Policies

101 – INTRODUCTION

The contents of this Policy and Procedure document are for informational purposes only, and are not intended to create, or to be construed as to constitute, a contract between Dodge County and any or all of its employees, or a guarantee of continued employment. Unless otherwise specified by law employees of Dodge County are at-will.

These Personnel Policies are established for all Dodge County employees. In the event any provisions of these Personnel Policies are found to be in conflict with State or Federal law, it is understood that the State or Federal law will control. Only the non-monetary provisions of these Personnel Policies may be amended without action by the Dodge County Board of Supervisors. Monetary provisions of these Personnel Policies may be amended by the Dodge County Board of Supervisors.

Elected officials of Dodge County (according to Wisconsin Statutes and the Attorney General's opinion) are eligible for only (208) Insurance and (306) Expense Reimbursement. These Personnel Policies have been reviewed and approved by the Dodge County Human Resources and Labor Negotiations Committee and adopted as County policy. Dodge County reserves the right to modify, revoke, suspend, terminate or change any and all policies, or procedures, in whole or in part, with or without notice.

Sheriff’s Office Sheriff’s Office Sworn Association employees are covered by a labor agreement that takes precedence over any policies, procedures or benefits described herein that are more restrictive than the labor agreement.

102 – ADMINISTRATION OF PERSONNEL POLICIES

All questions by Department Heads as to interpretation or application of these Policies or Union Labor Agreements are to be directed to the Human Resources Director.

All prospective employees will complete an online Dodge County application form for any type of employment with Dodge County.

All questions must be answered and all applications must be signed electronically. Support will be provided to individuals requesting assistance to complete the application. Please contact Dodge County Human Resources Department at 920-386-3690 for application assistance.

Active applications are screened by the Human Resources Department and respective department heads for positions, as they become available. Qualified applicants for open positions are referred to the applicable departments for consideration by the department head.

Applications remain on file until the position is filled or inactivated. Hiring Process Current Dodge County employees may be given consideration for new positions or refilling of present positions, however a Department Head may request that external candidates be given consideration at the same time.

EMPLOYEE WORK STATUS

The following definitions of employee status will apply to all County departments and operations:

Full-time Employee

A full time employee is one who is ordinarily scheduled to work forty (40) hours per week, depending on departmental work weeks, on a regular basis of fifty-two (52) weeks per year and is eligible for all County benefits including health, dental and life insurance, retirement benefits, longevity, vacation, holidays, sick leave, Section 125 flexible spending accounts, Section 457 deferred compensation, voluntary long-term disability, as well as Social Security contributions and Worker's Compensation Insurance.

Part-time Employee

A part-time employee is one who is ordinarily scheduled to work twenty (20) or more hours per week depending on departmental work weeks, on a regular basis of fifty-two (52) weeks per year and is eligible for County benefits listed above on a pro-rated basis, provided the employee meets the eligibility requirements for each benefit. Employees involved in a job-share arrangement are considered part-time employees for the purpose of determining eligibility for benefits. A part-time employee at all locations except Clearview who works less than twenty (20) hours per week is not eligible for County benefits except Social Security and Worker's Compensation, and also benefits offered through the Wisconsin Retirement System if they worked for a WRS participating employer prior to July 1, 2011 and work six hundred (600) hours per year, or if hired on or after July 1, 2011, and work twelve hundred (1200) hours per year.

A part-time employee at Clearview who works less than twenty (20) hours per week but is in a benefited status is eligible for prorated benefits based on the number of hours worked in a preceding month with no minimum number of hours required; however, participation in health insurance may be limited by eligibility criteria contained in the contract with the health insurance carrier.

Temporary, Seasonal and Limited-term Employees Temporary, seasonal and limited-term employees are hired for specific periods of time, are not considered regular employees, and are not eligible for County benefits. Temporary, seasonal and limited-term employees who meet WRS eligibility requirements may be eligible for benefits offered through WRS.

A counseling related to performance improvement will generally take place prior to any initial disciplinary action and is not considered discipline, however any counseling given should be documented. Discipline may result when an employee’s actions do not conform with generally accepted standards of good behavior, when an employee violates a policy or rule, when an employee’s performance is not acceptable, or when the employee’s conduct is detrimental to the interests of Dodge County (the County). Formal disciplinary action may call for any of three steps – written warning, suspension (with or without pay) or termination of employment – depending on the problem and the number of occurrences. There may be circumstances when one or more steps are bypassed. Certain types of employee problems are serious enough to justify either a 3 08/05/14 suspension or termination of employment without going through progressive discipline steps. The County reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to impose disciplinary action as may be appropriate to the particular circumstances.

All information changes pertinent to the Personnel/Payroll record of an employee will be transmitted to the Human Resources Department, as soon as they occur on forms provided by the Human Resources Department. All information or changes of employee records, including but not limited to, new hires, terminations, changes of name and address, reclassifications, pay increases and other items, will be sent to the respective Human Resources Department (Administration Building or Clearview) to update the employee file. All forms will be completed as necessary and signed by the Department Head or other authorized person and the County Administrator, then sent to the Human Resources Department.

The determination of whether a position will be classified as exempt or non-exempt will be made in accordance with federal and state wage and hour laws. Exempt Employees Exempt employees will be paid on a salary basis. The salary will not be reduced based upon individual hours not worked but may be reduced when the employee absents himself from work for an entire day. Usage of accrued paid time off such as sick leave, vacation, etc., is not considered a reduction in salary and may be used in less than full day increments. Deductions will not be made for absences of exempt employees caused by jury duty or temporary military leave. Amounts received by an exempt employee as jury duty pay or military pay will, however, be offset against salary. Non-Exempt Employees Non-exempt employees are paid on an hourly basis for all hours actually worked. Non-exempt employees, at all locations except Clearview, will be paid one and one-half (1-1/2) times their regular rate of pay for all hours worked over forty (40) in a work week. Non-exempt employees at Clearview will be paid one and one-half (1-1/2) times their regular rate of pay for all hours worked over eight (8) hours per day or eighty (80) hours per pay period and for all hours worked on Sundays and Holidays.

It is the policy of Dodge County to recruit and select the most qualified persons for positions in Dodge County. In accordance with State Law and the guidelines of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, recruitment and selection will be conducted in an affirmative manner to provide equal employment opportunity to qualified individuals regardless of race, age, sex, religion, handicap or disability, marital status, sexual orientation, military service, national origin, political affiliation, or use or non-use of lawful products off the employer’s premises during non-working hours or any other 4 08/05/14 characteristic protected by state or federal law. Discrimination on the basis of age or sex or physical disability will be prohibited except where specific age, sex or physical requirements constitute a bona fide occupational qualification necessary for proper and efficient administration.

This policy is intended to comply with Section 66.0509(1m), Wis. Stats., and provides a grievance procedure addressing issues concerning workplace safety, discipline and termination. This policy applies to all employees covered under Section 66.0509(1m), Wis. Stats., other than law enforcement employees subject to Section 59.26(8) or Chapter 63, Wis. Stats. An employee may appeal any level of discipline under this grievance procedure.

For purposes of this policy, the following definitions apply:

1. Employee. For purposes of a grievance involving workplace safety, discipline and/or termination (as defined herein) an employee is defined as a regular full-time or regular part-time employee, limited-term employee, or seasonal employee. “Employee” shall not include employees subject to a collective bargaining agreement addressing employee discipline, termination and workplace safety; statutorily appointed individuals identified specifically in statute as serving at the pleasure of an appointing authority; elected officials; and independent contractors.

2. Employee Discipline. "Employee discipline" includes all levels of progressive discipline, but shall not include the following items:

• Performance evaluations or reviews;
• Placing an employee on paid administrative leave pending an internal investigation;
• Counselings, meetings or other pre-disciplinary action;
• Actions taken to address work performance, including use of a performance improvement plan or job targets;
• Action taken pursuant to an ordinance created under s.1959(1m);
• Non-disciplinary demotion, transfer or change in job assignment;
• Non-disciplinary wage, benefit, or salary adjustments;
• Other personnel actions taken by the employer that are not a form of progressive discipline; or
• Documentation of employee acts or omissions;

3. Employee Termination. "Employee termination" shall include action taken by the employer to terminate an individual's employment for disciplinary or quality of performance reasons, but shall not include the following personnel actions:

• Voluntary quit;
• Position elimination;
• Layoff or failure to be recalled from layoff;
• Furlough or reduction in work force;
• Job transfer including non-disciplinary demotion;
• Retirement;
• Job abandonment, “no-call, no-show”, or other failure to report to work;
• Termination of employment due to medical condition, lack of qualification or license, nonrenewal of contract, or other inability to perform job duties; or
• Termination due to end or completion of temporary employment, seasonal employment, contract employment, or assignment.

4. Frivolous Grievance. Any grievance that is false or misleading, factually baseless, in bad faith, or filed solely for purposes of intimidation, annoyance or harassment.

5. Grievant. The individual filing the grievance or appeal personally affected by the discipline, termination or workplace safety matters. A grievant is the only person who may file a grievance. The issues related to any grievance must relate to issues personal to the grievant filing the grievance and may not relate to matters affecting other parties.

6. Workplace Safety. “Workplace safety” shall be narrowly construed and not construed to include basic conditions of employment unrelated to physical health and safety. “Workplace Safety” means conditions of employment related to the physical health and safety of employees, as long as such conditions are not enforceable under state or federal law, and includes safety of the physical work environment, the safe operation of workplace equipment and tools, provision of protective equipment, training and warning requirements, workplace violence and accident risk. “Workplace safety” does not include conditions of employment unrelated to physical health and safety matters, including, but not limited to, hours, overtime, sick, family, or medical leave, work schedules, breaks, termination, vacation, performance reviews, and compensation.

Grievance Format

• Any written grievance filed under this policy must contain the following information:
• The name and position of the employee filing it,
• A statement of the issue involved,
• A statement of the relief sought,
• A detailed explanation of the facts supporting the grievance,
• Documentation related to the grievance in possession of the grievant,
• The date(s) the event(s) giving rise to the grievance took place,
• The identities of the persons involved,
• The identity of the policy, procedure or rule that is being challenged,
• The steps the employee has taken to review the matter, either orally or in writing, with the employee’s supervisor,
• All reasons why the actions of the supervisor should be overturned, if applicable, and
• The employee’s signature and the date.

A grievance alleging a workplace safety issue shall also identify the workplace rules allegedly violated, if applicable. By signing the grievance, the employee is declaring under penalty of law that the statements contained in a grievance are true and correct to the employee’s belief. Any employee who files a frivolous grievance is subject to disciplinary action. If a timely filed grievance is missing information or is incomplete it shall be not be considered and the grievant shall be notified of this determination within two (2) working days of receipt by the County.

Steps of the Grievance Procedure

Employees should first discuss complaints or questions with their immediate supervisor. Every reasonable effort should be made by supervisors and employees to resolve any questions, problems or misunderstandings that have arisen before filing a grievance. Before Filing A Grievance – Verbal Grievance and Dispute Resolution. Within five (5) business days of the termination, employee discipline or actual or reasonable knowledge of the workplace safety issue, and prior to filing a written grievance, the grievant must discuss the dispute with the supervisor who made the decision. The supervisor and employee must informally attempt to 6 08/05/14 resolve the dispute. The supervisor shall notify the department head of this meeting and the results of the meeting. If the dispute resolution involved the department head, the department head shall notify the County Administrator of this meeting and the results of the meeting.

Step 1 – Written Grievance Filed with the Department Head The employee must prepare and file a written grievance with the department head within ten (10) business days of when the employee knows, or should have known, of the events giving rise to the grievance. The department head or his/her designee will investigate the facts giving rise to the grievance and inform the employee of his/her decision, if possible within ten (10) business days of receipt of the grievance. In the event the grievance involves the department head, the employee may initially file the grievance with the County Administrator or his/her designee, who shall conduct the Step 1 investigation.

Step 2 – Review by County Administrator If the grievance is not settled at Step 1, the employee may appeal the grievance to the County Administrator, or his/her designee, within five (5) business days of the receipt of the decision of the department head at Step 1. The appeal shall indicate all reasons why the decision of the department head should be overturned. The County Administrator or his/her designee will review the matter and inform the employee of his/her decision, if possible within ten (10) business days of receipt of the grievance.

Step 3 – Impartial Hearing Officer If the grievance is not settled at Step 2, the employee may request in writing, within five (5) business days following receipt of the County Administrator’s decision, a request for written review by an impartial hearing officer. The County shall select the impartial hearing officer. The hearing officer shall not be a County employee. The impartial hearing officer shall have the sole authority to determine whether the impartial hearing officer has jurisdiction, which may be subject to review by the governmental body. In all cases, the grievant shall have the burden of proof to support the grievance. This process does not involve a hearing before a court of law; thus, the rules of evidence will not be followed. Depending on the issue involved, the impartial hearing officer will determine whether a hearing is necessary, or whether the case may be decided based on a submission of written documents. The impartial hearing examiner may admit all evidence that the impartial hearing officer determines is relevant and may exclude immaterial, irrelevant or unduly repetitious testimony or evidence. After the employee and the County have finished introducing evidence, the impartial hearing officer shall close the hearing. Prior to the close of the hearing, the County may request the impartial hearing officer for a determination that the grievance was frivolous. The parties shall have no right to file briefs or position statements following the hearing. The impartial hearing officer shall have the power to issue a response to the Grievance. The impartial hearing officer shall prepare a written decision. The impartial hearing officer must answer the following question: Based on the preponderance of the evidence presented, has the Grievant proven the decision of the Administration was arbitrary or capricious? The impartial hearing officer shall have no power to issue any remedy, but the impartial hearing officer may recommend a remedy. Remedial authority shall be subject to the determination and approval of the County Board, and shall be addressed by the County Board in the event the grievance is sustained.

Step 4 – Review by the Governing Body If the grievance is not resolved after Step 3, the employee or the County Administrator shall request within five (5) business days of receipt of the written decision from the hearing officer a written review by the County Board. The appeal shall be filed with the County Clerk. The County Board shall not take testimony or evidence; it may only determine whether the impartial hearing officer reached an arbitrary or capricious decision or incorrect result based on a review of the record before the impartial hearing officer. The matter will be scheduled for the County Board’s next regular meeting in closed session unless an open 7 08/05/14 session is requested by the employee. The County Board will inform the employee of its findings and decision in writing within twenty (20) business days of the County Board meeting unless the County Board extends this time frame. The County Board shall decide the matter by simple majority vote and this decision shall be final and binding.

Timeliness

An employee may not advance or file a grievance outside of the time limits set forth above. If the employee fails to meet the deadlines set forth above, the grievance will be considered resolved. If it is impossible to comply with the deadlines due to meeting notice requirements or meeting preparation, the grievance will be reviewed at the next possible meeting date. The failure of the grievant to follow the timelines and other requirements of this policy shall result in the impartial hearing officer not having jurisdiction over this matter and shall terminate the grievance procedure for that grievance.

Representation

The grievant shall have the right to representation at Step 3 of the grievance procedure at the grievant’s expense. The representative shall not be a material witness to the dispute. If the grievant intends to have representation, the grievant will notify the County at the time the grievant appeals the Step 2 decision, and shall identify the representative.

Processing of the Grievance

An employee must process his/her grievance outside of normal work hours, unless the employee elects to use accrued paid time (vacation, comp time etc.) in order to be paid for time spent processing his/her grievance through the various steps of the grievance procedure.

