Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 03121996 - D3 TO: BOARD OF SUPERVISORS / ; Con tra -FROM: Finance Committee C (� a County t DATE: March 12, 1996 cbvKt'{ SUBJECT: ',.Criteria for Creating and Filling "Project" and "Exempt" Positions SPECIFIC RE:QUEST(S) OR RECOMMENDATION(S) & BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION RECOMMENDATION(U. 1. DIRECT the Human Resources Department to modify the Personnel Adjustment Request to include the identification of project positions, funding sources, the duration of the project and the potential benefits to be provided by the position. 2. DIRECT the Human Resources Department to provide the Board of Supervisors with an updated cost benefit analysis of each project position at the halfway point of the project duration. 3. DIRECT the Human Resources Department to pursue changing the Personnel Management Regulations to require an examination process for filling project positions that were filled by direct appointment and are subsequently brought into the merit-system. 4. ADOPT guidelines, included in this report, for determining how project positions are to be filled. CONTINUED ON ATTACHMENT: —YES SIGNATURE: \ RECOMMENDATION OF COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR—RECOMMENDATION OF O COMMITTEE. .. _APPROVE —OTHER y SIGNATURE(S): ACTION OF BOARD ON APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED OTHER VOTE OF SUPERVISORS I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A UNANIMOUS(ABSENT 1 TRUE AND CORRECT COPY OF AN AYES: NOES: ACTION TAKEN AND ENTERED ABSENT: ABSTAIN: ON MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS ON THE DATE SHOWN. a cc: Human Resources Dept. [_J UA J De uty Cl rk D.3 BACKGROUND/REASON(S) FOR RECOMMENDATIONS . On December 13, 1995, the Director of Human Resources submitted a report (Attachment#1) to the Internal Operations Committee on the selection process for non-merit system positions. The County Administrator and Director of Human Resources appeared before the Internal Operations Committee on December 18, 1995 and reviewed the report. The Internal Operations Committee subsequently referred the December 13, 1995 report to the Finance Committee (Attachment#2) for the purpose of drafting and recommending to the Board of Supervisors answers to the following types of questions: (1) What additional information should be provided to the Board of Supervisors when a "project" position is created, in terms of the purpose of the project, the duration of the project, the funding of the project, the specific duties of the project position, and the expected outcome and cost/benefit of the project? (2) What criteria should control whether a position is created as a "project" position, as opposed to a permanent, Merit System position, as opposed to an "exempt' position? (3) What criteria should be followed in determining the period of time for which the project position will be approved? (4) Under what circumstances should filling a project position be exempt from normal testing procedures and a direct appointment be authorized? The Director of Human Resources set forth several recommendations and guidelines in the December 13, 1995 report to the Internal Operations Committee that should be considered in determining how project positions are to be filled. The Internal Operations Committee indicated that it viewed the recent project appointments but indicated it would like the Finance Committee to review the matter in more detail and outline some more specific criteria which should be followed. Finally, the Internal Operations Committee noted that of most concern are direct appointments made to project positions wherein no examination is conducted for the position. Since meeting with the Internal Operations Committee, staff has had an opportunity to further refine its recommendations and guidelines for establishing and filling project positions. Staff also had the opportunity to meet with the Affirmative Action Officer and the Equal Employment Opportunity Advisory Council and received their input and comments. In addition to the recommendations and guidelines set forth in the December 13, 1995 report, the following recommendations and/or guidelines should be considered in reference to each of the following questions raised by the Internal Operations Committee: • What additional information should be provided to the Board of Supervisors when a "project" position is created, in terms of the purpose of the project, the duration of the project, the funding of the project, the specific duties of the project position, and the expected outcome and cost/benefit of the project? Human Resources staff recommended in the December 13, 1995 report that the Personnel Adjustment Request (P300) used to establish classes and positions be modified to include information on the type of class/position being created; if project, the funding source; and the duration of the project. In addition, a brief description of how the class/position relates to the project could be provided on the reverse side of the P300 form. • What criteria should control whether a position is created as a "project" position, as opposed to a permanent, Merit System position, as opposed to an "exempt" position? According to the Merit System Ordinance