Imperial County Municipal Code Ch. 3.04 Introductory Provisions and Definitions

This title shall be known as the personnel regulations of the county of Imperial.

(Prior code § 24100)

Subject to additional or more precise definitions and terms contained in the chapters of this title which are applicable to those specific chapters, the words and terms used in the chapters of this title and defined in sections of this title shall have the definitions therein contained.

A. "Anniversary date," as used to establish eligibility for salary step increases, means the effective date of appointment, promotion, or demotion, and shall be the actual date any of the actions denoted herein are effective. Salary changes shall be effected as provided in Section 3.12.050.

B. "Appointive officer" means those certain persons appointed by the board of supervisors as department heads or for the discharge of duties expressly provided for by law or delegated by the board of supervisors.

C. "Board" means the board of supervisors of the county of Imperial.

D. "Classified service" means all positions provided for by the classification plan referred to in this title.

E. "Continuous service" means service without break or interruption during which the employee has been employed by the county. "Continuous service" shall not be deemed to be interrupted by leave of absence caused by pregnancy, sickness or injury for which the person is entitled to receive compensation as herein provided, nor by vacation with full pay, nor by other authorized absence not exceeding fifteen (15) calendar days.

F. "County officers" means those certain officers designated in Section 24000 of the Government Code, as now enacted or as hereinafter amended.

G. "Employee" means any person employed by the county of Imperial, other than officers, except where the natural construction of this title otherwise indicates.

H. "Extra help" means those persons employed for a temporary period to perform a specific task, job or assignment. Such employee shall not earn vacation or sick leave, and shall not be eligible for merit increases nor entitled to participate in the retirement program.

I. "Immediate fami1y" means and includes a person's spouse or his or her father, mother, son, daughter, sister, brother, or the spouse of any of the preceding.

J. "Intermittent employee" means and includes a nonpermanent employee without fixed work schedules, who is qualified and available for work and works for the county when called to work on an as-needed basis. Such employee shall be compensated at an hourly rate, and shall not be entitled to merit increases, vacation or sick leave benefits. Such employee may be eligible to membership in the Imperial County employees' retirement system as governed by the rules and regulations of said system.

K. "Limited term employee" means and includes any employee who is employed in a special project, program, service or position wherein the duration of employment is limited to a specific termination date or conditioned upon the continuation of special funding for the project, program, service or position. Such employees shall be eligible for all benefits conferred by the county of Imperial upon its permanent employees by this title, relating to sick leave, vacation, overtime, holidays, mileage and travel expense, and merit pay increases and shall be eligible for retirement benefits on the same basis as a permanent employee. The employment of such employees, however, shall be automatically terminated on their specific termination dates or upon the cessation of special funding for their projects, programs, services, or positions.

L. "Management employee" means an employee who is engaged in developing, implementing or recommending policy, including:

1. Members of the board of supervisors;

2. County officers, department heads and assistant department heads;

3. Supervisors and staff assistants who are designated as management employees by the board of supervisors.

M. "Officers" means and includes all "county officers" and "appointive officers" as herein defined, except where the natural construction of this title otherwise indicates.

N. "Part-time employee" means any employee who is assigned to work less than a normal full-time schedule for the department in which he or she is employed. Such employee shall earn vacation and sick 1eave and be eligible for merit increases upon the same basis as a permanent full-time employee; provided, however, that salary computations for vacation, sick leave, or merit increases so earned shall be made upon the basis of hours worked by such employee and, provided further that such employee shall not be eligible for advancement to the earned tenure increase designated as "Step F" in Section 3.12.060. Such employee may be eligible to membership in the Imperial County employee's retirement system as governed by the rules and regulations of said system.

O. "Permanent employee" means any employee who is serving in a permanent position in the classified service, and who has successfully completed the probationary period for the subject permanent position in the department in which he or she is presently employed.

P. "Probationary employee" means an employee who is serving in a permanent position in the classified service for the duration of a probationary period as required by the ordinances of the county of Imperial, either as the result of appointment as a new hire in county employment, appointment as a promotion, or appointment as the result of an interdepartmental transfer.

Q. "Safety member" means any person employed by the county subject to Section 31676.1 of the Government Code or by a district or court organized or existing within the county, whose principal duties consist of active law enforcement or active fire suppression, as described in Sections 31470.2 and 31470.4 of the Government Code.