Exclusive Remedy

This procedure constitutes the exclusive process for the redress of any employee grievances as defined herein. However, nothing in this grievance procedure shall prevent any employee from addressing concerns regarding matters not subject to the grievance procedure with the administration, and employees are encouraged to do so. Matters not subject to the grievance procedure that are raised by employees shall be considered by County representatives who have final authority, subject to any applicable County policy or directive, to resolve the matter.

All applications for employment will be completed on-line through the County’s Talent Acquisition software. Prior to making a formal offer of employment to an external candidate, Dodge County requires the candidate to pass a pre-employment drug screen and background check.

Department Heads or designee will be responsible for working with Human Resources for the pre-employment drug screen. The Human Resources Department will be responsible for running the background check through the Wisconsin Department of Justice on-line system.

Please note: The Dodge County Sheriff’s Office, is responsible for all pre-employment testing, drug screen and background checks for positions within the Sheriff’s Office.

I. PURPOSE

The purpose of this policy is to clarify hours of work for non-exempt personnel for the various departments. Departmental specific policies are under the Guidelines section.

II. POLICY

A. Non-Exempt Work Schedules

1. The normal workweek for most full-time employees is forty (40) hours, however this should not be construed as a guarantee of work. The core workweek, for most employees, is defined as 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Thursday through Wednesday unless changed by the Department Head or as approved under an Alternative Work Schedule and Policy. This workweek and schedule does not apply to employees of the Sheriff’s Office, Clearview, and the Highway Department. Department Heads of those departments will establish appropriate work schedules as authorized by the County Administrator.

2. Department Heads, when authorized to do so by the County Administrator, may approve Alternative Work Schedules, provided the core hours are staffed by the employee and follows the Alternative Work Policy.

3. When prearranged work-related appointments would require an employee to work outside of his/her normal work day, the employee will adjust his/her work schedule so that the normal hours in a workweek are not exceeded. Approval of the supervisor is required for any overtime if unable to adjust the work schedule

4. When an employee requests to adjust his/her schedule to accommodate personal needs, it is at the discretion of the Department Head whether the employee will be allowed to adjust his/her schedule in the same manner as is allowed for prearranged work-related appointments

5. Employees allowed to adjust the work schedule for personal needs or have approved alternative work schedules must decrease paid time off (PTO, Vacation, Sick, etc.) if the work week exceeds 40 hours

6. Adjustments to schedules will generally not be permitted if the adjustment results in overtime or compensatory time.

B. Exempt Employees Work Schedule

1. Exempt employees are normally expected to work beyond the standard eighty (80) hour biweekly pay period, when required by their job responsibilities and work demands. These employees may occasionally adjust their normal work schedules due to working beyond the eighty (80) hour pay period.

2. An adjustment in an employee’s work schedule may result in time off on another day in the pay period or later in the calendar year. When an employee’s work schedule is adjusted, they are not required to use benefit time such as vacation, sick leave or PTO. The adjustment may include working less than eight (8) hours on a particular day and less than 80 hours in the pay period. It is preferred that adjustments occur within the pay period in which the additional hours are worked; however, if that is not possible, the adjustment may occur in other pay periods of the year.

3. At the discretion of the Supervisor and/or Department Head, this adjusted time off must be approved in advance. Adjustments in work schedules will not be approved on an hour for hour basis for all time worked beyond the eighty (80) hour pay period standard. Salaried, exempt employees should have no expectation of an hour for hour adjustment.

C. Breaks

Employees are entitled to two (2) ten (10) minute breaks when working an entire shift. Employees of Clearview, and the Physical Facilities Maintenance Department are entitled to one (1) fifteen (15) minute break. All employees who work six (6) or more hours in a single shift must take a thirty (30) minute lunch period each day. The thirty (30) minute lunch period will be without pay. Breaks cannot be combined for an extended break period.

III. GUIDELINES

A. Clearview Exempt Employees

1. Employees who are classified as Exempt status under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) may be eligible for flex-time for hours worked beyond their regular schedule. Flex- time is defined as one hour for each hour worked beyond the regular schedule, and is limited to a maximum of 40 hours. Employees are allowed to accrue and use flex-time in increments of 15 minutes or more. Hours are allowed to be carried over year to year and are never paid out. Employees are required to submit a request to use flex-time. Flex-time can only be used with the approval of the Supervisor.

B. Highway Department

1. Work Schedule

i. The normal schedule of work hours will be Monday through Friday, from 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., however many times operational needs may circumvent this schedule and require adjustments appropriately. When projects or weather conditions prevail, it will be necessary for management to start employees any time after 12:00 a.m., Employees who are scheduled to start other than at the normal start time (7:00 a.m., 6:00 a.m.) will be provided advance notice when possible.

ii. Management may schedule a four (4) day, ten (10) hours per day work week, as deemed necessary, based on workload, staffing levels and weather conditions. The four (4) day, ten (10) hours per day schedule shall start and end concurrently with the Dodge County pay period schedule. Employees shall be given 2 weeks’ notice of the seasonal schedule changes.

iii. During a week in which a paid holiday is celebrated, for purposes of this policy, a day is defined as the hours the employee is regularly scheduled to work on the day of the holiday. During the period in which a four (4) day workweek is in effect, vacation sick leave, or PTO, will be charged at ten (10) hours per day. (Note: A week of vacation, or PTO will equal forty (40) hours. It is understood that sick leave will be earned at the rate of eight (8) hours per month).

2. Breaks Employees will receive two (2) 10 minute paid breaks when working an eight (8) hour shift and will receive two (2) 15 minute paid breaks when working a ten (10) hour shift. Breaks will be taken at the job site, and to be scheduled as to not disrupt the project efficiency and cannot be combined together and taken as one break.

3. Maximum Hours Employees may work a maximum shift of sixteen (16) hours with a minimum of eight (8) hours off, unless emergency conditions exist.

4. Winter On-Call

i. Employees are required to be available on a call-in basis, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, when weather or other conditions may require. Employees will be given advance notice of when the on-call period begins and when it is no longer in effect (normally in effect during the period between November 15th and April 1st).

ii. Winter On-Call Pay Employees will receive an additional $100 per pay period for the pay periods for the winter season. For this purpose only, employees are eligible for the additional $100 per pay period beginning with the first full pay period on or after November 15th and will continue to receive the additional $100 per pay period through the full pay period ending on or immediately following April 1st. The employee will not be eligible for the additional $100 for the pay period, if anytime during the pay period the employee is excused from on-call availability as per below, fails to respond within 1 hour of notification as per below, any unscheduled paid sick time, unpaid time, or on an approved leave of absence as per below.

iii. Staffing Levels Provisions will be made to allow up to a total of four (4) employees department-wide to be excused from response if a written request was given to the supervisor 48 hours in advance and approved by the supervisor. The four employee total includes persons previously approved for vacation, PTO, persons on leave of absence, etc. Requests to be excused which are submitted less than 48 hours prior to the requested time to be excused from on-call availability may be given consideration if fewer than four persons have been previously excused, or if the Highway Commissioner or his designee determines that it is feasible to allow an additional employee to be excused.

iv. Reporting Employees that are not excused from response and fail to report to work within 1 hour of notification will receive a counseling each time they fail to respond. The Highway Commissioner or his designee will determine the appropriate time to begin disciplinary action based on repeated counseling’s. It is recognized that some highway department positions will be exempt from this requirement.

C. Physical Facilities Maintenance Physical Facilities Maintenance employees will work shift assignments determined by management, which may include split shifts or shifts that rotate between first shift and second shift hours.

D. Sheriff’s Office

1. Switch Work

An employee may, upon approval of management, switch work hours with another employee provided, however, it does not result in any overtime. Exempt status employees will not be allow to switch work hours with a non-exempt employee.

2. Sheriff’s Office 12 Hour Shifts

The Sheriff Office has developed a twelve (12) hour work schedule for employees in the Correctional, Communications, and Patrol divisions. (Sworn Association employees 12-hour shift provisions are outlined in the Sworn Agreement.) The twelve (12) hour schedule may be discontinued at any time by the Sheriff. The twelve (12) hour schedule will be based upon a rotation determined by Administration for employees designated under section 7(k) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). Employees who are not designated under section 7(k) of FLSA will be paid overtime or compensatory time at the employee’s choice for any hours eligible under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

i. Work Schedule The twelve (12) hour work schedule rotation will be assigned by the Sheriff’s Office Administration. Work Back Hours (Employees designated 7(k) of FLSA only) Under the twelve (12) hour work schedules, qualifying employees will be scheduled to work twelve (12) hours per day. Employees will be required to take 104 workback hours during the calendar year. i. Effective May 30, 2024 (or as soon as configurated) Lieutenants working 12-hours shifts will be paid actual hours worked and required to take 110 hours of unpaid workback hours during the calendar year.

ii. Effective December 26, 2024 all employees working 12-hours shifts will be paid actual hours worked and required to take 104 hours of unpaid workback hours during the calendar year.

iii. The work back hours will not be considered overtime hours or paid hours.

iv. Employees will be allowed to use the banked work back hours in lieu of regular scheduled work hours over the course of the calendar year at the approval of the Sheriff or his/her designee.

v. It is the employee’s responsibility to ensure that work back hours are used before the end of each calendar year. If not, a Supervisor may schedule the work back hours at their discretion to ensure all hours are used before the end of each year.

vi. The use of work back hours will not be allowed to create overtime. vii. Workback hours will be pro-rated for new hires and transfers. ii. Overtime For overtime calculation purposes for qualified classifications, the County has declared a twenty eight (28) days (171 hours) “7(k)” work period which is pursuant to the provisions of the FLSA. Overtime compensation at time and one-half (taken as pay or compensatory time) shall be earned when an employee is in excess of his/her regularly scheduled twelve (12) hour shift in any one shift for employees in either FLSA designation. Employees designated under 7(k) of the FLSA that work more than one hundred seventy-one (171) hours in a twenty-eight (28) day work period, shall receive overtime or compensatory time, with the exception of the work back hours.

iii. Other Important Provisions

i. Training When an employee is assigned to attend training and training is less than twelve (12) hours for employees on the twelve (12) hour work schedule, the employee shall pre-arrange with their supervisor to make up the work hours or use banked paid time off to cover the remaining hours, subject to advanced approval by the supervisor.

ii. Holidays Holidays will continue pursuant to Policy #207-Holidays. Employee will be granted 80 hours on January 1 of each year and may be used in increments of up to twelve (12) hours. Holiday hours will be prorated if an officer is assigned after January 1, transfers out of the twelve (12) hour schedule or leaves employment.

iii. Sick Leave Sick Leave will continue pursuant to Policy #214-Sick Leave. Sick leave is earned at 8 hours per month and may be used in increments of up to twelve (12) hours.

iv. Vacation/PTO Vacation and PTO will continue pursuant to policy #218-Vacation and Paid Time Off Policy. Vacation will continue to be earned as a maximum number of hours per years of service and may be used in increments of up to twelve (12) hours.

v. All efforts will be made to avoid fatigue of the employees working the twelve (12) hour work schedule to avoid working more than seven (7) consecutive days at a stretch and no more than sixteen (16) hours straight. This does not include mandatory court appearances or other emergency situations. In case of mandatory court appearances, the employee at their option, can utilize all or part of the court appearance as time worked for their next scheduled shift, if that shift is scheduled less than twelve (12) hours from the end of the court appearance. The employee must notify their supervisor in advance so arrangements for proper coverage can be made.

E. Circuit Court

1. Hours of Work

i. Bailiffs shall be scheduled for court hearings and trials, as needed. Bailiffs shall be paid a minimum of four (4) hours per day for court hearings and trials. ii. Bailiffs may be required to attend meetings and trainings. Bailiffs shall be paid a minimum of two (2) hours per day for meetings and trainings.

IV. PROCEDURE

None

On occasion it is considered to be in the mutual best interest of Dodge County and its employees to allow two employees to share (job share) one full-time position. It is at the Department Head’s discretion as to whether job sharing will be allowed for a certain position, and this decision should be reviewed at least annually in conjunction with the budget process.

The County Administrator has final approval over whether a position may be job shared. The County reserves the right to at any time and for any reason rescind the decision to allow job sharing of a position. The job share arrangement must not result in increased costs to, the County, including administrative and overtime compensation. For purposes of budgeting, departmental organization, and staffing considerations such as layoff and recall, the position which is job-shared will be considered one regular full-time position.

The job share employees are responsible for coverage of the position during normally scheduled hours. These employees are responsible for communicating with each other to assure such coverage. The schedule must be approved by the unit supervisor. The employee scheduled to work a particular day/time will be expected to work and will be held accountable for any work missed, unless the supervisor has approved a change to the work schedule. If either employee desires regular full-time status, he/she will be given consideration for other positions based on the existing procedure for requesting consideration for a different position.

If either employee vacates their portion of the job share position, and should the County have any problem refilling that vacancy, the County may require the remaining employee to return to regular full-time status either temporarily or on a long-term, continuing basis. If the job-share is initiated as a result of one or more employees requesting a voluntary reduction in the number of hours he/she was working prior to the effective date of the job share, that/those employee(s) reduction in hours may be considered a "quit" for purposes of Wisconsin Unemployment Insurance. Any wages that he/she may earn while working the reduced hours of the job share may not be used to satisfy the quit re-qualification provision.

All employees and elected and appointed officials are issued a photograph identification card through either the Human Resources Department or the Sheriff’s Department. Identification cards will have the individual’s first and last name on the front of the card. For reasons of safety or security a department head may recommend that only the employee’s first name be printed on the front of the card, and if the request is granted by the Human Resources Director or the Director’s designee, the employee’s first and last name will be printed on the back of the card.

Identification cards may also be issued to individuals providing volunteer or special services and for whom the respective department head has requested that they be issued a card. Employees of the Sheriff’s Department and Clearview will be issued photograph identification cards which will also be used for time reporting and/or building access. Clearview employees will make arrangements immediately to have any lost cards replaced.

A Sheriff’s Department employee who looses or forgets his or her identification/access card may be issued a temporary access card for a period of no more than one week, and the employee will be required to obtain a new identification/access card after one week. Department Heads who routinely have volunteers, contractors, visitors and clients accessing their work area will be issued temporary access cards, without photograph or individual identification, which will be provided on a daily basis to the non-employee for identification as a person with authorized access. Upon completion of business, and/or no later than the end of the business day, the temporary ID card must be returned to the Department Head authorizing the ID card.

Exceptions: Employees with ID Badges may escort visitors, clients, etc. as business needs require. Immediate family members visiting residents of Clearview do not need to be issued identification cards.

Display

All employees and Elected and Appointed Officials will wear their identification card so it is visible whenever performing duties relating to their County employment or representation. The card will be worn on the front of the outermost garment, with the name and photograph visible. The exception to this is employees who routinely work outdoors, such as Highway, Land Resources and Parks, and Sheriff’s Department employees, who will carry the identification card with them at all times when performing duties relating to County employment, and will provide the card upon request.

Replacement

Employees losing their badge must report the loss immediately to the issuing department, i.e., Human Resources Department or the Sheriff’s Department. Employees losing or damaging their identification card must have another card made at a charge to the employee of five dollars ($5.00). Charges for replacement of an identification/access card will be eight dollars ($8.00). If the replacement is necessary due to ordinary wear and tear in the course of employment, name change, or change of department or employment status, the five dollar ($5.00) or eight dollar ($8.00) fee will not be charged to the employee.  Should an employee later find his/her lost card, either it or the replacement must be surrendered to the employee’s department head or supervisor.

Unauthorized Use

Allowing use of the card by any other person, or other unauthorized use, is considered to be a serious infraction and may be grounds for disciplinary action which may include immediate suspension or termination.