project positions are positions established for a position will be approved? The time period for which a project position is approved is dependent upon funding which, in most cases, is from a source other than the County. If the funding is for a specified period of time such a two years, this should be indicated on the P300. If the funding is from an outside source that is continued on a year-to-year basis, this method of funding should be noted on the P300. • Under what circumstances should filling a project position be exempt from normal testing procedures and a direct appointment be authorized? Suggested guidelines for filling project positions under normal testing procedures or by direct appointment were enumerated in the Human Resources Department's December 13, 1995 report to the Internal Operations Committee. In addition to the guidelines contained in the above report, staff recommends the following: (1) A change in the Personnel Management Regulations that would require the administration of an examination process when a position is being changed from a project position to a merit system position and the incumbent of the project position did not take an examination for his/her project position appointment. This proposal will require that the County meet and confer'with employee organizations over the change. (2) In determining whether there are affirmative action implications, the following information should be considered: ► Representation in the current workforce and the employees qualified to perform the duties and responsibilities of the project position. ► Representation in the available marketplace. ► Representation in the job class in question. ► Any timetables and goals for the job class. ► If a job class is small and does not have timetables and goals, representation in the occupational category that the class falls within should be reviewed. ► Targeted recruitment should be conducted if the job class is under represented. If the job class is too small to make this determination the occupational group or representation in the department should be considered. ► If a department believes that a function will develop into a project position, current qualified employees should be notified and asked if they are interested in the position. ATTACHMENT #1 _P3 Contra Human Resources Department Costa C o u I Ity Third Floor,Administration Bldg. �o 651 Pine Street ST'4COVx'f'i Martinez,California 94553-1292 (510)646-4064 Leslie T.Knight Director of Human.Resources DATE: December 13, 1995 TO: Internal Operations Committee FROM: Leslie T.6 4' 4irector of Human Resources SUBJECT: Selection Process For Non-Merit System Positions L PURPOSE The purpose of this report is to provide information to the Internal Operations Committee on the selection process for non-merit system positions. II. BACKGROUND On October 31, 1995 the Director of Human Resources was asked to meet with the Internal Operations Committee to provide information on the criteria used to determine when vacant project and exempt positions require testing and when they may be filled by a direct appointment. The Director was also asked to provide statistics regarding the percentages of the last 100 project positions fillei by examination or direct appointment and to provide information regarding the procedure required for direct appointment. IIL DISCUSSION Positions within the County fall into two types of job classes: merit system classes and exempt classes. Merit System Classes - Most County employees are in job classifications that are in the Merit System Employees in these job classes are covered by the provisions of the Personnel Management Regulations(PMR's)that govern a wide variety of Human Resources activities including position classification;recruitment and selection procedures; appointments; separations;layoffs;prohibited discrimination; certification of names to departments for employment; and other personnel transactions such as reassignments, transfers, demotions and leaves of absence. 1 Exempt Classes- Positions established within exempt classes are excluded from the Merit System. They include positions excluded by category such as electives, commissioners, and officers elected by the people as well as positions within specific job classes that have been excluded from the Merit System such as the Airports Manager and most department heads and their executive secretaries. In addition,project positions are excluded from the Merit System. Project positions are created for a specific limited period of time as part of an approved project. These positions are generally financed in whole or in part by grants from federal, state, or private agencies. A. PROJECT POSITIONS ESTABLISHMENT OF PROJECT POSITIONS ~ • GOVERNING REGULATIONS Merit System Ordinance 33=5: ► Chapter 33-5 of the Merit System Ordinance(Attachment#1) sets forth job classes that are excluded from the Merit System ► Section 33-5.323 of the Merit System Ordinance states the following: "Project Positions. Employees in positions(project positions) established by the board for a specific limited period as part of an approved project are excluded. The county administrator and the director of personnel shall develop procedures,to be approved by the board, for designating these positions