R. "Seasonal Employee" means any employee appointed to a position which is designated as seasonal by resolution of the board of supervisors. Such employee shall not earn vacation or sick leave and shall not be eligible for merit increases. Eligibility to participate in the retirement program shall be governed by the rules and regulations of the retirement system.

S. "Special assignment employee" means any emp1oyee appointed to any position in the county service which is designated by the board of supervisors as a special assignment, not to exceed a durational period of six calendar months, for the purpose of providing public services by contract to another public entity. Such employees shall be persons who:

1. Have been employed by the other public entity in job classifications similar in nature to the county job classifications to which they are appointed;

2. Are qualified to be appointed to the subject county job classification because they meet all employment standards for the subject county job classifications, including pre-employment physical standards; and

3. Are hired for the specific purpose of providing on behalf of the county contract public services formerly provided by the other public entity.

Such appointments shall be made only upon the certification of the department head and shall be subject to the approval of the county director of human resources. All such appointments shall be limited in duration to a maximum of six calendar months from the date of the appointment to the special assignment with the county, and all such employees shall be automatically terminated on their specific termination dates or upon the cessation of the special assignment, whichever occurs first. Such employees shall be eligible for all benefits conferred by the county of Imperial upon its permanent employees by this title, relating to sick leave, vacation, overtime, holiday, mileage and travel expenses, and merit pay increases and shall be eligible for retirement benefits on the same basis as permanent employees.

T. "Substitute employee" means any employee appointed to a position that is occupied by a regular county employee who is off work due to injury or illness for more than thirty (30) calendar days. Such employees shall be eligible for all benefits conferred by the county of Imperial upon its permanent employees by this title relating to sick leave, vacation, overtime, holidays, mileage, travel expense and merit pay increases and shall be considered probationary during their entire employment as substitute employees. The employment of such employees shall be automatically terminated when the regular incumbent employee returns to work.

U. Substitute employees may only be employed with prior approval of the board of supervisors and where it is shown by the requesting department head that the redistribution of work cannot be accomplished with existing staff and where failure to employ a substitute employee would result in a substantial increase in overtime worked by existing employees. Substitute employees may only be paid at the entry level of any job classification. Substitute employees may only be employed for periods for up to six months. Department heads wishing to continue the employment of such employee beyond the six-month period may only do so with written permission of the county executive officer and the director of human resources. In any case, such employees may not return for more than one year without further approval of the board of supervisors.

V. Substitute employees shall be subject to the same pre-employment procedures as applicants for regular county employment. Should a substitute employee be hired from an existing eligibility list, said employee shall be returned to their original place on that eligibility list at the termination of their substitute employment, providing the list is still active. At the time of employment, substitute employees shall be given notice of their substitute status by the human resources department and shall sign an acknowledgement upon receipt of such notice. When a vacancy occurs in the substitute department within the same position classification filled by the substitute employee, said employee shall receive first consideration for the vacancy and shall be treated as a regular probationary employee for such employment. Should the substitute employee have already satisfactorily served time equal to or more than the regular probationary period for such position, the employee shall be considered a regular permanent employee when appointed. Department heads not wishing to continue the employment of a substitute employee where a vacancy has occurred and the substitute employee is qualified for such vacancy, the department head must comply with regular procedures in terminating the employment of a probationary employee. Should two or more substitute employees be employed within the same classification within the same department, the employee with the greatest number of layoff points as determined by application of the county's reduction in force policy shall be given priority for said employment. A substitute employee working in another county department in the same classification shall have no right of employment should a regular vacancy in such a position occur in such other county department.

W. "Temporary employee" means any employee appointed to a position which is designated as temporary by resolution of the board of supervisors. Such employees shall be entitled to all benefits conferred by the county of Imperial upon its "limited term employees" as provided for in this section, with the exception that eligibility of such employees to participate in the retirement program shall be governed by the rules and regulations of the retirement system.

(Ord. 1345 § 2, 2002: prior code §§ 24101—24120)

(Ord. No. 1507, § 1, 8-11-15)

Words used in the present tense include the future, except where the natural construction of this title otherwise indicates. Words in the singular number include the plural, and words in the plural shall include the singular; and the word "shall" is mandatory and not directory.

(Prior code § 24121)