Return

Identification cards remain the property of Dodge County and must be returned to the issuing department, i.e., Human Resources or Sheriff’s Department, at the time of termination on or prior to the employee’s last day of work.

Policy Enforcement

Department heads and supervisors will be responsible for enforcing this policy, and for reporting any serious violations of the policy to the Human Resources Department. Employees found to be in willful violation of the policy may be disciplined.

When new positions are created, or when it is determined that an existing or anticipated job vacancy will be filled, current Dodge County employees will be made aware of the job opportunity by means of a job posting procedure. A notice of the job opportunity will be posted in a designated area within each department for a period of time as determined by the Department Head and the Human Resources Department. Unless unusual circumstances warrant different consideration, this period of time will be a minimum of five (5) working days, excluding weekend days and holidays.

Current employees who indicate interest in the posted position will be given consideration, and external candidates may be considered at the same time. Selection of the individual to fill the open position will be based upon the individual’s qualifications for the position, including education, work experience, job performance, skills and abilities, and attendance. Prior experience performing the duties specific to the position, as well as familiarity with the operations of the department and the County will be considered desirable qualifications.

I. PURPOSE

The purpose of this policy is to establish guidelines regarding employee promotions, lateral transfers, progressions and demotions.

II. POLICY

It is the policy of Dodge County to provide employees with opportunities to enhance their career in a process that ensures fairness, consistency, and transparency for promotions, lateral transfers, progressions and demotions.

III. STANDARDS

A. Definitions

1. Promotion: Date on which the employee is transferred to a different position that is in a higher paygrade than the current position.

2. Demotion: Date on which the employee is transferred to a different position that is in a lower paygrade either voluntary or involuntary.

3. Progression: Date on which the employee meets the requirements to move to the next level of the position. (i.e. Social Worker I, II or Senior; Clinician I, II, III or IV). The requirements are defined in each respective job description.

4. Lateral Transfer: Date on which the employee is transferred to a different position that is in the same paygrade.

B. Prior to the final decision on step placement or wage rate in the open range in any of the scenarios included in this policy, Human Resources will analyze the transferring employee’s wage rate in relation to the incumbent(s) wage rate(s) and years of direct experience to ensure equity within the classification.

IV. GUIDELINES

A. Promotion

1. Employees will receive a 5% increase or the starting pay of the position, whichever is higher on the date in which the employee is promoted to the new position. If 5% is between two steps, the pay will move up to the next step.

2. Employees who are promoted and whose position is on the Dodge County Compensation Schedule will receive the Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) increase, as approved by the County Board of Supervisors, on January 1st of each year regardless of the amount of time that employee has been in the position.

3. Employees will receive a step increase on July 1st following the effective date of the promotion, as approved by the County Board of Supervisors. Future wage step/merit increases will follow the Performance Management Policy.

4. The County Administrator, at their discretion, may approve a wage for any step on the Compensation Structure up to market or up to an additional 5%, whichever is greater, under the following circumstances:

i. The employee exceeds the minimum years of direct, related experience detailed in the job description of the position promoting to.

ii. The employee has demonstrated an expertise level in the area of responsibilities for the position promoting to.

iii. Market conditions for difficult to fill positions.

B. Demotion

1. Employees will be placed in a step that provides the least amount of decrease in pay if the pay falls within steps 1-4 of the paygrade of the new position or at least a 2.5% decrease in pay if the pay falls within the open range of the paygrade of the new position.

i. Pay is determined by an analysis by Human Resources based on years of related experience of the employee demoting as well as the years of experience and pay rate of existing employees in the same position.

2. Employees who are demoted and whose position is on the Dodge County Compensation Schedule will receive the Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) increase, as approved by the County Board of Supervisors, on January 1st of each year regardless of the amount of time that employee has been in the position.

3. Employees will receive a step increase on July 1st following the effective date of the demotion. Future wage step/open range increases will follow the Performance Management Policy.

C. Progression

1. Employees will receive a 2.5% increase in pay or the starting pay of the position, whichever is higher, on the progression effective date. If 2.5% is between two steps, the pay will move up to the next step.

2. Employees in positions on the Dodge County Compensation Schedule will receive the Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) increase on January 1st of each year regardless of the amount of time that employee has been in new level, as approved by the County Board of Supervisors.

3. Employees will receive a step increase on July 1st following the effective date of the progression, as approved by the County Board of Supervisors. Future wage step/open range increases will follow the Performance Management Policy.

D. Lateral Transfer

1. There will be no adjustment to the employees pay for moving to a new position within the same paygrade.

2. Employees will receive Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) and the next step/open range increases, as approved by the County Board of Supervisors, as if no position change had occurred.

V. PROCEDURE NA

I. PURPOSE

The purpose of this policy is to clarify employment status positions.

II. POLICY

Employment status positions will apply to all County Departments and operations.

III. GUIDELINES

A. Full-time Employee

1. A full time employee is one who is ordinarily scheduled to work forty (40) hours per week, depending on departmental work weeks, on a regular basis of fifty-two (52) weeks per year.
2. Full Time employees are eligible for all County benefits including: health, dental and life insurance; retirement benefits, longevity (if hired prior to 10/8/2020), vacation or Paid Time Off (PTO) if hired after 01/01/2022, holidays, sick leave, Section 125 flexible spending accounts, Section 457 deferred compensation, voluntary long-term disability, vision, as well as Social Security contributions and Worker's Compensation Insurance.

B. Part-time +20 Hours Employee

A part-time employee is one who is ordinarily scheduled to work twenty (20) or more hours per week depending on departmental work weeks, on a regular basis of fifty-two (52) weeks per year and is eligible for County benefits offered to full time employees on a pro-rated basis, provided the employee meets the eligibility requirements for each benefit. Employees involved in a job-share arrangement are considered part-time employees for the purpose of determining eligibility for benefits.

C. Part-time -20 Hours Employee

A part-time employee at all locations who works less than twenty (20) hours per week is not eligible for County benefits except Social Security and Worker's Compensation, and also benefits offered through the Wisconsin Retirement System based on Employee Trust Funds (ETF) eligibility.

D. Temporary, Flexi-temp, Seasonal and Limited-term Employee

Temporary, Flexi-temp, seasonal and limited-term employees are hired for specific periods of time, are not considered regular employees, and are not eligible for County benefits. Temporary, Flexi-temp, seasonal and limited-term employees who meet WRS eligibility requirements may be eligible for benefits offered through WRS.

IV. PROCEDURE

A. PRORATED HEALTH AND DENTAL INSURANCE

Unless otherwise specified, part-time employees eligible for and enrolled in health insurance, dental insurance or any other prorated insurance benefit must pay a pro-rated portion of the insurance premiums.

1. Premium amounts for new hires are determined based on the full-time equivalence of the position hired for.
2. After a minimum of one year of employment, premium amounts are determined based on the full-time equivalence of the hours paid (excluding overtime) the previous full calendar year.

Layoff

When it is necessary for the County to reduce its workforce, consideration will be given within each department to the services determined to be most critical and/or the availability of funding for positions. The Department Head, in consultation with the County Administrator and the Human Resources Director, will identify the positions that will be subject to layoff. Advance notice of at least two weeks, whenever possible, will be given to the effected employee. When a decision must be made between two or more employees holding the same position as to which employee is to be laid off, consideration will be given to job performance, skills and abilities, attendance and length of service.

When all other qualifications are relatively equal consideration will be given to retaining the employee with the greatest length of service. An employee who is notified of layoff may request that special consideration be given to his/her ability to perform the current duties and responsibilities of another position within the department, without further training or familiarization. The determination of whether to retain the employee will be at the sole discretion of the Department Head and will be made on a case by case basis.

Recall from Layoff

An employee who has been placed on layoff status may be subject to recall within a fifteen (15) month period. When a job opportunity occurs, consideration will be given to employees on layoff status concurrently with other internal and external candidates. An employee on layoff who is given consideration for a job opening will make himself/herself available to discuss the position with the Department Head or his/her designee. An employee on layoff who is offered recall to the position must accept or decline the position within one week of the offer, and must return to work within two weeks of having accepted the position, or at a later date as determined by management.

An employee on layoff who declines an offer of employment without sufficient reason as determined by management is considered to have voluntarily terminated his/her employment. Employees on layoff who do not respond when contacted (generally within one week of contact) will be considered to have voluntarily terminated their employment relationship with the County.

When an employee is considered to have voluntarily terminated as described herein, a notification will be sent to the employee at his/her last known address. An employee on layoff who for good reason was unable to respond in a timely manner, whether due to severe illness, prolonged travel or similar type of reason, may appeal the voluntary termination to the Human Resources Director within a two week period of the attempted contact. The decision of the Human Resources Director will be final and will not be considered a decision related to discipline.

Eligibility for certain benefits and consideration under certain policies and procedures are based on the length of service of an employee. Regular full-time and regular part-time employees will accrue credit for length of service based on actual paid time earned and received by that employee.

While an employee’s length of service may qualify him/her for a specific level of benefit (i.e., one week of vacation after six months, two weeks of vacation after one year, etc.), periods of unpaid absence will not be considered in the calculation of the level of benefit that a non-exempt employee will be credited with for the year.

In other words, a non-exempt employee who has unpaid time will have his/her benefits pro-rated based on the calculation of his/her paid time over the period of the prior year in comparison to fulltime hours for his/her position, i.e., accrued vacation that is available on the employee’s next anniversary date will be pro-rated based on his/her paid time since the employee’s last anniversary date.

In addition to vacation, other benefits that may be pro-rated based on unpaid time include holiday pay, longevity and sick leave accrual. Part-time benefit-eligible employees will 13 08/05/14 also have their benefits pro-rated. Refer to the specific policy for each benefit for further information. Employees on military leave will be entitled to all benefits and seniority rights afforded them under federal or state law.

Dodge County will follow an established orientation procedure. Where applicable, all new or promoted County employees will receive orientation of all necessary policies and procedures, including Harassment Prevention training.

On the first day of employment, or the first opportunity during the first payroll period, all new employees will meet with the immediate supervisor or his/her designee who will advise the new employee of all general conditions of employment such as County rules, hours of work, pay and the privileges and responsibilities of the position. Each employee will also receive a copy of his/her job description and other relevant literature.

The department head and/or supervisor will orient each new employee to the conditions related to his/her job and worksite. This will include introductions to fellow workers, work standards, workplace safety including Hazard Communication, break periods, supplies and so on. An Orientation Checklist will be completed covering all pertinent items.

The Dodge County Insurance and Benefits Coordinator or a designee will meet with new employees on the first day of employment or as soon as possible thereafter to obtain information necessary for personnel records, and provide orientation and enrollment in benefits for which the employee is eligible.

All new full-time employees will serve a six (6) month orientation period. The orientation period may be extended by any days the employee is absent due to unpaid leave of absence or other extended absences. New part-time employees will serve orientation period equal to six (6) months of full-time hours. A new hire orientation period may be extended beyond the six (6) month period if the Department Head determines that an additional amount of time is needed to effectively evaluate the employee’s ability to assume the responsibilities of the position.

The orientation period for new full-time employees of the Sheriff’s Department will be one year. For new full-time Sworn Officers the one year period begins upon the completion of the FTO Program. For new full-time Non-sworn Correctional Officers and Communications Officers the one year period begins upon the completion of the CTO Program. An employee who is transferred into a different position may be required to serve an orientation period of up to ninety (90) days in the new position.

The Department Head will make the determination of whether the employee will serve an orientation period, determine the length of the orientation period, and will make the determination at any time during the orientation period whether the employee has shown the ability to assume the responsibilities of the position. An orientation period may be extended if the Department Head determines that an additional amount of time is needed to effectively evaluate the employee’s ability to assume the responsibilities of the position.

I. PURPOSE

The purpose of this policy is to clarify payment of overtime pay for non-exempt personnel for the various departments and divisions and to also ensure compliance with the varied Fair Labor Standards requirements associated with County operations.

II. POLICY

Payment for all approved overtime hours worked in excess of 40 hours per week will be compensated at 1½ times the employee’s regular rate of pay, unless stated otherwise. Overtime pay varies by department and position. Certain positions may provide for a schedule of work that includes hours in excess of eight (8) per day or a schedule that includes work on a weekend day. Those positions will be compensated for overtime worked in excess of the normal schedule for that position, if the total hours worked are considered a full-time schedule. Overtime is paid in increments of 15 minutes. Any overtime worked less than eight (8) minutes will not be considered for compensatory time or overtime pay. No Employee may take less than fifteen (15) minutes compensatory time off at one time. Specific policies for specific departments are noted in the following paragraphs. If a department is not noted, overtime is paid after 40 hours in a workweek.

III. GUIDELINES

A. Clearview Employees

1. There will be no overtime paid for traded days requested by employees unless the time worked would otherwise qualify for overtime, i.e. work on Sunday
2. Employees who are scheduled to work holidays or are called back to work after the end of the work day will be compensated at one and one-half (1½ ) times the normal rate of pay
3. Overtime calculation for Clearview employees will be based on one of the following two assigned pay classifications. The overtime rule is identified in each position posting. a. 8 hours per day and 80 hour per pay period, which is defined by rule 778.601 under Sections 7 (j) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). b. 40 hours per week as defined by the provisions contained in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

B. Highway Department

1. Hours worked on weekends and holidays will be compensated at 1½ times the employee’s regular rate of pay. Work performed on Christmas Day will be compensated at double time.
2. Hours worked in excess of eight (8) hours (which are paid at the employee’s regular rate of pay) will be compensated at 1½ times the employee’s regular rate of pay. During the months in which summer hours are in effect those employees who are subject to the summer hours will be compensated at 1½ times the employee’s regular rate of pay for hours worked in excess of ten (10). Exception: Employees who begin work prior to 7:00 a.m. (6:00 a.m. during the summer) will be paid at 1½ times their regular rate of pay for hours worked prior to 7:00 a.m. Employees who begin work after 7:00 a.m. will be paid at 1½ times their regular rate of pay for hours worked in excess of eight (8) in a day (ten (10) hours during the period that summer hours are in effect) their regular rate of pay for hours worked prior to 5:00 a.m.

C. Sheriff’s Office

Sheriff’s Office Employees Overtime calculation for additional work performed other than on a normal, regular scheduled workday will be based on Section 7(k) of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Employees will receive 1½ times their regular rate of pay for all hours worked in excess of their normal, regular scheduled workday except for the following:

1. Sheriff’s Office Sworn Employees: Any Employee who works for more than eight (8) hours in any twenty-four (24) hour period at his/her own request and who is not required to do so by the County will not be entitled to overtime for such work.
2. Officers participating in the One-on-One Squad Program may be called to duty one (1) hour prior to and held over one (1) hour after their scheduled shift at their regular rate of pay. If a One-on-One officer, while working regularly scheduled shift, is given an assignment that would require him/her to work beyond their normal shift, hours will be eligible for overtime pay. This shall not apply to assignments that are anticipated to be less than one hour in duration, for example, escorts, special traffic enforcement, traffic control or prisoner transports.
3. Sheriff’s Office Non-sworn Employees: Any Employee who works for more than eight (8) hours in any twenty-four (24) hour period at his/her own request and who is not required to do so by the County will not be entitled to overtime for such work.
4. The Relief Communication Officers and Relief Corrections Officers will not receive overtime compensation unless they average thirty-seven and one-half (37.5) or more hours in a six (6) week period.
5. If an employee is requested to work a second consecutive shift, it will be at 1½ times their regular rate of pay.