and employing persons to fill them" Administrative Bulletin 416.1: Administrative Bulletin #416.1 (Attachment #2) sets forth the following policies and procedures on project positions: ► Project positions shall be designated by the County Administrator upon request of the department head when such positions are created to implement a specific project of limited duration financed in whole or in part by grants from federal, state, or private agencies. ► Terms of employment and compensation expressed in Resolution No. 81/581 (now 83/1,Attachment#3) shall apply as the general rules of employment. ► The Director of Personnel shall maintain a classification plan and administer competitive examinations and selection processes for employment similar to those for positions in the merit service. The county's affirmative action commitments shall 2 �3 apply. • PRACTICE ► The procedure followed for creating project classes and positions is the same as the procedure used for merit system classes and positions. The procedure includes the following steps: (1) The department requesting the establishment of a project class and/or position completes a Position Adjustment Request(P300)form(Attachment#4)and submits it to the County Administrator's Office. Information requested on the P300 includes: the name of the department submitting the request;the action being requested(Le. establish a project class, add or cancel a project position, etc.); and why it is necessary to take the action. Departments are also asked for budgetary information ssch as whether the cost of the action is within the department's budget and the source of funding to offset the adjustment. (2) The County Administrator's Office reviews the request from an organizational and budgetary perspective. The request is also reviewed to determine if a freeze exemption wi71 be granted. (See December 18, 1995 memorandum from George Roemer, Senior Deputy County Administrator on Personnel Freeze Exemptions.) (3) Once the County Administrator's Office has completed it's review and approved the release of the P300, it is forwarded to the Human Resources Department. The action requested on the P300 is then reviewed to ensure that it is appropriate from.a classification perspective. This review varies depending upon the classification action being requested. Examples include the following: • Establishment of New Job Classifications - The proposed class specification is reviewed to determine if a new class is warranted, if any necessary revisions are required, and to ensure that the salary is appropriate. • Reclassification of positions- Classification questionnaires and other documentation is reviewed to ensure that the duties and responsibilitiesbeing performed by an incumbent are appropriate for reclassification to a higher level class. • Addition and/or cancellation of posdions-Documentation is reviewed and discussed with operating departments to ensure that the action is 3 Y� appropriate. Any positions being canceled are checked to make sure that they are not filled. (4) After the Human Resources Department has completed its review, the P300 is returned to the County Administrator's Office with the Human Resources Department's recommendation. Proposed wording for the agenda item which will appear on the Board of Supervisors' Agenda is submitted with the P300. (5) The P300 is put on the Board of Supervisors' Agenda for approval. FILLING OF PROJECT POSITIONS • GOVERNING REGULATIONS - The Merit System OrdL-ance states that procedures shall be developed for designating and filling project positions. Administration Bulletin #416.1 sets forth the parameters for the examination and selection process use6to fill project positions. Merit System Ordinance 33-5: ► Project positions are addressed in Section 33-5.323 of the Merit System Ordinance which states in pertinent part: ......"The county administrator and the director of personnel shall develop procedures, to be approved by the board, for designating these positions and employing persons to fill them." Administrative Bulletin 416.1: The administrative bulletin on Project Positions (#416.1, May 6, 1982) sets forth the following procedures and policies relating to the filing of Project Positions: ► The Director of Personnel shall maintain a classification plan and administer competitive examinations and selection processes for employment similar to those for positions in the merit service. The county's affirmative action commitments shall apply. ► Departments shall confer with the Office of the County Administrator and the Director of Personnel on all matters pertaining to project positions. • PRACTICE Administrative Bulletin 9416.1 states that the Director of°Personnel shall administer competitive examinations and selection processes for employment similar to those for positions in the merit service. 