San Joaquin County Municipal Code Ch. 3 Salaries

This chapter shall be known as the Salary Ordinance.

(Ord. 1284)

For the purpose of this section, the following definitions shall apply:

Board—The County Board of Supervisors.

Class—A position or group of positions sufficiently similar as to duties performed, degree of supervision exercised or received, minimum requirements of education, experience or skill and such other qualifications, that the same title and the same tests of fitness and the same schedule of compensation applies to each position in the group.

Employee—Any person who occupies a position in the County service.

Grant Employee—Any person employed by contract pursuant to a Federal, State, or other grant of limited purpose and duration who provides services requiring professional or technical skills for the specific purpose and duration indicated in said grant.

Part-time—Unless otherwise specified in the Civil Service Rules, the status of an employee who is appointed to a position which is less than three quarters time (defined as not more than 1560 hours in a calendar year). A part-time position is ongoing in nature and anticipated to exceed six months' duration.

Position—A group of current duties and responsibilities assigned or delegated by competent authority requiring the full-time or part-time employment of one person.

Regular Employee—Any employee occupying a budgeted position.

Series—A number of classes related to one another in terms of ascending difficulty, authority or responsibility within the same promotional field.

Temporary—Unless otherwise specified in the Civil Service Rules, the status of an employee who is appointed to a position which is either seasonal in nature (not to exceed seven months in a calendar year) and recurs year to year, or who covers peak workloads or regular employee absences (not to exceed nine months in a calendar year) in a position which is not ongoing in nature.

Working Day—Any day upon which an employee normally would be required to work. A normal working day shall be eight (8) working hours.

Unclassified Service—All employees not included in the merit system established by the San Joaquin County Civil Service Ordinance.

(Ord. 1284; 1800; 2219; Ord. 4137 § 1, 2002)

(a) Options as to Compensation. Grant employees, as defined in Section 2-5201, shall be compensated according to one of the following options:

Option 1. The compensation of a grant employee shall be at an hourly rate established by the Board of Supervisors which shall include a pro rata allowance in cash in lieu of vacation, holiday, sick leave, and health and dental insurance benefits.

Option 2. A grant employee shall receive the same compensation as a regular employee in the same class in the regular service, or, if the grant employee is hired in a position which has no corresponding class in the regular service, such compensation as is set by the Board of Supervisors, and shall receive the same vacation, holiday, sick leave, and health and dental insurance benefits as a regular employee.

(b) Election of Option.

(1) Grant employees hired before the effective date of this ordinance may elect either Option 1 or Option 2. Such election shall be made in writing to the County Administrator before the first date of the third bi-weekly pay period beginning after the effective date of this Ordinance and shall itself be effective as of the first date of that bi-weekly pay period. Failure of a grant employee to communicate the election of an option in writing to the County Administrator prior to the first date of said third bi-weekly pay period shall be conclusively presumed to constitute an election by such employee of Option 1. The option elected by a grant employee shall remain in force throughout the employment of such employee.

(2) Grant employees hired on or after the effective date of this ordinance shall be compensated as provided in Option 2.

(c) Exception to Section 2-5208. Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 2-5208, grant employees who have qualifications above the minimum requirements set forth in the class specification for their position may be hired at any step of the range commensurate with their qualifications upon approval by the County Administrator.

(Ord. 2219)

(a) Except for elected officers or as otherwise provided in this chapter, the compensation designated herein for employees shall be deemed to be compensation per bi-weekly pay period and is predicated upon a forty-hour work week. A bi-weekly pay period shall consist of eighty (80) working hours. The compensation herein provided shall be in full for all services rendered to the County except as otherwise provided.

(b) Employees in the Airport Safety Officer Series, except the Airport Safety Chief, shall be paid a fixed salary for work performed in a work period of 28 days. Such salary shall be compensation for all work performed except overtime work. The maximum number of straight time hours in a 28-day work period shall be established by resolution of the Board of Supervisors.

The Auditor-Controller is authorized to pay employees in the Airport Safety Officer Series in two equal bi-weekly payments for work performed except for any overtime services which shall be paid in the second bi-weekly pay period of each 28-day work period.

In any 28-day work period in which the number of hours worked exceeds the number of straight time hours established by the Board of Supervisors, employees shall be paid at 1-½ times their regular rate as defined in the Act, and in regulations promulgated pursuant to the Act. If such regulations do not require cash payment for such overtime, employees may be credited with compensatory time.