IV. PROCEDURE

A. Overtime Pre-Approval

1. Any employee overtime hours must be pre-approved by the employee's supervisor or department head. Non-exempt employees cannot authorize any overtime hours of work for themselves or any other employee.
2. Employees who request to work outside of their normal schedule will have such overtime hours preapproved by their supervisor or department head.
3. When an unusual circumstance occurs which results in an employee performing essential work beyond his/her normal schedule without preapproval, the employee will discuss the matter with his/her Department Head as soon as possible and the Department Head will make the determination of whether overtime payment will be approved after the fact or whether the employee will be required to adjust his/her work schedule within the balance of the current work week to accommodate the additional time worked.
4. Employees requesting overtime hours must complete and submit a request for overtime hours form to their supervisor or department head for pre-approval.
5. Employees who do not comply with pre-approval or the alternate method of approval after-the-fact may face disciplinary action.
6. Individual departments may establish overtime work conditions which may waive the preapproval rule. Such conditions will be posted by the department head for their employees.

Overtime will be generally be assigned to the employee most qualified to perform the work. Whenever feasible, employees working in the same job classification and generally performing the same job duties will be given the opportunity to be trained to perform duties that routinely result in overtime. The Department Head may assign overtime on a rotation basis if two or more employees are equally qualified to perform the overtime work.

I. PURPOSE

The purpose of this policy is to provide guidelines to employees on earned compensatory time.

II. POLICY

A. Non-exempt employees (see below for Sheriff, Clearview and Highway), may earn compensatory time at the rate of time and one-half (1-1/2) and may elect the time off in lieu of overtime payments. Compensatory time may be accumulated into a running account up to a maximum of two hundred forty (240) hours. All hours accumulated above the maximum will be paid out to the employee on the next appropriate check.

B. Compensatory time is for overtime already worked. Employees may not take compensatory time off and then work the overtime.

III. STANDARDS

A. Sheriff’s Office

1. Non-union employees are allowed to convert a combined total of eighty (80) hours of their vacation and holiday pay to compensatory time per calendar year. Vacation conversions must be done by the first pay date in December of each year. Holiday pay will not be allowed to be converted except for the first pay date in December of each year.
2. Sworn Association employees will follow the Sworn Association Agreement.

B. Clearview

1. Only designated employees in office/clerical positions may be eligible for compensatory time.
2. Clearview Department Heads and Assistant Department Heads may be eligible for flex time for hours worked beyond their regular schedule. Flex time is defined as one hour for each hour worked beyond the regular schedule and is limited to a maximum of 40 hours. 

C. Highway

1. Non-exempt employees, may earn compensatory time at the rate of time and onehalf (1-1/2) and may elect the time off in lieu of overtime payments. Compensatory time may be accumulated into a rolling account up to a maximum of eighty (80) hours. All hours accumulated above the maximum will be paid out to the employee on the next appropriate check.

IV. PROCEDURE

A. All compensatory time accounts will be paid out to the Employees on the first pay date in December, in order to bring the compensatory time accounts to zero.

B. Employees will not be allowed to earn or use any compensatory time in the month of December and will be paid overtime in lieu of earning compensatory time.

V. GUIDELINES

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The payroll period is two weeks and begins on a Thursday and ends on a Wednesday for employees of Clearview, and for all other employees begins on a Saturday and ends on a Friday.

Payday for County employees is every other Friday. The payroll earnings and deductions statement that an employee receives will indicate regular hours worked, the employee's rate of pay, overtime hours worked and all deductions made, within the limits of the payroll system.

To allow sufficient time for preparation of payrolls, an employee’s salary is delayed for one week following the period in which it is earned so that the Friday payroll deposit covers the work performed during the payroll period ending one week previous. Payrolls for Highway Department employees are delayed for two weeks.

Dodge County requires mandatory direct deposit of all payroll earnings into an account at a U.S. financial institution of the employee’s choice.

Certain deductions from your pay must be made. Federal laws require that income and social security taxes be withheld from your check.

State Laws require the withholding of an additional amount for income tax purposes. Employees may authorize additional deductions, for United Way contributions, life insurance, credit union, deferred compensation, etc. Non-court ordered wage assignments (garnishments) will not be honored.

Dodge County reserves the right to limit the number of payroll deductions according to the capabilities of the payroll system.

I. PURPOSE

The purpose of this policy is to adopt an equitable performance management system focused on creating a work environment in which employees are empowered to perform to the best of their ability. Managers play a critical role in the performance management system and are responsible for clarifying job duties, defining performance standards, and discussing and documenting performance throughout the year.

II. POLICY

A. PERFORMANCE EVALUATIONS

1. Performance evaluations are based on the principle of no surprises – nothing should appear on the performance evaluation that the employee has not seen or heard before. The performance evaluation process requires equal participation of employees and managers.

2. Employees shall receive a formal objective performance evaluation annually. The performance evaluation shall be based only on job related behavior and reflects the cumulative performance of the employee throughout the review period. Events that occurred outside of the rating period shall not be included.

3. All annual performance evaluations must be completed in UKG Pro.

a. Employee self-assessments are launched six weeks prior to the employee’s anniversary date and due one month prior to the employee anniversary date.

b. Employee annual evaluations are launched to the managers one month before the employee’s anniversary date and due on the employee anniversary date.

4. Full time and part time benefit-eligible employees whose position is on the Dodge County Compensation Schedule will progress through the wage schedule based on the employee’s receipt of a “meets expectation” rating on the annual performance evaluation. Those employees in “open-step” will receive an openstep increase, as established in the annual budget.

a. Newly hired employees will be eligible for the yearly step or “open-step” increase after completing at least 6 months of employment.

5. Performance Ratings The performance ratings are the objective opinion of the manager based on expectations. The Human Resources Department will review all annual performance evaluations to ensure proper documentation and justification is provided. An overall score of Meets Expectations is defined as no more than two (2) competencies scored as “Needs Improvement” for non-supervisory staff and no more than three (3) competencies as “Needs Improvement” for supervisory staff.

Score Definition

1. Needs Improvement: Indicates a need to acquire skills, additional knowledge, and/or experience in the competency area. May need additional training. Scores in this area may be attributed to being new to the position or responsibility.
2. Meets Expectations: Has an understanding and grasp of the essentials to accomplish the duties assigned in the competency and position. Rarely needs direction; anticipates and provides assistance. Meets the competency within the scope of the position’s job responsibilities, skills and knowledge of the job description, including any assigned specialty areas.

An employee who believes the performance rating is unfair or inaccurate may contest the evaluation as an appeal by rejecting the electronic evaluation and submitting a written rebuttal with examples and documentation to the manager within 10 days of receiving the evaluation. The manager will review and meet with the employee within 10 days of the written request to discuss and reconsider the evaluation. If the employee is dissatisfied with the outcome, the employee may submit a written appeal to the Department Head within 10 days. The Department Head must respond with a decision within 10 days. The Department Head decision is final with no other appeal option. Upon completion of the appeal process, the employee must electronically accept the evaluation to indicate completion of the appeal process, regardless if the employee agrees with the evaluation. All appeal documentation must be submitted to Human Resources upon completion of the appeal process for the employee file.

B. EMPLOYEE TRANSFER

An employee who is transferred into a different position may be required to serve an orientation period. The Department Head will make the determination of whether the employee will serve an orientation period, determine the length of the orientation period, and will make the determination at any time during the orientation period whether the employee has shown the ability to assume the responsibilities of the position. An orientation period may be extended if the Department Head determines that an additional amount of time is needed to effectively evaluate the employee’s ability to assume the responsibilities of the position or may be extended by any days the employee is absent due to unpaid leave of absence or other extended absences.

C. NEW HIRE ORIENTATION PERIOD

All new full-time and part-time benefit eligible employees will serve a six (6) month orientation period. The orientation period may be extended by any days the employee is absent due to unpaid leave of absence or other extended absences. A new hire orientation period may be extended beyond the six (6) month period if the Department Head determines that an additional amount of time is needed to effectively evaluate the employee’s ability to assume the responsibilities of the position. The orientation period for new full-time Correctional Officers and 911 Communications Officers employees of the Sheriff’s Office will be one year. Please see the Sworn Association Agreement for probationary period requirements for Sworn Association employees. Managers will be required to complete two orientation period evaluations, one at 3 months of employment and one 2 weeks prior to six months of employment. If the Department Head decides to extend the orientation period they must communicate in writing to the Human Resources Director the reason(s) why the extension is needed prior to the expiration of the six (6) month orientation period.

III. STANDARDS

A. FAILURE TO MEET PERFORMANCE STANDARDS

Throughout employment, managers should have ongoing conversations with all employees about their performance. Employees need to be coached and counseled at the first signs of performance problems to facilitate improvement. In some cases, an employee may need additional training or resources to be able to fully perform in his or her job. Whenever possible, informal feedback, coaching, additional training and/or the development of a performance improvement plan should be conducted prior to any disciplinary procedures depending on the severity of performance deficiency. However, according to Policy 105-Discipline, “certain types of employee problems are serious enough to justify either a suspension or termination of employment without going through the progressive discipline steps.”

1. A Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) is a tool to provide an employee with performance deficiencies the opportunity to succeed. It may be used to address failures, to meet specific job goals or to improve behavior-related concerns. Outcomes of a PIP may vary, including improvement in overall performance; the recognition of a skill or training gap; or possible employment actions such as a transfer, demotion or termination.

IV. PROCEDURE

A. PERFORMANCE IMROVEMENT PLAN (PIP)

1. Department Heads must contact the Human Resources Department to discuss whether a PIP is the appropriate action for the situation.

2. The PIP must include: a. Information on what acceptable performance levels are and how the employee's current performance is deficient. Specifics regarding the unacceptable performance should be given including dates, data and detailed explanations. Attach the job description and any relevant employer policies to further clarify expectations.

b. Specific and measurable objectives that are achievable, relevant and time-bound (otherwise known as SMART goals).

c. Guidance on what management will do or provide to assist the employee in achieving these goals, such as additional resources, training or coaching.

d. Details on how often the manager and employee will meet to discuss progress. This is often done once a week, but may vary depending on the circumstances.

e. Clearly stated consequences for not meeting the objectives of the plan. Options may include demotion, transfer to a different position, discipline or termination.

3. The Human Resources Director or his/her designee must approve all Performance Improvement Plans (PIP’s) prior to the plan being issued to the employee.

4. The duration of the PIP will depend on how long it would reasonably take to improve the specific deficiency(s) identified, but will not be in effect for more than one year. The initial PIP document and all follow up documentation will be maintained in the employee’s personnel file.

a. When the employee has responded positively by meeting plan objectives, possibly before the expiration date of the plan, the Department Head with the approval of the Human Resources Director or his/her designee, should formally close the PIP, recognize the employee's success and allow the employee to continue employment. The Department Head should recognize this positive occasion for the employee, however, the manager must also ensure the employee understands that continued good performance is expected.

b. When the employee is committed to improvement, but falls short of the objectives within the established timeline, consideration maybe given to extend the plan to additional time to succeed. Additionally, if objectives were found, in retrospect, to not be realistic or fully within the employee's control, the plan might be ended successfully, based on the improvements achieved. Prior to the extension of the PIP the Department must consult with the Human Resources Director or his/her designee.

c. If an employee is unable to improve or if performance worsens Human Resources must be consulted immediately. With the guidance and involvement of Human Resources, possible reassignment, demotion, discipline or termination should be considered, based on the specific circumstances and under Policy 105-Discipline.

V. GUIDELINES

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Personnel files are established and maintained for each active Dodge County employee. These files will be located at Clearview for all employees of Clearview, and in the Human Resources Department in the Administration Building for all other Dodge County employees. Employees may inspect their personnel files per the Wisconsin Open Record Law and must follow procedures in that law.

Employees are required to give at least a two (2) week notice of his/her intent to resign/retire from his/her employment with the County.

Employees who hold a position listed below are required to give a thirty (30) day notice of his/her intent to resign/retire from his/her employment with the County. Department Head, Director, Manager, Managing Attorney- DA Office, Child Support Specialist - Lead, Child Support Attorney, Human Services Supervisor, Assistant Finance Director, Assistant Human Resources Director, Assistant Physical Facilities Director, Corporation Counsel, Assistant Corporation Counsel, Superintendent, Captain, Court Commissioner, Assistant Highway Commissioner, Financial Supervisor – Highway, Division Manager, Chief Deputy-Sheriff’s Office, Chief Deputy – Clerk of Courts, Clearview Directors, Assistant Director of Nursing, RN Unit Managers, and Nurse Practitioner.

Any employee who resigns or is discharged and subsequently rehired by the County, requires prior approval of the Human Resources Director. In addition, employee must serve a new orientation period. Employees who fail to report to work for three (3) consecutive business days without notifying the County (Department Head, his or her designee, or the Human Resources Department) of the absence will be considered as having voluntarily resigned as a result of job abandonment.

If the employee is unable to contact the County for any absence, he or she should ask a representative (such as a family member or friend) to do so on the employee’s behalf. If the employee or a representative is unable to contact the County due to extreme circumstances (such as a medical emergency or natural disaster that prohibits the employee or his or her representative to contact the County within three days), the employee or his or her representative must contact the County as soon as practicable to explain the situation.

In extreme circumstances, the County will consider the explanation and its timing before determining if the voluntary resignation will be upheld. A resignation received and accepted by a management representative will be considered final and irrevocable. An employee may in writing, and prior to the effective date of the resignation, make a request to rescind the resignation, but the employee has no right to demand that the request be approved. The Department Head and the Human Resources Director will render a decision regarding the employee's request to rescind a resignation. Each instance of a request to rescind will be handled on a case-by-case basis and each decision will be without precedent.

All non-voluntary terminations of non-union personnel must be reviewed and approved by the Human Resources Department before such termination can be made. Each termination must be reported to the Human Resources and Labor Negotiations Committee. An employee who  has been terminated involuntarily, or who has voluntarily terminated his/her employment in lieu of non-voluntary termination, is not eligible for re-hire without the approval of the Human Resources Director.

All employees who terminate employment with Dodge County will return all items that are the property of the employer. Upon termination, an employee will return all County property and complete the appropriate form verifying that the property was returned.

The completed form will be signed by the employee and copies will be given to the employee and the department head. The original copy will be sent to the Human Resources Department to be placed in the employee's personnel file.

Building Keys/ Proximity Cards

Issuers of keys, proximity cards and fobs on behalf of the committees will be the Director - Physical Facilities Maintenance for the Administration and Office Buildings; Chief Deputy or designee for the Law Enforcement Center, Justice Facility and Detention Facility; the Director - Environmental Services for Clearview and Home Road Buildings; and the Office Manager - Highway for the Highway Department Buildings.

Department Heads will make request of the County Administrator or his/her designee that a key, proximity card and/or fob be issued to an employee who by the nature of his/her job must have access to an office or building other than during our normal hours of operation. The County Administrator has the right to approve or disapprove the issuance of keys, proximity cards and/or fobs and to set limits on the total number that may be issued to any one office or building. Additionally, the Department Head has the right to determine to whom keys, proximity cards and/or fobs may be issued for offices under his/her direction. The County Administrator has the right to affirm or reverse the Department Head’s decision.

The Department Head and/or the Human Resources Director may require an employee or all employees to return keys, proximity cards and/or fobs at any time and for any reason. Persons to whom keys, proximity cards and/or fobs are issued will acknowledge receipt by signing the appropriate form which will be maintained in their personnel files. They are expected to safeguard the keys, proximity cards and/or fobs and to limit their usage of the keys, proximity cards and/or fobs to approved county business. A key, proximity card and/or fob is not to be loaned or given to anyone else at any time. Employees who willfully violate this section of the policy may be subject to discipline.

