediate family
member. Bereavement leave should be used within four (4) weeks of an immediate family
member's death but may be extended by the employee's Executive Director in unique
circumstances. Bereavement leave must be used in full work daylshift increments but does not
have to be used on consecutive work dayslshifts. Bereavement leave shall not be accrued or
saved like other types of employee leave.
Payment of Bereavement Leave
Payment for bereavement leave is at the employee's regular rate of pay. Paid time off for
bereavement leave is not considered time worked within any given workweek or work cycle.
Time off may also be granted to attend the funerals of fiiends or other close relatives who are not
immediate family members upon the approval of the employee's supervisor, but the employee
shall utilize his/her available sick leave, comp time, or vacation leave in these instances.
Procedures for Notification
Although providing advanced notice for taking bereavement leave is often not possible, the City
requests that employees provide as much notice as osp sible to their supervisors when requesting
bereavement leave.
Documentation
The City reserves the right to request pertinent information when bereavement leave is taken by
City employees, including deceased relative's name, the name and address of the funeral home,
and the date of the funeral.
55~c~H~3~~~~r~ f ~~~
CITY OF SCSERTZ
EMPLOYEE HANDBOOK .
In the event an employee wishes to provide infoi7nation about hislher deceased family
member(s) to his/her work colleagues, he/she may communicate the infarmation as helshe
wishes. However, if an employee wishes to communicate information about hisllier deceased
family member{s) to all City employees, helshe must provide a written request to Human
Resources, stating that helshe wishes to publish information about the deceased family member
on a City employee forum or board.
Abuses
Any employee abusing the employee bereavement policy through falsification may be subject to
disciplinary action up to and including termination.
Related Policies
Comp Time
Sick Leave
Vacation
SSCC]H[]C]R~~l~'7G ~ ~T~
CITY OF SCHERTZ
EMPLOYEE HANDBOOK
Classifications of Employment
PREPARED BY: Human Resources
APPROVED BY: City Council
DATE APPROVED: 10/29/2013
EFFECTIVE DATE: 10/30/2013
REPLACES VERSION: 2.7
Purpose
This policy provides working definitions of terms that are used throughout the City's policies to
provide uniformity and equity in applying policies and benefits. These definitions will, in some
instances, outline benefits, terms of employment, and other related issues.
Policv
The City maintains standard defnitions of employment status and classifies employees for
purposes of benefits, salary administration, and related payroll transactions. All employees in
this policy are subject to all work rules within the employee handbook.
This policy does not, in any way, establish a contractual agreement for employment between the
City and the employee.
Definitions
At-Will -Employment may be terminated with or without cause and with or without notice at
any time by the employee or the City except as otheitivise provided by law, the City Charter, or
the Employee Handbook. All categories and classifications of employees at the City are "At-
Will".
Exempt -Any position that is classified as exempt by Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). This
classification is paid on a salary basis. This classification is not eligible for overtime pay and/or
compensatory time off,
Nori-Exempt -Any position that is generally eligible for overtime pay and/or compensatory time
off under the specific provisions of Federal and State wage and hour laws. This does not include
positions classified as recreational exempt under the FLSA.
Regular Full-Time -Positions that are ordinarily of indefinite duration. These positions,
whether exempt or non-exempt, are typically scheduled for forty (40) hours per workweek.
Regular full-time positions assigned to fire suppression, by FLSA rule, typically work an average
of fifty-three {53) hours per workweek. Regular full-time employees are eligible for all city
benefits.
Regular Part-Time -Positions that are ordinarily of indefinite duration. These positions,
whether exempt or non-exempt, ace regularly scheduled for at least ten (10) hours per workweek
but fewer than thirty (30) hours per workweek. Non-exempt positions within this classification
are eligible for overtime pay for hours worked in excess of forty {40) in a workweek. Regular
part-time employees are eligible for some benefits but not all benefits.
Irregular Part-Time -Positions that are ordinarily of indefinite duration. These positions,
whether exempt or non-exempt, are scheduled only when work is available, and shall work fewer
than thirty (30} hours per workweek {130 hours per month) on average within any given calendar
year. There are no regularly scheduled hours for these positions. Irregular pa~•t-time employees
are not eligible for city benefits except possibly retirement, depending on how many hours an
employee works within any given calendar year.
Temporary -Assignments that are of a limited duration, ordinarily specified in advance. A
temporary employee may 6e full-time or part-time. Temporary positions are paid on an hourly
basis and may be scheduled to work up to forty (40) hours per workweek. Positions within this
classification are eligible for overtime pay for hours worked in excess of forty (40) in a
workweek. Temporary positions have no guarantee of continuous employment from one year to
another. Employees occupying recurring temporary positions are required to re-apply for such
positions every year. Temporary employees are not eligible for city benefits except possibly
retirement, depending on how many hours an employee works within any given calendar year.
Intern - An internship is a temporary part-time or full- time position. Interns shall work less than
1,000 hours per calendar year. An internship may 6e paid or unpaid (volunteer}. An internship
should be presented during the budget process; however, the City Manager may approve an
internship during the fiscal year depending on available funds in the respective department. To
be eligible, an intern shall be enrolled in an accredited college or work program and must meet
the qualifications set forth in the job posting, Internships will be reviewed each semester and
may be extended or terminated. Internships should generally end after one year but may be
extended beyond one year at the City Manager's discretion,
Emergency Temporary -Whenever an emergency exists that requires the service of personnel
who are not otherwise available for budgeted vacant positions, the City Manager may
immediately appoint such personnel for a period not to exceed 90 working days without regard
to normal recruitment and selection requirements. An emergency temporary appointment shall
not be used to circumvent normal employment procedures. The employee involved shall not
acquire any status or rights in the position to which temporarily appointed.
Assigned Staff -- Staff assigned to the City through an inter-local agreement or other type of
agreement but is paid directly by another government or private organization. Assigned staff
members are not employees of the City. Assigned staff benefits are specifed in the contract for
services. As a condition of their assignment, such staff is governed by all terms of these policies
not in conflict with their contract for services.
Related Policies
>?LSA
Work Hours & Scheduling