4 When an examination is administered for a project class,the process followed is essentially the same as for a class in the Merit System. However, examination appeal provisions in the Personnel Management Regulations for merit system classes are not available to candidates competing in examinations for project classes. Nevertheless, candidates competing in examinations for project positions can file a complaint with the Director of Human Resources and it will be reviewed and acted on as necessary. When an examination is not administered for a project class, a direct appointment is made. Direct appointments are made to positions in most exempt classes. Appointments to some exempt positions, including project positions, may be made by direct appointment or by an examination process. The authority for making direct appointments to merit system positions is provided for in the Personnel Management Regulations. Section 502 of the PMR's (Attachment#5) states in pertinent part, "The Director of Personnel may determine that the use of competitive examinations procedures to fill one or more vacancies is impractical and may s--,,pend competition and authorize direct appointment". • CRITERIA Several factors are taken into consideration in determining whether to administer an examination for a project position. They include the following: ► Is the staff time needed to formulate and administer a competitive examination justifiable for the position(s)in question? • Would the eligible list resulting from the examination be used to fill several positions and/or used by several departments? • How many candidates are expected to apply? Difficult to recruit project positions may be best filled by direct appointment. Furthermore, the administration of an examination to fill a project position that will attract several hundred applicants may not be practical. ► Can vacant project positions that require unique skills and abilities that are not readily available in the job market be filled by current employees? (Merit system employees who fill the project positions are placed on a leave of absence from their merit system position.) ► Will the continuity of a project be disrupted by hiring an individual(s) who is unfamiliar with the scope, organization and work being performed in the project? ► How quickly does the position(s)need to be filled? Does the funding of the project position(s)require that it be filled immediately? 5 ► What is the likelihood that the project position(s) will be transferred into the Merit System? If it is highly likely that the position would be transferred, consideration should be given to administering an examination. ► Has an examination been requested by the department with the vacancy? ► What are the Affirmative Action implications, if any? Based on the answers to the foregoing,a determination is made to administer an examination or make a direct appointment to the project position(s). B. EXEMPT POSITIONS y Regulations that govern the establishment of exempt classes and positions, and the subsequent filling of exempt positions, are outlined below. ESTABLISHMENT OF EXEMPT POSITIONS • GOVERNING REGULATIONS Merit System Ordinances: ► Ordinance NO. 80- 47(Attachment#6)states that, "All regular county officers and employees shall be included in the merit system except as exempted by ordinance adopted by the board of supervisors". ► Article 33-5.3 Exclusions of the Merit System Ordinance, sets forth the types of employees who are excluded from the County's merit system such as Electives, Commissioners, Officers elected by the people, members of the merit board and of other boards and commissions, casual patient and inmate employees at county institutions, and project positions. In addition, the ordinance excludes employees who are appointed to specific job classifications such as the Community Services Director, department head executive secretaries, LAFCO Executive Officer and Superior Court staff- PRACTICE tagPRACTICE The procedure followed for creating exempt classes and positions is the same as the procedure previously described for project classes and positions, with one exception: an ,. exempt class must be excluded from the Merit System in accordance with Ordinance NO. 80 - 47. Accordingly,in addition to processing a Position Adjustment Request to establish the job classification and allocate it to the salary schedule, an ordinance must be prepared and submitted to the Board of Supervisors to exclude the job class from the Merit System 6 .y FILLING OF EXEMPT POSITIONS • GOVE-:MNG REGULATIONS There are no specific regulations that govern how exempt positions are filled. However, as in the case of other positions, departments must consider budgetary constraints prior to filling vacant exempt positions and the establishment of exempt positions must be approved by the Board of Supervisors. • PRACTICE Although no specific procedure exists for filling exempt positions, examinations are often administered for these positions. This is particularly true for department head positions where it is desirable to have a state-wide or national recruitment effort to help ensure that the best qualified individuals are made aware of the vacancy and can be considered for the position. • CRITERIA Factors taken into consideration in determining whether to administer an examination for exempt positions are similar to those previously listed for project positions. C. STATISTICAL DATA The last one hundred (100) appointments to project positions are depicted in Attachment #7. Twenty-nine(29) of the project positions were filled by direct appointment and seventy-one(71) positions were filled from an eligible list established by an examination. IV. RECOMMENDATIONS FINDING: That the current Personnel Adjustment Request form (P300) used to secure and document the classification and creation of positions does not provide the Board of Supervisors with complete information concerning the proposed project status, the nature of the project or the funding source. RECOMMENDATION: Adopt the proposed revisions (see Attachment#8, bold type) to the Position Adjustment Request form (P300) and direct the County Administrator and the Human Resources Director to advise County departments to use the revised forms beginning March 1, 1996. FINDING: That project positions are by definition unique and extraordinary, represent a wide range of characteristics pertaining to the nature of the work, duration of the project 7 and types of knowledges and skills required and often evolve and change as the project matures. Therefore, by the very nature of project positions, it is difficult to establish one correct methodology for recruiting and'selecting persons to fill the positions. However, as mentioned earlier in this report'',there are general principles currently being applied in making these determinations.. RECOMMENDATION: Adopt, as policy, the following guidelines to be applied in determining how project positions are to be filled and direct the Human Resources Director to immediately implement and administer this policy. GUIDELINES ► Is the staff time needed to formulate and administer a competitive examination justifiable for the position(s) in question? • Would the eligible list resulting from the examination be used to fill several positions and/or used by several departments? • How many candidates are expected to apply? Difficult to recruit project positions may be best filled by direct appointment. Furthermore, the administration of, an examinatip°_ to fill a project position that will attract several hundred applicants may not be practical. ► Can vacant project positions that require unique skills and abilities that are not readily available in the job market be filled by current employees? (Merit system employees who fill the project positions are placed on a leave of absence from their merit system position) ► Will the continuity of a project be disrupted by hiring an individual(s) who is unfamiliar with the scope, organization and work being performed in the project? ► How quickly does the position(s) need to be filled? Does the funding of the project position(s) require that it be filled immediately? ► What is the likelihood that the project position(s)will be transferred into the Merit System? If it is highly likely that the position would be transferred, consideration should be given to administering an examination. ► Has an examination been requested by the department with the 8 M vacancy? ► What are the Affirmative Action implications, if any? LTK:WGR Attachments cc: Phil Batchelor, County Administrator 9 Z', AIIACHMLNI 84 n ik TO: BOARD OF SUPERVISORS Contr • FROM: Costa ' INTERNAL OPERATIONS COMMITTEE ate. < r County DATE' December 18, 1995 SUBJECT: CRITERIA FOR GRANTING EXEMPTIONS TO THE HIRING FREEZE. CRITERIA FOR CREATING AND FILLING "PROJECT" AND "EXEMPT" POSITIONS SPECIFIC REOUEST(S)OR RECOMMENDATION(S)a BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION RECOMMENDATIONS: 1. CONCUR with the following circumstances,among others, which need to be taken into account by the County Administrator in determining whether to grant an exemption to the hiring freeze in any specific case: 0 The availability of funds within the Department's approved current year budget. 0 The likelihood that the Department will be able to manage its approved budget so as to have a balanced budget at the end of the fiscal year based, in part, on the demonstrated ability of the Department to do so In the past. 0 The extent to which failure to fill the position on a permanent basis significantly interferes with the operational mission of the Department. 0 The extent to which failure to fill the position on a permanent basis interferes with the Department's ability to generate outside revenue. 0 The need to keep permanent positions vacant in order to minimize the number of employees who have to be laid off as a result of anticipated budget reductions. CONTINUED ON ATTACHMENT. -YES SIGNATURE: -RECOMMENDATION OF COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR -RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE _APPROVE _OTHER SIGNATURE{SI: w• r� RK _SAI n NIER IM RODE S ACTION OF BOARD ON January 16, 1996 APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED_ OTHER_ VOTE OF SUPERVISORS I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A TRUE UNANIMOUS(ABSENT ANOCORRECT COPY OF AN ACTION TAKEN AYES: NOES: AND ENTERED ON THE MINU-ES OF THE BOARD ABSENT: ABSTAIN: OF SUPERVISORS ON THE DATE SHOWN. ATTESTED Contact: PHIL BATCHELOR.CLERK OF THE BOARD OF cc: County Administrator SUPERVISORS AND COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR County Counsel Director of Human Resources 1996 Finance Committee BY ,DEPUTY Tony Enea,CAO's Office i, f. LOA 2. CONCUR with the County Administrator's plans to lift the freeze on individual Departments based on, among other factors, the above criteria. 