Lost keys, proximity cards and fobs must be reported immediately to the appropriate issuer. If a replacement key, proximity card or fob is desired, the Department Head must make request of the issuer and a new form must be filled out. If an employee looses a key, proximity card or fob the employee will be charged the actual replacement cost per key/proximity card/fob. For the second and any subsequent replacement the employee will be charged $25.00 per key/card/fob with a maximum of $50.00 per incident.

Higher fees applicable to a department may be established by the Department Head, with the approval of the County Administrator, if warranted due to safety or security concerns (e.g. Clearview charges $25.00 for each lost key/proximity card). This will apply to each key, proximity card or fob issued. The Department Head may determine not to replace a lost key, proximity card or fob.

A key, proximity card or fob issuer may request the County Administrator to review any unusual circumstances surrounding lost keys, proximity cards or fobs or a request for replacement. Moneys received for issuance of replacement keys, proximity cards and fobs will be deposited with the County Treasurer or Clearview Financial Services as appropriate.

Union business is expressly limited to that which is authorized and allowed in labor agreements between Dodge County and labor unions representing Dodge County employees. Federal and State laws and regulations will take precedent over this policy language.

It is the policy of Dodge County to prohibit employment discrimination and harassment of any type, including sexual harassment. Dodge County is committed to providing a workplace free from this type of conduct. It is a violation of this policy for an employee to engage in employment discrimination or harassment.

It may also be illegal under state and/or federal law to discriminate in employment on the basis of a protected class as defined by law. Current protected classes include: race, color, creed, ancestry, national origin, age, sex/gender (including sexual harassment), handicap or disability, arrest/conviction, marital status, sexual orientation, military reserve membership, or use or non-use of lawful products during non-work hours or any other characteristic protected by state or federal law.

Further, it is a violation of this policy to engage in harassment of an employee in a protected class, or retaliation against persons who assert their rights under the fair employment laws, family and medical leave laws and other labor standard laws.

Employment Discrimination

Discrimination in employment generally involves the treatment of people less favorably than others because of their protected class in matters such as:

• recruitment and hiring
• job assignments
• pay
• leave or benefits
• promotion
• licensing or union membership
• discipline or discharge
• demotion or layoff
• other employment related actions

Harassment

Harassment is a form of discrimination and means unwelcome conduct, whether verbal, non-verbal, or physical conduct that:

A. is derogatory or demeaning in nature.

B. has the purpose or effect of substantially interfering with an individual’s work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment.

Sexual Harassment

Sexual harassment is a form of sexual discrimination and means unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors and other verbal, non-verbal, or physical conduct of a sexual nature when:

A. Submission to that conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of employment (hiring, termination, etc.).

B. Submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment decisions (promotion, pay increase, performance appraisal, etc.).

C. The conduct has the purpose or effect of substantially interfering with an individual’s work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment.

Examples of prohibited sexual harassment conduct under this policy include, but are not limited to, the following:

A. Verbal harassment includes sexual innuendoes, sexual comments, jokes of a sexual nature, sexual propositions, and threats.

B. Non-verbal harassment includes sexually suggestive objects or pictures, graphic commentaries, suggestive or insulting sounds, leering, whistling, and obscene gestures.

C. Physical harassment includes unwanted physical contact, including touching, patting, pinching, hugging or intentionally brushing the body, coerced sexual intercourse, and assault.

Reporting Responsibility

Any employee or applicant who feels that he or she has been the subject of discrimination in employment or feels that he or she has been harassed (including sexual harassment) should report the complaint in a timely manner to his or her immediate supervisor, or the next level of supervision, or to the Human Resources Director or the Human Resources Analyst. In addition, if any employee or applicant feels that he or she has been sexually harassed by a member of the public or a service provider during the course of employment, the employee should report the complaint in a timely manner to his or her immediate supervisor, or the next level of supervision, or to the Human Resources Director or the Human Resources Analyst.

There will be no reprisals against any employee or applicant for making such a report, however false accusations will result in severe disciplinary action, up to and including termination. Dodge County is obligated to and will conduct a prompt and thorough investigation of all reports of or complaints of discrimination in employment or harassment.

All reports of harassment or discrimination will be promptly and immediately investigated by the Human Resources Director or his/her designee. Dodge County will make every effort to keep the complaint and its investigation confidential, except as may be reasonably necessary to successfully complete the investigation. Investigation of a complaint will normally involve conferring with the parties involved and any named or apparent witnesses.

The Human Resources Director or his/her designee may determine that the circumstances of the case warrant that the individual accused of the discriminatory or harassing conduct be placed on a suspension during the investigation process. Should this occur, the suspension will, depending on the facts and circumstances, be without pay. If the allegations prove not to constitute discrimination or harassment, the employee will return to work with pay, retroactive to the date of suspension.

Disciplinary Action

If the allegation of discrimination in employment or harassment is found to be credible, appropriate corrective action will be taken. Substantiated incidents of discrimination or harassment, including sexual harassment, on the part of a county employee will be treated as a disciplinary infraction, with penalties up to and including termination.

The determination of the action to be taken, including termination, will be based on the facts on a case-by-case basis. It will be a violation of this policy for any person who learns of the investigation or complaint to take any retaliatory action that affects the work environment of the complainant or any person involved in the investigation. Participation in a retaliatory action may result in discipline up to and including discharge. Every supervisor is responsible for promptly reporting, and documenting in writing, any complaint or suspected act of discrimination in employment or harassment to the Human Resources Director or the Human Resources Analyst.

Failure to report or adequately address such harassment will result in disciplinary action. It is illegal and against the policy of Dodge County for any worker, male or female, to harass another worker by: making unwelcome sexual advances or favors or other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature a condition of any worker's employment; using a worker's submission to or rejection of such conduct as the basis for or as a factor in any employment decision affecting the individual; or otherwise creating an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment by such conduct.

The creation of an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment may include such actions as persistent comments on a worker's sexual preferences or the display of obscene or sexually oriented photographs or drawings. The employer will not condone any sexual harassment of its employees. All workers, including supervisors and managers, will be subject to severe discipline, up to and including discharge, for any act of sexual harassment they commit.

I. PURPOSE

The purpose of this policy is to define employee starting wages.

II. POLICY

It is the policy of Dodge County to establish progressive wage scales for all employees and includes starting wages.

III. GUIDELINES

A. New Hires

1. New employees are generally paid the starting wage for their job classification although when training, experience, market conditions or other similar circumstances dictate, they may be paid a higher starting wage as follows:

i. All starting salaries above the start step for new full time or part-time employees, and other salary adjustments, other than general increases approved yearly by the County Board, will first be approved by the County Administrator or his/her designee.

ii. All starting salaries above the established market rate on the Dodge County Compensation Structure for non-union employees must be approved by the Human Resources Committee for final approval.

iii. All approved salary and wage changes, as noted above, must be processed through the Human Resources Department before the Finance Department allows any new salaries or adjustments to be paid.

B. Transfers

Please see Policy #113.2 Employee Promotions, Lateral Transfers, Progressions, Demotions

V. PROCEDURE NA

I. PURPOSE

The purpose of this policy is to clarify payment of shift and weekend differential pay for nonexempt personnel for the various departments.

II. POLICY

Polices for specific departments are noted in the following paragraphs. Eligibility is determined by employee’s current position. Shift premium is payable only for actual hours worked during designated shift periods. For shift swaps or trades; the employee working the shift will receive the shift differential for the hours worked.

III. GUIDELINES

A. Clearview Employees

1. Shift Differential

a. Clearview employees in the following positions will be eligible for shift differential for working a PM and/or NOC shift: Household Assistant II, Nurse Tech, Licensed Practical Nurse, and Registered Nurse.

b. For purposes of this policy, a PM shift is defined as any shift that starts at 2:00 p.m. or after. A NOC (third) shift is defined as any shift that starts at 10:00 p.m. or after.

c. A shift differential of two dollars ($2.00) per hour will be paid in addition to the employees set base wage, determined by employee’s current position. Shift premium is payable only for actual hours worked during the PM and/or NOC shift.

d. Dietary staff (with the exclusion of Food Service Worker Students), Life Enrichment Assistants, LPN’s and RN’s working a cross-shift are eligible for the two dollars ($2.00) per hour shift differential for time worked beginning at 2:30p.m.

2. Weekend Differential

a. All Clearview employees will be eligible for weekend differential. For purposes of weekend differential, a weekend is defined as a shift that starts on or after 10:00 p.m. on a Friday and ending at 10:30 p.m. on a Sunday.

b. Weekend differential will be paid at three dollars ($3.00) per hour in addition to the employee’s set base wage, determined by employee’s current position. Weekend differential is payable only for actual hours worked on a weekend as defined by this policy.

c. Employees will be eligible for both shift differential and weekend differential if working a qualified shift simultaneously as defined by this policy.

B. Physical Facilities Maintenance (Non-Clearview)

1. Shift Differential

a. Split Shift: 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m .will receive a forty cent ($.40) per hour shift premium for hours worked.

b. Second Shift: 2:00 p.m. to 4:30 a.m. will receive a fifty cent ($.50) per hour shift premium for hours worked.

c. Shift premium is payable only for actual hours worked during designated shift periods

2. Weekend Differential

a. Weekend differential will be paid at two dollars ($2.00) per hour in addition to the employee’s set base wage, determined by employee’s current position. Weekend differential is payable only for actual hours worked on a weekend as defined by this policy. For purposes of weekend differential, a weekend is defined as a shift that starts on or after 6:00 p.m. on a Friday and ending at 6:00 a.m. on a Monday.

b. Employees will be eligible for both shift differential and weekend differential if working a qualified shift simultaneously as defined by this policy.

C. Sheriff’s Office

1. Non-Association Employees

a. Shift Differential

1. 12-hour Swing Shift:

An employee shall receive an additional fifty cent ($.50) per hour shift premium for each hour worked whose scheduled shift is designated as a swing shift assignment with an identified start and end time. Swing shift assignments will commence between 10:00 am and 4:00 pm.

2. 12-hour Night Shift:

An employee shall receive an additional seventy-five cent ($.75) per hour shift premium for each hour worked whose scheduled shift is designated as a night shift assignment with an identified start and end time. Swing shift assignments will commence between 5:00 pm and 4:00 pm.

3. 8-hour Evening Shift:

An employee shall receive an additional fifty cent ($.50) per hour shift premium for each hour worked whose scheduled shift is designated as an evening shift assignment with an identified start and end time. Evening shift assignments will commence between 12:00pm and 7:00pm

b. Weekend Differential (Non-Administration Jail,911 Communications, and Lieutenants)

1. Weekend differential will be paid at two dollars ($2.00) per hour in addition to the employee’s set base wage, determined by employee’s current position. Weekend differential is payable only for actual hours worked on a weekend as defined by this policy. For purposes of weekend differential, a weekend is defined as a shift that starts on or after 6:00 p.m. on a Friday and ending at 6:00 a.m. on a Monday. For Lieutenants, a weekend is defined as a shift that starts on or after 5:00 p.m. on a Friday and ending at 6:00 a.m. on a Monday
2. Employees will be eligible for both shift differential and weekend differential if working a qualified shift simultaneously as defined by this policy.

2. Sworn Association

a. Please refer to the Sworn Association Agreement for information regarding shift differentials.

D. Land Resources and Parks

1. Weekend Differential

a. Weekend differential will be paid at two dollars ($2.00) per hour in addition to the employee’s set base wage, determined by employee’s current position. Weekend differential is payable only for actual hours worked on a weekend as defined by this policy. For purposes of weekend differential, a weekend is defined as a shift that starts on or after 6:00 p.m. on a Friday and ending at 6:00 a.m. on a Monday.

b. Employees will be eligible for both premium holiday and weekend differential if, working a qualified holiday simultaneously as defined by this policy.

IV. PROCEDURE

None

On Call Pay

Designated employees in the Human Services Department, Information Technology Department and Physical Facilities Department who are assigned "on call" duty will receive three dollars and fifty cents ($3.50) per hour. In the event an individual is called in, he/she will receive compensation as per policy 119. An Employee who is "on call" over a holiday will be granted a substitute day off with pay upon request in which case they will only receive "on call" pay for such holiday. The County reserves the right to assign on-call duties to any qualified employee of the Human Services Department or make any other necessary coverage arrangements.

Highway Department

Employees are required to be available on a call-in basis, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, when weather or other conditions may require. Employees will be given advance notice of when the on-call period begins and when it is no longer in effect (normally in effect during the period between November 15th and April 1st). Employees will receive an additional $100.00 per pay period for the pay periods for the winter season. For this purpose only, employees are eligible for the additional $100.00 per pay period beginning with the first full pay period on or after November 15th and will continue to receive the additional $100.00 per pay period through the full pay period ending on or immediately following April 1st. The employee will not be eligible for the additional $100.00 for the pay period, if anytime during the pay period the employee is excused and unavailable from on-call availability, fails to respond within 1 hour of notification, is on paid sick time, unpaid time, or on an approved leave of absence, FMLA, Dodge County General Medical Leave, or Dodge County Unpaid Leave, calls using unscheduled PTO, and unapproved time off. Provisions will be made to allow up to a total of four (4) employees department-wide to be excused from response if a written request was given to the supervisor 48 hours in advance and approved by the supervisor. The four employee total includes persons previously approved for vacation. Employees that are not excused from response and fail to report to work within 1 hour of notification will receive a counseling each time they fail to respond. The Highway Commissioner or his designee will determine the appropriate time to begin disciplinary action based on repeated counseling’s. It is recognized that some highway department positions will be exempt from this requirement.

I. PURPOSE

The purpose of this policy is to clarify payment of Special Assignment Pay for non-exempt personnel for the various departments.

II. POLICY

Polices for specific departments are noted in the following paragraphs. Eligibility is determined by employee’s current position and specific work performed. Special Assignment Pay is payable only for actual hours worked during designated work time.

III. GUIDELINES

A. Physical Facilities Maintenance (Non-Clearview)

1. Physical Facilities non-exempt employees assigned to work on in the jail will receive hazardous pay equal to an additional ten dollars ($10.00) per hour in addition to their regular rate of pay for actual hours worked in the jail while performing hazardous materials removal services.

B. Sheriff’s Office

1. Corrections Training Officer and Communications Training Officer (CTO) a. Employees who are assigned as Corrections Training Officer and Communications Training Officer (CTO) will receive an additional one dollar and twenty-five cents ($1.25) for all hours worked as a CTO.

2. Intake Specialist a. Employees who are assigned as an Intake Specialist will receive an additional fifty cents ($0.50) for all hours worked as an Intake Specialist.

3. Field Training Officer (FTO) a. Employees who are assigned as a Field Training Officer (FTO) will receive an additional one dollar and twenty-five cents ($1.25) for all hours worked as a FTO.

4. SWAT Team a. SWAT Team members shall be paid three hundred ($300.00) dollars per year for their services on this special team.

5. PREA Investigator

a. Employees trained and implementing Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA), to include training, investigation, reporting and attending meetings will receive an additional one dollar and twenty-five cents ($1.25) for all hours worked as a PREA Investigator, Coordinator, and Sergeant.