The number of straight time hours shall be revised whenever a change is permitted or required by the Act or regulations promulgated pursuant to the Act, except that nothing contained herein shall be construed as requiring the County to reduce the number of straight time hours below the statutory maximum.

Whenever any employee in the Airport Safety Officer Series relieves an employee on the previous shift or tour of duty prior to the scheduled starting time pursuant to a voluntary employee agreement, either expressed or implied, such early relief shall not constitute hours worked for the purposes of compensation.

Whenever employees in the Airport Safety Officer Series substitute for one another on regularly scheduled tours of duty (or for some part thereof) on a voluntary basis and for the purpose of attendance to personal matters, the hours worked by the substituting employee shall not be counted in computing total hours of work during any twenty-eight (28) day work period.

A record shall be maintained by the County of all time traded by each employee each calendar year. No time may be traded by any employee in the Airport Safety Officer Series without prior approval by the Airport Manager.

(Ord. 1284; 1561; 1611; 2073; 2339; 2500)

The bi-weekly rate applicable to classes which are on a five step salary range as herein provided is set forth in the following table:

Bi-Weekly

Officers and employees whose salaries are set on an annual basis will be paid according to a bi-weekly schedule with any required adjusting amount being added to the first bi-weekly pay period of each calendar year.

(Ord. 1491; 1686; 2809; Ord. 3907 § 1, 1996)

Any regular employee shall be required to serve a merit advancement period of twenty-six (26) bi-weekly pay periods on each step of the salary range assigned to the class of which the employee is an incumbent before becoming eligible for advancement to the next higher step of such salary range. The performance of each employee eligible for such advancement within such salary range shall be reviewed annually by such employee's appointing authority for the purpose of determining whether such employee should be advanced to the next higher step of such salary range. Such advancements shall be made by the County Auditor-Controller only on the affirmative recommendation as to merit by such employee's appointing authority and the verification by the Manager of Personnel and Employee Relations as to such employee's advancement eligibility. Advancement from one step to the next higher step within a salary range shall not be given to any employee whose overall performance is evaluated as less than satisfactory.

Except as provided in Sections 2-5201.1 and 2-5208 of this code, advancement within a salary range shall not be made more frequently than once a year nor shall such advancement be more than one step within a salary range at one time. No provision in this code shall be construed as requiring the County to advance employees within a salary range.

The County Administrator shall make recommendations to the Board regarding advancements within a salary range for an appointed department head, excluding the County Probation Officer. The Presiding Judge of the Superior Court shall approve or disapprove advancements within a salary range for the County Probation Officer.

(Ord. 2809)

Any anniversary increase withheld because of administrative oversight or inadvertence shall be made retroactive to the normal effective date of the anniversary increase. Any anniversary increase withheld for cause but, upon appeal, adjudicated in favor of the employee, shall be made retroactive to the normal effective date of the anniversary increase or some intervening date determined by the adjudicating party. If the anniversary increase is made retroactive to the normal effective date of the anniversary increase, the employee shall retain the employee's current anniversary date. If some intervening date is determined by the adjudicating party, the employee shall not be eligible for the employee's next merit advancement for twenty-six (26) bi-weekly pay periods from the intervening date.

(Ord. 2430; 2705)

The Board, by resolution, shall assign salaries or salary ranges to all officers and employees of the County, including the Auditor and the District Attorney. The Board shall, by ordinance, prescribe the compensation of the members of the Board; such ordinance shall become effective sixty days after its adoption.

The number and classes of positions permitted in each office or department shall be fixed and determined by order or resolution of the Board.

No fees or salaries for grand or trial jurors shall be fixed or allowed by the Board.

(Ord. 1284; 2068)

Whenever a vacancy exists in a budgeted position, the appointing authority may fill the vacancy at the next lower-paid class in the series if:

(a) The Personnel Director determines that the typical tasks and duties of the lower-paid class are basically the same as required for the higher-paid class; and

(b) The Personnel Director approves such action. The appointing authority may subsequently promote such person to the class level authorized provided such person is certified by the Personnel Director as eligible. In any event, the total number of eligibles to be certified shall in no case exceed the number that would be certified if the position were filled at the higher level.