3. DIRECT the County Administrator to forward a memorandum to ail Department Heads at the time he forwards the second quarter budget report to the Board of Supervisors explaining more clearly to Department Heads the various types of hiring freezes which can be imposed, what type of hiring freeze is now in place and what criteria are being used to grant exceptions to the freeze. 4. REFER the attached report from the Director of Human Resources to the County Administrator and Finance Committee for the purpose of drafting and recommending to the Board of Supervisors a'rnswers to the.following types of questions: 0 What additional information should,be provided to the Board of Supervisors when a "project" position is created, in terms of the purpose of the project, the duration of the project, the funding of the project, the specific duties of the project position, and the expected outcome and cost/benefit of the project? 0 Why criteria should control whether a position is created as a"project' position, as opposed to a permanent, Merit System position, as opposed to an"exempt" position? 0 What criteria should be followed in determining the period of time for which the project position will be approved? 0 Under what circumstances should filling a project position be exempt from normal testing procedures and a direct appointment be authorized? 5. ADOPT one of the following recommendations: Either, DiRECT the County Counsel to prepare and return to the Board of Supervisors a general policy statement which encourages appointing authorities who are not appointed by the Board of Supervisors and which directs appointing authorities who are appointed by.the Board of Supervisors to avoid situations which may be viewed as an appearance of a conflict of Interest in filling positions, even though no legal conflict exists,or, DIRECT the County Counsel to prepare and return to the Board of Supervisors a statement which can be forwarded to all appointing authorities which identifies specific types of situations and circumstances the Board of Supervisors believes should be avoided by an appointing authority in making an appointment to a position, including ones which may be viewed as an appearance of a conflict of interest, even though no legal conflict exists. Supervisor DeSauinier supports the first alternative. Super,:,;or Rogers supports the second alternative. -2_ f� l � ® 3 • I.O:1 BACKGROUND: On October 3, 1995, the Board of Supervisors referred to our Committee a request from Supervisor DeSaulnier that staff provide our Committee with the criteria used in determining whether to exempt a position from a hiring freeze and the criteria that are used in determining whether filling a project or exempt position will require testing or be accomplished by a direct appointment. The referral also requested information on recent filling of project positions by examination or direct appointment and the procedure required for a direct appointment. On December 18, 1995, our Committee met with the County Administrator and Director of Human Resources. We received and reviewed the attached reports. We agree generally with the criteria used by the County Administrator in exempting positions from the hiring freeze. However,we have heard from some County staff that it is unclear exactly what the rules are for having a position exempted from a hiring freeze and how hard a freeze is, in fact, in place. As a result, we are recommending that the Board of Supervisors approve the criteria listed above, but also provide a written explanation to Department Heads regarding exactly what the status of the freeze is at any given point in time. We are also recommending that the County Administrator be authorized to lift the freeze selectively on Departments, based on the criteria outlined above. While we are generally pleased with the results of the survey we asked the Director of Human Resources to conduct on recent project appointments and see them as entirely appropriate, we would like the Finance Committee to review this matter in more detail and outline some more specific criteria which should be followed as noted above. Of most concern to us are direct appointments made to project positions, meaning that no examination is conducted for the position. We believe that these direct appointments in particular should be reviewed more carefully to insure that we are not circumventing normal merit system requirements inappropriately. Finally, both members of our Committee are concemed about situations where an appointment may raise questions about a potential conflict of interest, even though there may be no actual legal conflict of interest present in the appointment. It is Important, particularly with direct appointments, that there not even be the appearance of a conflict of interest. We differ, however, in how we think the Board of Supervisors should approach this issue. Supervisor DeSaulnier believes that a general statement urging that appointing authorities avoid any appearance of a conflict of interest in making appointments should be sufficient. Supervisor Rogers believes that the Board of Supervisors needs to be able to define more clearly what it is talking about and should spell out specific situations or circumstances which the Board believes should be avoided in making appointments. The Board will have to determine which approach is more appropriate. -3- 1