6. Specialized Units

a. Employees assigned to a specialized unit, such as SWAT, CIT, Fatal Vision, K-9, Cadet Advisors, Community Outreach, Victim Impact Panel, Instructors, Citizens Academy, Interdiction, Rec Patrol, Honor Guard, Town Liaisons, or Fair, shall be subject to the following provisions when performing work in the specialized unit assignment. With approval of a supervisor, the employee shall adjust the employee’s work schedule to accommodate work related to the specialized unit assignment so that work can be performed at straight time. Response to an activation of the specialized unit for an emergency call-in shall be at the overtime rate if the employee is not scheduled to work or flexing the work schedule to accommodate work related to the specialized unit assignment. With approval of a supervisor, specialized unit assignment work may be performed outside of scheduled work time at straight time (provided all Fair Labor Standard Act (FLSA) overtime laws are followed). All training time pertaining to the specialized unit assignment shall be at straight time. Hours worked shall continue to be subject to overtime under applicable law for hours worked in excess of 171 hours in a 28 day work period for those positions classified under the 7(k) exemption or over 40 hours in a work week for all other hourly employees.

7. Sworn Association

a. Please refer to the Sworn Association Agreement for information regarding shift differentials.

C. Highway Department

1. Class One (1) State Highways a. Highway non-exempt employees assigned to work on Class One (1) State Highways will receive hazardous pay equal to an additional one dollar and fifty cents ($1.50) per hour for actual hours worked on the Class One (1) State Highways.

2. E1 Equipment a. Highway non-exempt employees (excluding Foreman) operating E1 equipment will receive two dollars ($2.00) per hour in addition to their regular rate of pay for actual hours operating E1 equipment.

a. E1 Equipment: Excavator, Grader, Dozer, Paver, Paver Rollers, Centerliner, Shoulder Machine, Digger Derrick.

3. Certified Bridge Inspectors a. Highway non-exempt employees who are Certified Bridge Inspectors will receive two dollars ($2.00) per hour in addition to their regular rate of pay for actual hours worked for performing bridge inspections.

4. Certified Herbicide Applicators a. Highway non-exempt employees who are Certified Herbicide Applicators will receive two dollars ($2.00) per hour in addition to their regular rate of pay for actual hours worked for performing herbicide applications.

5. Highway Lead a. Highway non-exempt employees is assigned to control a crew of three (3) or more employees, the Lead will receive an additional three dollars ($3.00) per hour for actual hours worked as a Lead.

6. Relief Superintendent a. Highway non-exempt employees who work an entire shift as a Relief Superintendent will receive an additional five dollars ($5.00) per hour with an additional one (1) hour of overtime at the employee’s base rate of pay.

IV. PROCEDURE

None

Employees who are bi-lingual and are either required to be bi-lingual as part of their job or on a regular basis is used as a translator for the County are eligible for a $0.50 differential for all hours paid.

PURPOSE

Follow a consistent policy and procedure to ensure unpaid interns, consultants, contractors and State Agency staff (Agency staff) understand the County’s policies related to access to Dodge County’s buildings, computer systems and telephone equipment. POLICY Dodge County welcomes the opportunity to work with students in internship programs, consultants, contractors and Agency staff in the State of Wisconsin. Dodge County Human Resources will meet with all incoming interns, consultants, contractors and Agency staff to ensure their awareness and compliance of Dodge County policies and procedures as related to the specific assignment with Dodge County.

PROCEDURE

1. Department Heads must inform Dodge County’s Human Resources Department of any individual who will be interning, consulting, contracting or starting employment with a State Agency in Dodge County, prior to the start date of the assignment, regardless of the length of time the above will be with the County.

2. Human Resources will make contact with the IT Department to make notification of the above. The IT Department staff will not move forward with security without this notification from Human Resources. The Department Head will make contact with the IT Help Desk to request the assignment of a county email address and access to the county network within the specific area that the intern, consultant, contractor or Agency staff will be located. The supervisor will also notify the IT Department of the work space, and the need for an office phone, computer, etc. if necessary.

3. The Department Head will gather the following information from the school, the consultant, or contractor prior to the start of the assignment: a copy of the caregiver background check (if required) and forward to Human Resources; a copy of the liability insurance carried by the school, consultant or contracting company; the name and contact information for the intern’s field placement supervisor; and a copy of the intern’s, consultant’s, or contractor’s valid driver’s license, registered vehicle and auto insurance, if driving will be a requirement of the assignment. Interns will be informed that as this is an unpaid internship, they will not be reimbursed for mileage by Dodge County.

4. Human Resources will meet with the intern, consultant, contractor or Agency staff within the first week of the start date of the assignment. Human Resources will issue a County ID Badge. Information regarding the level of building access will be required to be communicated to Human Resources to assure that the badge only allows access to necessary portions of the building at appropriate times. In addition, the HR Department will provide the intern, consultant, contractor or Agency staff with an orientation to any specific County’s policies and procedures deemed relevant to their role and responsibilities while at Dodge County. Human Resources will also have the intern, consultant, contractor or Agency staff sign a document entitled “Confidentiality Agreement,” acknowledging that they have been provided access to and been given the opportunity to ask questions about the Dodge County Employee Policies and Procedures Manual, have spoken with their Supervisor about the portions of the handbook applicable to them, and are willing to comply with this document during the course of their assignment with Dodge County.

5. The Department Head or designee will provide the intern, consultant, or contractor any specific training related to the type of assignment with the Department, i.e. HIPAA training, Civil Rights Training, Ethics Training, etc.

Purpose:

To provide a defined procedure for paying employees in the event of closing County services and buildings during and after emergency/disaster events.

Policy:

Emergency/disaster events will be declared by the County Administrator in conjunction with the Emergency Management Department. Dodge County will continue an employee’s compensation who are in active status on the date of the emergency/disaster event. Employees will be paid their current rate of pay for all regular scheduled hours for the remainder of the pay period in which an emergency/disaster event happens and will continue through the next full pay period after the emergency/disaster event. After this period of time, the employee may choose to use their own paid time of vacation or compensatory time. If an employee chooses to not use their own paid time they may apply for unemployment benefits as determined by the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development. During emergency/disaster events, employees must be available to be called back to work at any time and may be assigned duties as needed which may be outside of their current job description.

Sick Leave, Banked Holidays, Vacation and Earnings

Upon the death of an employee, the County will pay to the employee's spouse, or to the estate if there is no surviving spouse, all of the following:

• accumulated unused regular sick leave,
• banked holidays based on a pro-ration of the percentage of the year worked,
• accrued and accruing vacation,
• the amount of longevity pay that would have been paid to him or her as of the last date of employment,
• any earnings due to the employee at the time of his/her death, including compensatory time.

Continuation of Earnings Additionally, the County will pay to the surviving spouse, or to the estate if there is no surviving spouse, an amount equal to the regular earnings the deceased employee would have received for the balance of the month in which he/she dies.

Employees who terminate their employment by providing proper notice as outlined in Policy 123-Resignations and Discharges will receive pay for all accrued vacation, holiday and compensatory time which is due them on the date of termination. Employees who are involuntarily terminated are not eligible for payment of accrued benefits as by allowed by law.

Human Resources Department must verify the pay out before any payments are made by the Finance Department. Employees who retire or become disabled and are eligible to receive Wisconsin Retirement Fund annuity or Social Security will receive payment for all accrued vacation, holidays and compensatory time. Human Resources Department must verify the pay out before any payments are made by the Finance Department.

Employees may be allowed to use the equivalent of a maximum of 2 weeks of any accrued benefit (i.e., vacation, compensatory time, etc.) immediately preceding their retirement or termination date provided the employee provides written notice of their date of retirement or termination no later than 60 days prior to the use of the 2 weeks of accrued benefit time.

Employees must physically work their scheduled number of hours on their last date of employment with the County. An employee requesting time off during the last two weeks of employment, after submitting a resignation with proper notice, is allowed up to two (2) days off with prior approval from the supervisor.

Deferred Compensation is a way for employees to set aside a portion of their gross salary up to a maximum amount in any given calendar year for future supplemental retirement income. The maximum amount may be adjusted annually.

The amount deferred reduces current State and Federal income taxes. Earnings on these deferrals also accumulate tax free until withdrawn upon retirement or termination of employment. Participation in the Deferred Compensation program is entirely voluntary and entirely at the employee's expense.

Specific departments may be authorized to offer education benefits and/or continuing education benefits in limited amounts to employees participating in eligible programs. Departmental rules specify the maximum amount that may be reimbursed to an employee on an annual basis and may limit the number of approved days of absence related to attendance at conferences or trainings. Currently this benefit is offered to certain employees of the Sheriff’s Department and the Human Services and Health Department.

Clearview Union Employees

If the County requires an employee to attend or take any course training or schooling as part of their employment, the entire cost of fees, tuition and materials will be paid by the County in addition to receiving a minimum of one (1) hours pay or pay for the actual time of attendance, whichever is greater.

An Employee Assistance Program is available to Dodge County employees and their families. Assistance includes help with marital problems, financial difficulties, emotional disorders, alcohol or other drug related problems, poor physical health or other personal concerns. Additional information is available from the EAP provider selected by the County. The EAP provider will offer confidential direct services or arrange for assistance from another provider.

When a Department Head or Elected Official wishes to give special recognition to one or more employees for extraordinary/outstanding work performance, significant longevity, or other significant contributions to the functioning of the department, consideration must also be given to the fact that Dodge County operations are supported by public funds. For this reason, any form of recognition given to an employee of Dodge County which may have monetary value must be approved in advance by the County Administrator.

Examples of recognition that may have monetary value include, but are not limited to:

• Dinners
• Gift certificates
• Catalogue items
• Conference or seminar attendance if given as an award
• Time off with pay
• Participation in non-work related activities while receiving pay

This policy applies to both represented and non-represented employees, exempt and non-exempt employees.

Employees will be granted the following paid holidays:

• New Year's Day
• Thanksgiving Day
• Spring Holiday (Friday before Easter)
• Day after Thanksgiving*
• Memorial Day
• Christmas Eve Day
• Independence Day
• Christmas Day
• Labor Day
• New Year's Eve Day

^{*Clearview employees may be eligible for a floating holiday instead of the day after Thanksgiving.}

If any of the noted holidays should fall on a Saturday the holiday will be observed on the Friday prior, if the holiday falls on a Sunday the holiday will be observed the following Monday. If the day before Christmas or New Year’s should fall on a Sunday, they will be observed on the preceding Friday.

Holiday pay will be based upon regularly scheduled hours, exclusive of shift premium, if any. If any of the above mentioned holidays occur while an employee is on vacation, the employee will be granted another day of leave or a scheduled day off. To be eligible for holiday pay, an employee must work the scheduled day before and after the holiday.

An employee who does not work the day before or after the holiday due to an unscheduled absence, (using the department’s call in procedure) will lose the holiday pay unless the unscheduled day is a verified illness (must produce a Doctor’s note).

Employees who are using pre-approved paid time off, i.e., vacation, PTO, comp time, etc. will be eligible for the holiday. An employee must use his/her own paid time for the full scheduled hours the day before and after the holiday in order to be paid for the holiday.

During the first three (3) months in a benefit-eligible position, if the employee has insufficient paid time before or after the holiday and has a verified illness, holiday pay eligibility will be reviewed by the Human Resources Director and County Administrator with eligibility determined on a case-by-case basis.

Clearview Employees

Clearview Nursing Management employees and employees working in positions requiring seven (7) days per week coverage who are scheduled to work a holiday may choose holiday pay in addition to time and one-half (1-1/2) their normal rate for all hours worked on a holiday or bank the holiday for use at a later time with supervisory approval.

An employee who has not taken time off for any of the above listed holidays by December 31 of the year will be paid in January for such unused holidays at the rate in effect the previous December. Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year's Eve Day, however, may be carried forward and used in the following year. If a Clearview employee calls in sick on a holiday, management may schedule the employee to work another day under Clearview’s rescheduling policy.

Clearview Part-Time Employees

Part-time benefit eligible employees, and non-exempt employees who have had unpaid time during the prior calendar year, will have their holiday pay pro-rated. The pro-ration calculation will take place at the beginning of the year and will take into consideration the number of hours paid to the employee during the prior calendar year in comparison to the total number of full-time hours for the position. The calculation will result in a reconciliation of the number of holiday hours paid versus holiday hours earned. In the case of a part-time benefit eligible employee the calculation may result in a change in the determination of how many hours the employee will be paid for a holiday during the upcoming year.

Sheriff’s Office

Sheriff’s Department employees who are scheduled to work on a holiday will be paid one and one-half (1½) times their regular rate of pay for the work performed on the holiday, and will be given an eight (8) hour day off which be must be taken in a full day increment and must be scheduled in advance with management approval. Part-time, non-benefitted employees are eligible for premium pay for work performed on the holiday. Sheriff’s Department employees whose work schedule results in the employee not being scheduled to work on a holiday will be given an eight (8) hour day off which be must be taken in a full day increment and must be scheduled in advance with management approval.

Highway Department

Highway employees who work on a holiday will be paid their regular rate of pay and in addition will be paid 1½ times their regular rate of pay for hours worked on the holiday. Highway employees who are required to work on Christmas Day (actual day) will receive two (2) times their regular rate of pay in addition to the holiday pay.

Building Maintenance Department

Building Maintenance Department employees who are scheduled to work on a holiday will be paid one and one-half (1½) times their regular rate of pay for the work performed on the holiday, and will be given an eight (8) hour day off which must be taken in a full day increment and must be scheduled in advance with management approval. Building Maintenance Department employees whose work schedule results in the employee not being scheduled to work on a holiday will be given an eight (8) hour day off which must be taken in a full day increment and must be scheduled in advance with management approval. Maintenance Mechanics will observe holidays on the actual day of the holiday. If the actual day of the holiday falls on a scheduled day off for the employee, an eight (8) hour day off will be granted, which must be taken in a full day increment and must be scheduled in advance with management approval.

Part-time Status (Non-Clearview)

Part-time benefit eligible employees will earn holiday based on the employee’s full time equivalent (F.T.E) status as follows:

FTE	Hours
.5	4
.6	4.75
.65	5
.7	5.5
.75	6
.8	6.5
.85	6.75
.9	7.25

 

Employees may voluntarily participate in a Section 125 plan for health and dental insurance premiums and basic life insurance premiums, health care expenses not covered by insurance, and child care expenses. The employee may make elections when beginning employment and then will make new elections prior to the beginning of each new plan year. This program allows employees to pay for the above mentioned items pre-tax. A designated amount is deducted from each paycheck reducing his/her taxable income. The employee then submits receipts for allowed expenses for reimbursement.

The Dodge County Human Resources and Labor Relations Committee is responsible for establishing benefit plans for eligible Dodge County employees, including plan design, eligibility requirements, determining contribution rates and selecting plan providers. The plan provider chosen by Dodge County may require a specific plan design, eligibility requirements and contribution rates. Contribution rates are established on an annual basis and will be communicated to the employees by the Human Resources Department.

Group health insurance is available for full-time and part-time employees who are ordinarily scheduled to work twenty (20) hours or more per week and who meet the plan eligibility requirements. For part-time Clearview employees who are in benefit eligible positions, participation is limited by eligibility criteria contained in the administrative rules of the health insurance plan. Employees must apply for health insurance within thirty (30) days of employment. Eligible Clearview employees may apply upon hire provided they pay the full contribution rate, and also upon completion of six (6) calendar months of service at which time they first become eligible for the employer paid contribution. Late applications will require evidence of insurability.

Employees who retire may continue to receive coverage under the group health insurance program at their own expense provided they meet eligibility and participation requirements established by the plan.

Dodge County pays a specific amount toward the premium for single or family coverage for full-time employees who participate in the dental insurance program, and prorated amounts for part-time employees who are ordinarily scheduled to work twenty (20) or more hours per week and for Clearview employees who work 15.4 hours or more hours per week.