(Ord. 1284)

(a) Except as provided in subsection (c), new regular or temporary employees shall be appointed at the first step of the salary grade adopted for the class of position to which appointment is made.

(b) Regular employees are reemployed from a reemployment list shall be appointed at the same step of the salary grade at which they were employed on the effective date of layoff.

(c) When recruitment difficulties exist, and on the recommendation of the Director of Human Resources and the County Administrator, new or current regular and temporary employees may Be appointed above the first step of the salary grade for the class position to which appointment is made. When an appointment above the first step of a salary grade is made as provided in this section, incumbents of allocated positions in the same class who have qualifications above the minimum requirements set forth in the class specifications and who are on a salary grade step lower than the salary grade step of the new regular employee may be raised to a higher salary grade step, up to such new regular employee's salary grade step upon the request of an employee's appointing authority, the recommendation of the Director of Human Resources and the approval of the County Administrator. Notwithstanding any of the provisions of this code regarding merit advancement days, the merit advancement days of regular employees in the class of position to which the new regular employee is appointed may be changed in order to retain equitable relationships as recommended by the Director of Human Resources and approved by the County Administrator.

(Ord. 1284; 1617; 2702; 2809; 3684; Ord. 4338 § 1, 2007)

For the purpose of determining eligibility for step advancement, employees shall have their merit advancement day calculated as follows:

(a) Each employee appointed prior to the effective date of Ordinance No. 1284 shall have his anniversary date adjusted to merit advancement day, being the first day of the first bi-weekly pay period preceding his previously established anniversary date, unless his anniversary date falls on the first day of a bi-weekly pay period, in which case the previously established anniversary date shall become the first merit advancement day. Such employee may receive a step advancement on the merit advancement day as established herein even though he may not have served fifty-two (52) weeks from his previously established anniversary date. Succeeding merit advancement periods will be in accordance with Section 2-5203.

(b) The merit advancement day of each employee appointed on or after the effective date of Ordinance No. 1284 shall be the first day of the bi-weekly pay period following the date of appointment, unless such appointment is made on the first work day of a bi-weekly pay period, in which case the first day of that bi-weekly pay period shall be the merit advancement day of the employee.

(Ord. 1284)

Whenever an employee is appointed to a position at a higher salary range, the employee's base salary shall be adjusted to the first step of the new range or to the step which is at least five percent (5%) higher than the base salary excluding any supplement or out-of-class pay which the employee was receiving prior to the promotion, Whichever is higher, providing that such salary is within the new salary range. If the employee receives an increase of not more than six and one-quarter percent (6.25%) upon promotion, the employee shall retain the employee's previous merit anniversary date except that the employee shall not be eligible to receive a merit increase during the twenty-six (26) weeks immediately following promotion. Employees whose merit increase is delayed during this twenty-six (26) week period shall receive a new merit advancement day which shall be fifty-two (52) weeks after their merit increase following their promotion.

If an employee receives in excess of six and one-quarter percent (6.25%) upon promotion, the employee's merit advancement day shall be fifty-two (52) weeks after the date of promotion and the employee shall not be eligible to receive a merit increase until such date.

(Ord. 1693; 2705)

Whenever an employee is promoted and receives a range change or his position is reclassified to a class having a higher salary range, on his merit advancement day he shall first receive the merit advancement increase to which he may be entitled and then receive such increases to which he may be entitled in the following order: salary adjustment, reclassification, promotion.

(Ord. 1284)

If an employee is demoted to a position having a lower salary range because of lack of work or funds, or in the interests of economy, or for any reason other than discipline, the employee so demoted shall receive the next lower salary in the range assigned to the new position. The employee's merit advancement day shall remain the same.

(Ord. 2184)

Whenever an incumbent of an exempt position accepts a demotion, for reasons other than a disciplinary action, to a class of position having a lower salary range, the Board may direct that the capital letter "Y" be set opposite the position to which the incumbent was demoted in the department budget and all payroll and other personnel records. Whenever the effect of a reclassification is to place the incumbent in a class having a lower salary range, the Board, upon the recommendation of the Civil Service Commission, may direct that the capital letter "Y" be set opposite the reclassified position in the department budget and all payroll and other personnel records. Whenever the "Y" is set opposite a position, the incumbent shall continue to receive his previously authorized salary until termination of his employment in the position, or until a higher rate of pay may be authorized.

(Ord. 2184; 3108)