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For the purposes of this title and any personnel policy statement, memorandum, or correspondence, unless otherwise apparent from the context, certain words and phrases used in this title are defined as follows:

“Affirmative action” shall mean the policies and procedures adopted by the county to promote equal employment opportunities.

“Allocation” or “position allocation” shall mean the assignment of a position to a classification pursuant to SCC 3.07.030.

“Allowance” shall mean the money paid to personnel as reimbursement for equipment, supplies, and/or services as designated by a memorandum of understanding and/or Board resolution.

“Anniversary date” shall mean the date that corresponds with the first pay period following the employee’s date of hire and from which probationary periods and step adjustments are based.

“Appeal” shall mean the filing of a written request for review and the reversal or modification of a disciplinary action imposed by the appointing authority. For the purposes of this title, a written or verbal reprimand issued by the appointing authority shall not constitute a disciplinary action and shall not be subject to the filing of an appeal. Written reprimand may be addressed through the grievance procedures as per Chapter 3.11 SCC.

“Applicant” shall mean a person who has filed an official county application form at the County Auditor’s office, or at such places as designated by the Personnel Director, according to prescribed procedures.

Appointing Authority. The Board of Supervisors is the appointing authority for appointed department heads (except for Chief Probation Officer). Department heads are the appointing authorities for all employees in their departments.

“Appointment” shall mean the final selection of a candidate by an appointing authority subject to the provisions of Chapter 3.05 SCC and the subsequent acceptance of employment by a candidate.

“Bargaining unit” or “represented unit” shall mean those persons or organizations formally authorized to represent employees as a group with common interests in matters concerning the terms and conditions of employment.

“Base salary” shall mean the rate of pay as determined on a given monthly basis (excluding county benefits) for nonovertime work without inclusion of longevity payments.

“Board,” when used alone, shall mean the Board of Supervisors.

“Candidate” shall mean a person who has applied for an appointment to a specific position.

“Candidate group” shall mean those eligible persons from among which final selection consideration for an appointment to a specific position vacancy.

“Certificate” or “certificate of candidates” shall mean a list of candidates prepared by the Personnel Director from which final selection consideration for an appointment to a specific position at a particular point in time may be given.

“Class” or “classification” shall mean a set of positions progressing in responsibility (such as Auditor I, II, II, Sr., Assistant Auditor) allocated pursuant to SCC 3.07.030 and designated by a specific class title and salary range.

“Classification plan” (parity study) shall mean an orderly arrangement of positions under separate and distinct classes so that each class will contain all those positions which are sufficiently similar in respect to duties and responsibilities that they will meet the requirements established under the definition of “class” set forth in this section.

“Compensation” shall mean the salary, wage, allowance, and all other forms of valuable consideration earned by or paid to an employee by reason of service in a position but shall not include any allowance authorized and incurred as incidental to employment.

“Compensation plan” shall mean a schedule of salaries or salary ranges established by this chapter for the classifications recognized in the classification plan.

“Compensation range,” “salary range,” or “pay range” shall mean a designated set of pay rates having a specified minimum rate, maximum rate, and intermediate rates.

“Compensation rate,” “salary rate,” or “pay rate” shall mean a set dollar amount used as the basis for compensating an employee for working a given period of time.

“Compensatory leave” shall mean time that may be taken by an employee as authorized leave with pay for having worked overtime.

“Continuous service” shall mean the number of calendar days during which work was actually performed for the county which work has not been interrupted by a separation, except as provided for in SCC 3.06.040 and 3.09.040.

“County service” or “service of the county” shall mean all positions in all departments as defined, which are subject to control and regulation by the Board.

“Day” shall mean a calendar day, unless otherwise specified.

“Demotion” shall mean a reduction in salary and/or reappointment to a lower classification for disciplinary or other reasons of both a voluntary or involuntary nature. A demotion that is imposed for disciplinary reasons shall be subject to the disciplinary procedures as set out in Chapter 3.10 SCC.

“Department head” shall mean the head of each department and such person shall have authority to appoint, suspend, transfer, promote, dismiss, lay off, demote, assign work, direct or discipline other employees within the department.