Employees are eligible for the dental insurance effective the first of the month following sixty (60) continuous days of employment provided they enroll in the dental insurance within thirty (30) days of employment or benefit eligibility. Employees may change their enrollment in the dental insurance (i.e. single to family; family to single) if there is a qualifying event (i.e. marriage, divorce, adding or removing dependents). Notification of the enrollment change must be completed within 30 days of the change.

Employees are required to contact Human Resources to complete the necessary change forms. If the employee fails to enroll within the 30 days of employment, benefit eligibility or qualifying event the employee may enroll in the dental insurance provided they pay the full monthly premium cost for a one year period (12 months). There are no yearly open enrollments under the Dental Plan.

Employees may be entitled to COBRA continuation rights which allow the employee to continue both health and dental insurance at group rates at their own expense if specific events occur, such as termination, resignation, layoff, etc. In addition, former dependents of employees, including separated, divorced or Medicare-eligible spouses and children, or children still supported by employees who would otherwise lose coverage because of their age, may continue health and/or dental insurance coverage at group rates but also at their own expense.

The County offers a life insurance program and contributes a specific percentage of the premium for an employee’s basic coverage. The County also offers additional and supplemental Life Insurance Plans under which an employee eligible for the basic plan may double or triple the amount of coverage, with the additional cost to be paid entirely by the employee.

Employees called for jury duty will be entitled to receive lost pay provided that they deposit any compensation received for such duty, excluding mileage allowance, with the County Treasurer, or Clearview Financial Services if appropriate, and receive a receipt for said deposit.

County provided unpaid medical or general leaves of absence without pay for periods not to exceed six (6) months in duration may be granted to any full-time employee upon written request of the employee. The Department Head may grant leaves of absence up to three (3) days. Leaves of absence beyond three (3) days require the approval of the Human Resources and Labor Negotiations Committee.

The employee will be entitled to be reinstated to the position in which he/she was employed at the time the leave was granted, or a position of comparable classification, provided there is such vacancy. During an unpaid leave of absence, there will be no additions to an employee's vacation or sick leave benefits. Seniority will continue to accrue during the first calendar month of any leave of absence. Employees on approved leave of absence will not, as a condition of such leave, seek or accept employment elsewhere.

Any leave of absence granted must be evidenced in writing and a copy sent to the Human Resources Department to be filed in the personnel file of the individual. Employees on an approved unpaid medical leave will have the employer contribution toward health insurance and life insurance paid by the County for up to six (6) months, and must pay the full dental insurance premium to the County during the leave of absence. Employees on an approved unpaid general leave must pay their health, dental and life insurance premiums.

Unpaid Family and Medical Leave of Absence (as provided by Federal and/or State legislation) is available for the following reasons: for an employee's own serious health condition; to care for a parent, son or daughter, or spouse with a serious health condition; or for birth, adoption, or foster care placement; or for a qualifying exigency related to active military duty. In no event will an employee be entitled to more Federal and/or State family or medical leave than the maximum number of weeks provided for in one calendar year by Federal or State FMLA statutes. The weeks of Federal and State FMLA leave will be considered concurrent.

Employees may combine leaves for different purposes (i.e., six weeks of family leave for the birth of a child and two weeks of family leave to care for a seriously ill child) if circumstances qualify. Current State law provides for six (6) weeks of family leave related to birth, adoption, or foster care placement; two (2) weeks of family leave to care for an employee’s parent, son or daughter, or spouse who has a serious health condition; and two (2) weeks of medical leave for an employee's own serious health condition. Note, however, that current Federal law provides for a total of twelve weeks of FMLA leave for any and all of these reasons, and 26 weeks to care for a family member with a serious health condition related to military service.

An unpaid County-provided Medical Leave of Absence may be available to an employee who has exhausted his or her vacation, and/or compensatory time, and/or sick leave benefit, and who is unable to return to work due to illness or injury. The County-provided medical leave of absence, generally up to six (6) months in duration, is available as specified in Policy #210.2. An unpaid County-provided General Leave of Absence may be available to an employee who makes a written request for same. The County-provided general leave of absence, generally up to six (6) months in duration, is available as specified in Policy #210.1.

I. Eligibility

A. County provided Medical Leave of Absence and General Leave of Absence is available to an employee who meets the requirements of County policy or by labor agreement.

B. An employee is eligible for Federal and State Family and Medical Leave of Absence if the leave is for a reason listed in C) of this section and the employee:

1. has been employed by Dodge County for at least twelve (12) months, not necessarily consecutive, and
2. has worked 1,000 hours and/or has been paid for 1000 hours during the twelve (12) month period preceding the leave.

C. Family and Medical Leave of Absence is available to an employee who:

1. has a serious health condition which makes the employee unable to perform his or her job duties, or
2. is needed to care for a parent, son or daughter, or spouse who has a serious health condition, or
3. desires to take leave due to: a. the birth of their child, and to care for the newborn child, or b. due to the placement with the employee of a child for adoption (or as a precondition to adoption, but not both) or foster care, and to care for the newly placed child, or
4. is needed to care for a spouse, parent, son or daughter, or next of kin who is a “member of the Armed Forces, including a member of the National Guard or Reserves, who is undergoing medical treatment, recuperation, or therapy, is otherwise in outpatient status, or is otherwise on the temporary disability retired list, for a serious injury or illness” (H.R. 4986, National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2008), or
5. is needed for “any qualifying exigency (as the Secretary [of Labor] will, by regulation, determine) arising out of the fact that the spouse, or a son, daughter, or parent of the employee is on active duty (or has been notified of an impending call or order to active duty) in the Armed Forces in support of a contingency operation.” Note: This provision of the NDAA is not effective until the Secretary of Labor issues final regulations defining “any qualifying exigency.”

II. Definitions Relating to Family and Medical Leave

Specific definitions relating to Federal and State Family and Medical Leave can be obtained from the Human Resources Department.

III. Leave Duration

A. In a calendar year, an employee may generally qualify for no more than twelve weeks of Federal family and/or medical leave for any and all qualifying reasons unless the leave is to care for a family member as described in I. (C) (4) above. (See also Policies #210.3, #210.4, and #210.5). In addition, an employee may be eligible for up to six weeks of State family leave for birth, adoption, or foster care placement and up to two weeks of family or medical leave for an employee’s own serious health condition or the serious health condition of an employee’s parent, son or daughter, or spouse, if all of the twelve weeks of Federal leave entitlement were used for a different reason (i.e., child rearing v. caring for family members with serious health conditions). The maximum amount of combined Federal and State family and medical leave available may exceed twelve (12) weeks under this limited circumstance. If both the employee and his/her spouse are employed by the County, they may be limited to a combined total of 12 weeks of Federal family leave entitlement during a calendar year.

B. Federal and State family and/or medical leave (regardless of whether it is continuous, intermittent, or reduced work schedule leave) must be taken within one year of its commencement.

C. An employee may qualify for up to 26 workweeks of leave if the qualifying reason for the leave is I. (C) (4) in the Eligibility section above.

D. In a one year period an employee may qualify for no more than six months of County provided general leave. 34 08/05/14

IV. Leave Pro-ration for Part-time Employees

Family and/or medical leave entitlement for eligible part-time employees will be calculated on a pro-rata basis. The hours worked over the twelve (12) weeks prior to the beginning of the leave will be used for calculating the employee's average normal work week. Example: an employee who worked or was scheduled to work 56 eight-hour days in the twelve week period prior to the leave would have a 12 week leave entitlement (in a one year period) of 56 eight hour days that s/he would normally have been scheduled.

V. Substitution

The County will require, to the extent of its rights under Federal and State FMLA law and labor agreements, that any paid sick leave benefit available to the employee be substituted for part or all of the leave period. The County may also require (based on labor agreement) that any other accrued benefit be substituted for unpaid Federal or State FMLA leave.

VI. Concurrence

A. Any paid leave substituted for unpaid Family and Medical leave will run concurrent with the Family and Medical leave provided under Federal and State FMLA.

B. If a leave qualifies as both a County-provided leave (sick leave benefit, medical leave, or general leave) and a Federal and/or State FMLA leave as well, all leaves will run concurrently. For example, County-provided leave used for the birth of a child may also qualify as family leave under Federal and State law and, as such, is also deducted from an employee's leave entitlement under Federal and State laws. Note that worker's compensation leave due to a serious health condition may also run concurrently with FMLA leave.

VII. Scheduling Leave

An employee eligible for and desiring leave of absence should submit a written request to the Human Resources Department within time periods designated and in the manner required for the specific type of leave. (See Policies 210.1, 210.2, 210.3, 210.4, and 210.5.)

VIII. Medical Certificate

If an employee is requesting a medical leave of absence, or a family leave to care for a parent, son or daughter, or spouse with a serious health condition, the employee may be required to obtain a Medical Certification Form from the Human Resources Department and return the completed certification in a timely manner. Contact the Human Resources Department for further clarification based on the type of leave requested.

IX. Insurance and Benefits While an employee is on leave of absence, his/her benefit entitlement, accrual, and responsibilities may become different. Further clarification of these matters should be obtained from the Insurance and Benefits Coordinator.

X. Return from Leave

A. An employee returning from medical leave, including Federal/State medical leave, County-provided medical leave, and sick leave beyond three days, may be required to obtain medical certification from the health care provider stating that he/she is able to resume work and is able to perform the essential job functions.

B. An employee returning from leave as provided under this policy can return to his or her position under the provisions of County policy and/or an applicable labor agreement. Note that County policy and some existing labor agreements provide that an employee may be returned to his/her position at the time the leave was granted or to a comparable  classification providing there is such a vacancy. An employee should provide two work days written notice to the employee’s supervisor before returning to work.

C. An employee may return to work prior to the scheduled end of the leave, and will be allowed to return within a reasonable time after the request to return to work early is made.

XI. Policy Interpretation and Revision

Specific interpretation of the policy provisions contained herein can be obtained from the Dodge County Human Resources Department. Dodge County reserves the right to add to or delete from this policy, in whole or in part, within its rights to do so under applicable Federal and State laws.

A County-provided General Leave of Absence may be available to an employee who makes a written request for same. The County-provided unpaid leave of absence, generally up to six (6) months in duration, is available as specified below or as may be provided under existing labor agreements and/or Dodge County policies.

I. Eligibility

Employees who meet eligibility requirements as defined by this policy or by labor agreement may be eligible for County-provided General Leave.

II. Concurrence

If a leave qualifies as both a County-provided leave (sick leave benefit, medical leave, or general leave) and a Federal and/or State FMLA leave as well, the leaves will run concurrently. For example, County-provided leave used to care for a family member with a serious illness may also qualify as family leave under Federal and State law and, as such, is also deducted from an employee's leave entitlement under Federal and State laws.

County-provided General Leaves of Absence, that qualify as Federal and/or State FMLA time as well, will be governed by the applicable policy #210.3, #210.4 or #210.5.

III. Leave Duration

In a one year period an employee may qualify for no more than six months of County-provided unpaid general leave.

IV. Scheduling Leave

An employee may request a general leave of absence by submitting a written request to the department head in charge (which should be done as early as possible, but not later than the end of the work shift on the day the leave is to begin), stating the reason for the leave and the anticipated duration. If the leave is for a reason for which Federal and/or State family and/or medical leave is available, policies relating to those types of leave will take precedence for the applicable period.

Any unpaid Federal and State family and/or medical leave of absence taken will be counted against the six months available under this policy or against County-provided medical leave of absence. If the leave of absence is taken due to one’s own illness or injury, or due to the illness or injury of a family member, a physician's or chiropractor's certificate and a request for an extension to the leave of absence may be required on a monthly basis to substantiate the need for continuing the leave of absence. 

V. Insurance and Benefits

A. While an employee is on Federal and/or State family and/or medical leave of absence and on County-provided general leave concurrently, policies regarding insurance and benefits as detailed in the policies relating to Federal and/or State family and/or medical leave of absence will apply. (See Policies #210.3, #210.4 and #210.5)

B. While an employee is on County-provided general leave only, the employee must pay his/her full health, dental, and life insurance premiums unless otherwise provided by a labor agreement.

C. During unpaid leave, unless specifically provided by County policy or a labor agreement, an employee is not entitled to benefit accrual other than group health, dental, and life insurance coverage, but will not lose any benefits accrued prior to leave unless such benefits are utilized. Based on labor agreement, seniority will continue to accrue during the first calendar month of an unpaid leave.

D. Employees on approved leave of absence will not, as a condition of the leave, seek or accept employment elsewhere.

E. Further clarification of benefit entitlement and responsibilities should be obtained from the Insurance and Benefits Coordinator.

VI. Return from Leave

A. An employee returning from leave as provided under this policy can return to his or her position under the provisions of County policy and/or an applicable labor agreement. Note that County policy and some existing labor agreements provide that an employee may be returned to his/her position at the time the leave was granted or to a comparable classification providing there is such a vacancy. An employee should provide two work days written notice to the employee’s supervisor before returning to work.

B. An employee may return to work prior to the scheduled end of the leave, and will be reinstated within a reasonable time after the request to return to work early is made.

VII. Policy Interpretation and Revision

Specific interpretation of the policy provisions contained herein can be obtained from the Dodge County Human Resources Department. Dodge County reserves the right to add to or delete from this policy, in whole or in part, within its rights to do so under applicable labor agreements.

A County-provided Medical Leave of Absence may be available to an employee who has exhausted his or her vacation, and/or compensatory time, and/or sick leave benefit, and who is unable to return to work due to illness or injury. The County-provided unpaid medical leave of absence, generally up to six (6) months in duration, is available as specified below or as may be provided under existing labor agreements and/or Dodge County policies.

I. Eligibility

Employees who meet eligibility requirements as defined by this policy or by labor agreement may be eligible for County-provided Medical Leave.

II. Concurrence

If a leave qualifies as both a County-provided leave (sick leave benefit, medical leave, or general leave) and a Federal and/or State FMLA leave as well, the leaves will run concurrently. For example, County-provided leave used for the birth of a child may also qualify as family leave under Federal and State law and, as such, is also deducted from an employee's leave entitlement under Federal and State laws. Note that worker's compensation leave due to a serious health condition may also run concurrently with FMLA leave. County-provided Medical Leaves of Absence, that qualify as Federal and/or State FMLA time as well, will be governed by the applicable policy #210.3, #210.4 or #210.5.

III. Leave Duration

In a one year period an employee may qualify for no more than six months of County-provided unpaid medical leave.

IV. Scheduling Leave

An employee may schedule medical leave as medically necessary. If an employee intends to take medical leave for medical treatment or supervision, the employee must make a written request to the department head in charge (which should be done as early as possible, but not later than the end of the work shift on the day the leave is to begin), accompanied by a physician's or chiropractor's certification stating the leave is necessitated by the disability of the employee. Any unpaid Federal and/or State Medical Leave of Absence taken for the employee’s own serious health condition will be counted against the six (6) months available under this policy. A physician's or chiropractor's certificate and a request for an extension to the leave of absence may be required on a monthly basis to substantiate the need for continuing a leave of absence.

V. Insurance and Benefits

A. While an employee is on Federal and/or State medical leave of absence and on County provided medical leave concurrently, policies regarding insurance and benefits as detailed in the policy relating to Federal and/or State medical leave of absence will apply (See Policy #210.3.)

B. While an employee is on County-provided medical leave only, the employee may be required to pay his/her contribution towards health and life insurance benefit premiums and full premium towards the dental benefit.

