Okaloosa County BOCC — April 1, 2014 — reading text

violation of this Policy for any person to make a baseless allegation of fraud, waste or abuse that is made with reckless disregard for truth and that is intended to be disruptive or to cause harm to the County or another individual. Section D – Prohibition Against Retaliation No person who has acted in accordance with the requirements of this Policy shall be dismissed, or threatened with dismissal; disciplined, suspended or threatened with discipline or suspension; penalized, intimidated or coerced for reporting any suspected fraud, waste or abuse. This provision shall not be construed as an exemption from any other County policies, rules or regulations. Section E – Reporting Procedures Great care must be taken in the investigation of suspected fraud, waste or abuse, so as to avoid mistaken accusations or alerting suspected individuals that an investigation is under way. Anyone who discovers or suspects fraud, waste or abuse shall contact the Human Resources Director, the County Administrator, a County Commissioner, or the County Attorney immediately and should not attempt to personally conduct investigations or interviews/interrogations related to any suspected fraud, waste or abuse. The reporting individual may remain anonymous and file a complaint via the website icon. All inquiries concerning the activity under investigation from the suspected individual, his/her attorney or representative, or any other inquirer should be directed to the Human Resources Department. The proper response to any inquiries concerning the status of an investigation is: “I am not at liberty to discuss this matter.” Under no circumstances should any reference be made to “the allegation,” “the crime,” “the fraud,” “the forgery,” “the misappropriation,” or any other specific reference. The reporting individual should be informed of the following: 1) Do not contact the suspected individual in an effort to determine facts or demand restitution; 2) Do not discuss the case, facts, suspicions, or allegations with anyone unless specifically asked to do so by the County Administrator or Human Resources Director. Section F – Investigation Responsibilities The County Administrator and the Human Resources Department has the primary responsibility for conducting the preliminary investigation of all suspected acts as defined in the Policy. If the preliminary investigation or assessment of the situation indicates that fraud, waste or abuse may have occurred, senior management will involve law enforcement, the external auditors or other Packet Pg. 590 Certified Fraud Examiners (CFE), and/or other professionals as appropriate. These parties shall issue reports to appropriate designated personnel and, if appropriate, to the Board of County Commissioners. Decisions to prosecute or refer the investigation results to the appropriate law enforcement and/or regulatory agencies for independent investigation will be made in conjunction with the County Attorney, senior management, and the County Administrator as will final decisions on disposition of the matter. The County Administrator and Human Resources Department shall treat all information received confidentially to the extent permitted by law. Section G – Sanctions Employees found to have violated this Policy shall be subject to disciplinary action up to and including dismissal. The type of discipline administered will depend on the severity of the conduct as well as any other factors presented in the particular circumstances, and will be administered in accordance with prevailing County policy. The contractual or other business relationship of individuals or entities associated with the County found to have violated this Policy shall be subject to review, with the possible modification or termination of such contractual or business relationship. Section H – Authorization for Investigating Suspected Fraud, Waste or Abuse The County Administrator, Human Resources Director and their designees shall have: 1) Free and unrestricted access to all County records and premises, whether owned or rented; 2) The authority to examine, copy, and/or remove all or any portion of the contents of files, desks, cabinets, and other storage facilities on the premises without prior knowledge or consent of any individual who might use or have custody of any such items or facilities when it is within the scope of their investigation. Section I – Administration The Human Resources Director, with guidance from the County Administrator, is responsible for the administration, revision, interpretation, and application of this Policy. The Policy shall be reviewed periodically and revised as needed. Packet Pg. 591 CHAPTER II – DEFINITIONS 17) Executive Pay Band – A pay grade on the salary schedule created October 1, 2012 that combined grades 83 and 84 into one pay grade (executive pay band). 17)18) Exempt Employees – Executive, Professional, Administrative and Computer employees, as defined in the Fair Labor Standards Act, who are exempt from overtime. 18)19) Full-Time Employee – An employee who works on a continuing basis 3230 hours or more per week. 19)20) Grievance – A dispute alleging a violation of a policy, rule or procedure contained in the Human Resources Policy Manual. 20)21) Human Resources Director – The official designated to administer the human resources system for the County. 21)22) Intern – A college referred, degree-seeking student, desiring a temporary, paid or unpaid, work assignment within Okaloosa County government in order to gain practical experience within a particular field of study. 