“Disciplinary action” shall mean action by the appointing authority that results in the dismissal, suspension without pay or demotion, other than termination, or a demotion that is based solely on a reduction in approved staffing for a department as part of the approved budget as adopted annually by the Board of Supervisors. A reprimand, whether orally or in writing, that does not result in the loss of any pay or benefits to an employee shall not constitute a form of discipline, but rather is deemed to be part of the corrective counseling that is inherent in the management and supervision of employees.

“Dismissal” shall mean involuntary separation from county service.

“Eligible” shall mean an applicant who has passed all the appropriate examinations and has been placed on a register for a class of positions.

“Eligibility list” shall mean the list of candidates eligible for appointment to a vacant position.

“Emergency appointment” shall mean an appointment of an extra help/temporary employee made in response to an emergency threatening the public health, safety.

“Employee” shall mean a person working in and compensated by the county over which management has the right to direct and control the way the person works, both as to the final results and as to the details of when, where, and how the work is done.

“Employee, management” shall mean a department head, supervisor, or other employee having the authority to exercise management rights or develop management policies, or to effectively recommend the exercise of such rights or the development of such policies, where such recommendations or exercise requires the use of independent judgment and is not of a routine nature.

“Employee status” shall mean a designation of the employee’s status by his or her department head as one of the following: probationary, permanent, or extra help.

“Examination” or “exam” shall mean any process, procedure, rating, interview, test, evaluation, or assessment, whether scored or unscored, formal or informal, which affects a person’s eligibility for, or consideration for, appointment.

“Extra help employee” or “temporary employee” shall mean an employee in a position intended to be occupied on less than a 960 hours per year basis to cover seasonal work requirements, emergency extra work loads of a limited duration, necessary vacation relief, and other situations requiring use of a fluctuating and temporary staffing level. Extra help employees shall be deemed to be employed on an at-will basis and may be terminated at any time, without cause or advance notice. Extra help employees are not entitled to benefits unless expressly granted in this code or by separate action of the Board of Supervisors. The hiring of extra help or temporary employees is not subject to the provisions under Chapter 3.03 SCC; provided, however, that employment applications shall be required as otherwise set out in SCC 3.03.020. It is not the intent of this code to use extra help employees in place of hiring of permanent employees when there is a legitimate need for and provisions of funding for long term employees.

“Furlough” shall mean a reduction in the work day, work week or other period of time as the Board of Supervisors may from time to time impose on some or all of the employees as a result of budgetary constraints. (See SCC 3.06.060.)

“Grievance” shall mean a dispute between an employee or the employee’s bargaining unit and management as to the interpretation, application, or violation of any terms or provisions granted to employees by agreement, this title, or state and federal statutes. For the purposes of this title, grievances do not include and may not encompass appeals from disciplinary actions.

“Impasse” shall mean a deadlock in discussions between a formally recognized employee organization and the designated county representative(s) over any matters on which they are required to meet and confer in good faith or over the scope of such matters.

“Layoff” shall mean the suspension or termination of the services of an employee due to the lack of work or due to budgetary constraints and not for reasons related to employee job performance.

“Leave” shall mean an authorized absence from work that has been authorized by the employee’s appointing authority in accordance with the provisions of this title.

“Minimum qualifications” shall mean standards which designate the typical types of, and minimum levels of, training and/or experience through which one would be expected to acquire the knowledge, skills, personal characteristics, and other requirements necessary for satisfactory performance upon entry to a class, or a description of the knowledge, skills, and personal characteristics required.

“Nepotism” shall mean the hiring of relatives of current county employees. First and second-degree relationships by blood or marriage are as follows: parents, children, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, spouse, grandchildren, brother, sister, grandparents, grandfather-in-law, grandmother-in-law, sister-in-law, brother-in-law, grandson-in-law, and granddaughter-in-law.

“Open recruitment” or “open examination” shall mean a position or employment test open to the public and not limited to applicants currently in the county service.

“Performance evaluation” shall mean a formal review of an employee’s work activities and job performance over a particular period of time.

“Permanent position” shall mean a position as defined by a specific classification which is part of the authorized staff for a county department as reflected in the annual budget as adopted by the Board of Supervisors. A permanent position may either be shown as a full-time position or a part-time position (as a percentage of FTE – full-time equivalent), which shall be at least 50 percent of a FTE or greater (on a regular work basis – per pay period). Any employment that is less than 50 percent of FTE shall be deemed to be an extra help position and shall not constitute a “permanent position.”

“Permanent status” or “permanent employee” shall mean when an employee assigned to a permanent position satisfactorily completes a probationary period and obtains a right to continued employment, subject to the county’s right to impose disciplinary action for cause, or to lay off an employee due to a lack of work or budgetary reduction.

“Personnel Director” shall mean the person appointed by the Board of Supervisors to serve as the Personnel Director for the county, or, in the absence of any such appointment, all references to the Personnel Director shall mean the County Auditor who shall perform the functions of the Personnel Director.

“Position” shall mean a specific office, employment, or job calling for the performance of certain tasks, duties, and responsibilities.

“Probationary period” shall mean the period of time established to review an employee’s job performance as an extension of the examination process required before an employee gains permanent status. A “probationary employee” shall be a person appointed to a permanent position, but who, during the probationary period has no rights to continued employment and who is subject to termination without cause, advance notice and without a right to procedural due process.

“Promotion” or “promotional appointment” shall mean an appointment of an employee candidate having permanent or probationary status to a position in a different higher position having a higher pay range than the pay range of the employee’s previous position.

“Qualifying examination” shall mean an examination that is scored on a pass or fail basis, the scores of which do not indicate relative levels of suitability among those who are determined to be qualified.

“Ranking examination” shall mean an examination, the scores of which are appropriate for indicating relative levels of suitability among those who pass.

“Reclassification” or “reallocation of a position” shall mean the changing of a position from one classification to another classification based on the duties assigned pursuant to SCC 3.07.030, 3.07.040, and 3.08.040.

“Reduction in force” shall mean an involuntary separation from service due to a shortage of funds or work, organizational changes, or other reasons of business necessity, not involving performance or conduct, which require a reduction in staff. A reduction in force is the same as a layoff.

“Referral” or “referral register” shall mean a list of eligible candidates prepared by the Personnel Office from which final selection consideration for an appointment to a specific position at a particular point in time may be given pursuant to Chapter 3.05 SCC.

“Reinstatement” shall mean the reemployment or restoration of a former employee to a class in which permanent status was held.

“Resignation” shall mean a voluntary separation from the county service.

“Retirement” shall mean a form voluntary separation from county service with an employee electing to draw retirement benefits from the Public Employment Retirement System (PERS). Any employee electing to retire shall provide notice to his or her appointing authority at least 30 days prior to the effective date of the retirement and once such notice is provided, it shall be deemed to constitute notice of the voluntary separation from county service, which may not be withdrawn without the consent of the appointing authority.

“Seniority” shall mean the length of continuous county service within a specific classification without a break due to separation from the date of hire within the classification.

“Separation” shall mean a break in service resulting from a resignation, termination, retirement, dismissal, reduction in force, or death as provided in Chapter 3.06 SCC.

“Step” shall mean a pay rate, expressed in hourly or monthly rates, designated in terms of its relationship with other compensation rates in a compensation range.

“Step date” shall mean the date upon which an employee is eligible to receive a salary increase based on satisfactory performance of their work.

“Suspension” shall mean an involuntary imposed leave for disciplinary purposes or during investigatory or judicial proceedings.

“Temporary appointment” shall mean an employee who fills in for a vacated position for a short period of time.

“Termination” shall mean a voluntary or involuntary separation of an employee.

“Time-limited appointment” shall mean an emergency, extra help appointment made for a confined duration, which must be terminated within some restricted time period.

“Transfer” shall mean the appointment of an employee from one position to another position within the same classification.

“Voluntary reappointment” shall mean an appointment of a permanent or probationary employee candidate voluntarily seeking an appointment to a position in a class having the same or lower compensation range than that of the class previously occupied.

“Work unit” shall mean a work system composed of positions organized about a single purpose or program. (Ord. 1046, eff. 8/3/13)