22)23) Lay-Off (Reduction in Force) – An appointing authority may separate an employee due to, but not limited to, lack of work, lack of funds or abolishment of the position. 23)24) Liaison Commissioner – Board of County Commissioners member appointed by the Board to facilitate mutual understanding between the Board and the Liaison Commissioner’s designated County department(s) by: 1) maintaining and communicating knowledge of department’s overall mission and 2) supporting department’s attainment of goals and mission through an awareness of budget, operations, and special projects. The Liaison Commissioner is not authorized to act on behalf of the Board of County Commissioners and does not act in a decision making or direction capacity unless at a duly advertised public meeting of the Board of County Commissioners. 24)25) Merit Increase – An increase in pay, in the pay range or grade, based on an employee’s job performance. 25)26) Minimum Qualification – Those minimum requirements as to education and experience that qualify an applicant to be considered for appointment. Additional requirements may also be indicated when necessary, such as licenses, certificates and others. 26)27) Non-Exempt Employees – Employees covered by the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act who are eligible for overtime. 27)28) On-Call Employees – Individuals who are hired for an indefinite period to meet staffing needs, but who normally work less than a 40 hour workweek. On-call employees are exempt from any benefit provisions except those prescribed by federal or state law, and their service is excluded from continuous service with the County. On-call employees are not eligible to apply for internal vacancies. 28)29) Overtime – Time in excess of 40 hours in a workweek except for certain correctional employees. Packet Pg. 592 29)30) Part-Time Employee – An employee who works on a continuing basis, but less than 30 hours per week. 30)31) Performance Evaluation – A method of evaluating each employee on a periodic basis as to his/her performance on the job. 31)32) Position – An office or post in a department of the County involving duties requiring the services of one (1) person. It can be part-time, full-time, temporary or regular, occupied or vacant. 32)33) Probationary Employee (Initial) – An employee serving the first six (6) months of their appointment. They must pass this period of observation and evaluation successfully. The initial probationary period will be a six (6) month period based on any continuous employment, whether it is full-time or part-time. 33)34) Probationary Employee (Extended) – An employee placed in an extended probationary period due to a disciplinary action, or documented work performance deficiencies. This period may not exceed 90 days past the initial six (6) month probationary period. Any employee placed on an extended probationary period will not be eligible to use annual leave and will not be eligible to be paid any annual leave if termination occurs prior to the end of the extended probationary period. 34)35) Probationary Employee (Promoted, Demoted or Reclassified) – An employee placed in a probationary status, at the discretion of the department director, due to a change in their job title or classification and shall be entitled to use any benefits to which they were entitled prior to the change. 35)36) Promotion – A change of an employee from a position in one class to a position of another class, having a higher minimum salary and carrying a greater scope of discretion and responsibility. 36)37) Reclassification – The assignment of an existing position from one class to a different class due to a significant change in their duties or responsibilities. 37)38) Red-Circle Rate Concept – The concept used that allows an employee to retain their present salary, that is above the maximum pay range for the position, as revised October 1990. 38)39) Regular Employee – Satisfactory completion of the probationary period by an employee results in that employee achieving regular status. 39)40) Resignation – The termination of an employee at his/her request. 40)41) Series – A number of classes related to each other in terms of work within the same occupational field, e.g., Clerk I, Clerk II, and Clerk III would constitute a clerical series. 41)42) Sexual Harassment – Unwelcome sexual advances, request for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitute sexual harassment when: Packet Pg. 593  a) Submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual’s employment; or b) Submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment decisions affecting the individual; or c) Such conduct has the purpose of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment. 42)43) Suspension – An enforced leave of absence for either disciplinary purposes or pending investigation or charges against an employee. 43)44) Temporary Employee – An employee filling a temporary position for a special project or other work of a temporary nature that will not exist beyond six (6) consecutive calendar months and is not renewable. Upon approval of the County Administrator, temporary appointments may exceed six (6) months when needed to replace or supplement employees incapacitated by workers’ compensation injuries or fill lifeguard positions, on a seasonal basis. 44)45) Transfer (Lateral) – The movement of any one (1) employee from one (1) position to another having the same salary range and the same level of responsibility. 45)46) Vacancy – A position duly created and still existent but not occupied