C. During unpaid leave, unless specifically provided by County policy or a labor agreement, an employee is not entitled to benefit accrual other than group health, dental, and life insurance coverage, but will not lose any benefits accrued prior to leave unless such benefits are utilized. Based upon labor agreement, seniority will continue to accrue during the first calendar month of an unpaid leave.

D. Employees on approved leave of absence will not, as a condition of the leave, seek or accept employment elsewhere.

E. Further clarification of benefit entitlement and responsibilities should be obtained from the Insurance and Benefits Coordinator.

VI. Return from Leave

A. An employee returning from leave, including Federal and/or State medical leave, Countyprovided medical leave, and sick leave beyond three days may be required to obtain medical certification from the health care provider stating that he/she is able to resume work and is able to perform the essential job functions.

B. An employee returning from leave as provided under this policy can return to his or her position under the provisions of County policy and/or an applicable labor agreement. Note that County policy and some existing labor agreements provide that an employee may be returned to his/her position at the time the leave was granted or to a comparable classification providing there is such a vacancy. An employee should provide two work days written notice to the employee’s supervisor before returning to work.

C. An employee may return to work prior to the scheduled end of the leave, and will be reinstated within a reasonable time after the request to return to work early is made.

VII. Policy Interpretation and Revision

Specific interpretation of the policy provisions contained herein can be obtained from the Dodge County Human Resources Department. Dodge County reserves the right to add to or delete from this policy, in whole or in part, within its rights to do so under applicable labor agreements.

An unpaid Medical Leave of Absence (as provided by Federal and/or State legislation) for an employee's own serious health condition is available to employees as specified below. In no event will an employee be entitled to more Federal and/or State medical leave than the maximum number of weeks provided in one calendar year by Federal or State FMLA statutes. The weeks of Federal and State FMLA leave will be considered concurrent. Current Federal law provides for a total of twelve weeks of FMLA leave.

I. Eligibility

A. An employee is eligible for Federal and State Medical Leave of Absence if the employee:

1. has a serious health condition which makes the employee unable to perform his or her job duties, and
2. has been employed by Dodge County for at least twelve (12) months, not necessarily consecutive, and
3. has worked 1,000 hours and/or has been paid for 1,000 hours during the twelve (12) month period preceding the leave.

B. Employees who meet eligibility requirements as defined by labor agreement or County Policy #210.2 may be eligible for County-provided medical leave.

II. Definitions

Specific definitions relating to Federal and State Family and Medical Leave can be obtained from the Human Resources Department.

III. Leave Duration

A. In a calendar year, an employee may generally qualify for no more than twelve weeks of Federal family and/or medical leave for any and all qualifying reasons (See also Policies #210.4 and #210.5). In addition, an employee may be eligible for up to six (6) weeks of State family leave if the reason for the State leave is different than that used for Federal leave. If both the employee and his/her spouse are employed by the County, they may 39 08/05/14 be limited to a combined total of twelve (12) weeks of Federal family leave entitlement during a calendar year.

B. Federal and State family and/or medical leave (regardless of whether it is continuous, intermittent, or reduced work schedule leave) must be taken within one year of its commencement.

IV. Leave Pro-ration for Part-time Employees

Family and/or medical leave entitlement for eligible part-time employees will be calculated on a pro-rata basis. The hours worked over the twelve (12) weeks prior to the beginning of the leave will be used for calculating the employee's average normal work week. Example: an employee who worked or was scheduled to work 56 eight-hour days in the twelve week period prior to the leave would have a twelve (12) week leave entitlement (in a one year period) of 56 eight-hour days that s/he would normally have been scheduled.

V. Substitution

During the first two (2) weeks of medical leave for one’s own illness or injury, an employee may choose that any of the following types of paid leave be substituted for part or all of the otherwise unpaid Federal or State medical leave: sick leave; vacation; banked holidays; compensatory time (if available). After this initial period (two weeks) the County may require, to the extent of its rights under the law and labor agreements, that any paid sick leave benefit available to the employee be substituted for part or all of the medical leave period. The County may also require (based on labor agreement) that any other such benefit be substituted for unpaid Federal or State medical leave.

VI. Concurrence

A. Any paid leave substituted for unpaid medical leave will run concurrent with the medical leave provided under this Policy.

B. If a leave qualifies as both a County-provided leave (sick leave benefit, medical leave, or general leave) and a Federal and/or State FMLA leave as well, all leaves will run concurrently. For example, County-provided leave used for the birth of a child may also qualify as family leave under Federal and State law and, as such, is also deducted from an employee's leave entitlement under Federal and State laws. Note that worker's compensation leave due to a serious health condition may also run concurrently with FMLA leave.

VII. Scheduling Leave:

A. An employee eligible for and desiring medical leave should submit a written request to the Human Resources Department thirty days prior to the leave if the leave is foreseeable. Verbal requests must be followed by a written request as soon as possible. If the leave is not foreseeable, or thirty (30) days' notice is not practicable, the employee should still provide verbal notice, giving as reasonable and as practical notice as possible, and followed up by submitting a written request as soon as possible (which should be done no later than the end of the work shift on the day the leave is to begin.) (This requirement may be waived in medical emergency situations or for a change in circumstances. An employee who fails to give thirty (30) days notice without a reasonable excuse for the delay may be denied leave until at least thirty (30) days have passed.)

B. The notice should specifically state that FMLA leave is being requested. The County reserves the right to determine whether any leave qualifies as Federal and/or State medical leave.

C. The notice should identify if and what type of paid accrued leave the employee intends to substitute as allowed under the law. The County will also make that determination to the extent of its right to do so under the law (See section V. above).

D. When the leave is for planned medical treatment the employee must:

1. Schedule the medical treatment so that it does not unduly disrupt the County’s operation. The employee must provide the County with a proposed schedule for the leave with reasonable promptness after the employee learns of the probable necessity of the leave. The schedule must be of sufficient definiteness that the County can schedule replacement employees, if necessary.
2. Provide the required medical certification, to include the date the serious health condition commenced, the probable duration, the medical facts regarding the condition, and a statement that the employee is unable to perform the functions of his/her position. Depending on the nature, duration, etc., of the leave, the employee may be required to obtain a recertification, and to request an extension to the leave of absence. (See section VIII.)

E. When medically necessary, an employee may take leave as an intermittent leave or leave on a reduced leave schedule (fewer hours per day or week) in increments of no less than one-half hour. An employee who does so will schedule the intermittent or reduced leave schedule so it does not unduly disrupt the County's operations. To comply with this requirement, an employee must provide the County, in writing, with the employee's proposed schedule of intermittent leave or leave on a reduced leave schedule with reasonable promptness after the employee learns of the probable necessity of such leave. Leave available during a calendar year may only be used within that year.

F. If an intermittent leave or a reduced leave schedule is allowed for planned medical treatments, provide medical certification stating the dates on which such treatment is expected to be given and the duration of such treatment.

G. If an intermittent leave or a reduced leave schedule is allowed, the County may temporarily transfer the employee to an available alternative position for which the employee is qualified and which better accommodates recurring periods of leave.

VIII. Medical Certificate

A. If a Federal and/or State medical leave is designated for an employee under this policy, the employee must obtain a Medical Certification Form from the Human Resources Department. This form must be completed by the employee and the health care provider treating the employee, and returned to the Human Resources Department within fifteen calendar days. If it is not practicable under the particular circumstances for the employee to do so within the fifteen day requirement, despite the employee's diligent good faith efforts, the employee will provide the certification as soon as possible. The County can require the employee to obtain subsequent re-certifications on a reasonable basis, and to report periodically on his/her status and intention to return to work. If requirements for the medical certification are not completed, the County may deny family and/or medical leave.

B. The County may request a second and a third health care provider opinion at the County's expense. If, during the period of a State FMLA leave, a third opinion is desired due to conflicting opinions of health care providers, the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development may appoint a practitioner/provider to make the final decision.

IX. Insurance and Benefits

A. While an employee is on Federal and/or State medical leave the County will maintain group health, dental, and life insurance coverage under the conditions that applied before the leave began. If, prior to the leave, the employee was required to participate in the premium payments, the employee is required to continue with his/her share of the premium payments. The County's obligation to maintain health, dental, and life insurance benefits will stop if and when an employee informs the County of his/her intent not to return to work at the end of the leave period; if the employee fails to return to work when leave entitlement is used up; or if the employee fails to make any required payments while on leave. Employee contribution amounts are subject to any change in rates that occur while the employee is on leave. In some circumstances, the employee may maintain post-employment rights to continued coverage pursuant to the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA).

B. If the employee does not return to work after the leave entitlement has been exhausted, the County reserves the right to recover the health, dental, and life insurance premiums paid during the leave, unless the failure to return to work was for reasons beyond the employee's control.

C. The employee will continue to earn accrued benefits if paid leave is substituted for unpaid medical leave. During unpaid leave, unless specifically provided by county policy or a labor agreement, an employee is not entitled to benefit accrual other than group health, dental, and life insurance coverage (to the extent that coverage would have been provided if the employee continued working), but will not lose any benefits accrued prior to leave unless such benefits are utilized. Based upon labor agreement, seniority will continue to accrue during the first calendar month of an unpaid leave.

D. Employees on approved leave of absence will not, as a condition of the leave, seek or accept employment elsewhere.

E. Further clarification of benefit entitlement and responsibilities should be obtained from the Insurance and Benefits Coordinator.

X. Return from Leave

A. An employee returning from medical leave, including Federal/State medical leave, County-provided medical leave, and sick leave beyond three days, is required to obtain medical certification from the health care provider stating that he/she is able to resume work and is able to perform the essential job functions.

B. An employee returning from leave as provided under this policy can return to his or her position under the provisions of County policy and/or an applicable labor agreement. Note that County policy and some existing labor agreements provide that an employee may be returned to his/her position at the time the leave was granted or to a comparable classification providing there is such a vacancy. An employee should provide two work days written notice to the employee’s supervisor before returning to work.

C. An employee may return to work prior to the scheduled end of the leave, and will be allowed to return within a reasonable time after the request to return to work early is made.

XI. Policy Interpretation and Revision

Specific interpretation of the policy provisions contained herein can be obtained from the Dodge County Human Resources Department. Dodge County reserves the right to add to or delete from this policy, in whole or in part, within its rights to do so under applicable Federal and State laws.

An unpaid Family Leave of Absence (as provided by Federal and/or State legislation) to care for a parent, son or daughter, spouse, or next of kin military member with a serious health condition is available to employees as specified below. In no event will an employee be entitled to more Federal and/or State family leave than the maximum number of weeks provided in one (1) calendar year by Federal or State FMLA statutes. The weeks of Federal and State FMLA leave will be considered concurrent. Current Federal law provides for a total of twelve weeks of FMLA leave, and twenty-six (26) weeks to care for a family member with a serious health condition related to military service.

I. Eligibility

A. An employee is eligible for Federal and State Family Leave of Absence if the employee:

1. is needed to care for a parent, son or daughter, or spouse who has a serious health condition, and
2. has been employed by Dodge County for at least twelve (12) months, not necessarily consecutive, and
3. has worked 1,000 hours and/or has been paid for 1,000 hours during the twelve (12) month period preceding the leave, or
4. s needed to care for a spouse, parent, son or daughter, or next of kin who is a “member of the Armed Forces, including a member of the National Guard or Reserves, who is undergoing medical treatment, recuperation, or therapy, is otherwise in outpatient status, or is otherwise on the temporary disability retired list, for a serious injury or illness” (H.R. 4986, National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2008), and if the employee meets the conditions of 2. and 3. above, or
5. is needed for “any qualifying exigency (as the Secretary [of Labor] shall, by regulation, determine) arising out of the fact that the spouse, or a son, daughter, or parent of the employee is on active duty (or has been notified of an impending call or order to active duty) in the Armed Forces in support of a contingency operation.” Note: This provision of the NDAA is not effective until the Secretary of Labor issues final regulations defining “any qualifying exigency.”

B. Employees who meet eligibility requirements as defined by labor agreement or County Policy #210.1 may be eligible for County-provided general leave.

II. Definitions

Specific definitions relating to Federal and State Family and Medical Leave can be obtained from the Human Resources Department.

III. Leave Duration

A. In a calendar year, an employee may generally qualify for no more than twelve (12) weeks of Federal family and/or medical leave for any and all qualifying reasons unless the leave is to care for a family member as described in I. (A) (4) above. (See also Policies #210.3 and #210.5). In addition, an employee may be eligible for up to six (6) weeks of State family leave if the reason for the State leave is different than that used for Federal leave. If both the employee and his/her spouse are employed by the County, they may be limited to a combined total of twelve (12) weeks of Federal family leave entitlement during a calendar year.

B. Federal and State family and/or medical leave (regardless of whether it is continuous, intermittent, or reduced work schedule leave) must be taken within one (1) year of its commencement.

C. An employee may qualify for up to twenty-six (26) workweeks of leave if the qualifying reason for the leave is I. (A) (4) in the Eligibility section above.

lV. Leave Pro-ration for Part-time Employees

Family leave entitlement for eligible part-time employees will be calculated on a pro-rata basis. The hours worked over the twelve (12) weeks prior to the beginning of the leave will be used for calculating the employee's average normal work week. Example: an employee who worked or was scheduled to work 56 eight-hour days in the twelve week period prior to the leave would have a twelve (12) week leave entitlement (in a one year period) of 56 eight-hour days that s/he would normally have been scheduled.

V. Substitution

During the first two (2) weeks of family leave for the care of a family member, an employee may choose that any of the following types of paid leave be substituted for part or all of the otherwise unpaid Federal or State family leave: sick leave; vacation; banked holidays; compensatory time (if available). After this initial period (two weeks) the County may require, to the extent of its rights under the law and labor agreements, that any paid sick leave benefit available to the employee be substituted for part or all of the family leave period. The County may also require (based on labor agreement) that any other such benefit be substituted for unpaid Federal or State family leave.

VI. Concurrence

A. Any paid leave substituted for unpaid family leave will run concurrent with the family leave provided under this Policy.

B. If a leave qualifies as both a County-provided leave (sick leave benefit, medical leave, or general leave) and a Federal and/or State FMLA leave as well, all leaves will run concurrently. For example, County-provided leave used for the birth of a child may also qualify as family leave under Federal and State law and, as such, is also deducted from an employee's leave entitlement under Federal and State laws.

VII. Scheduling Leave:

A. An employee eligible for and desiring family leave to care for a family member with a serious health condition should submit a written request to the Human Resources Department thirty (30) days prior to the leave if the leave is foreseeable. Verbal requests must be followed by a written request as soon as possible. If the leave is not foreseeable, or thirty (30) days' notice is not practicable, the employee should still provide verbal notice, giving as reasonable and as practical notice as possible, and followed up by submitting a written request as soon as possible (which should be done no later than the end of the work shift on the day the leave is to begin.) (This requirement may be waived in medical emergency situations or for a change in circumstances. An employee who fails to give thirty (30) days notice without a reasonable excuse for the delay may be denied leave until at least thirty (30) days have passed.)

B. The notice should specifically state that FMLA leave is being requested. The County reserves the right to determine whether any leave qualifies as Federal and/or State family leave.

C. The notice should identify if and what type of paid accrued leave the employee intends to substitute as allowed under the law. The County will also make that determination to the extent of its right to do so under the law (See section V. above).

D. When the leave is for planned medical treatment for a family member with a serious health condition, the employee must:

1. Schedule the medical treatment so that it does not unduly disrupt the County’s operation. The employee must provide the County with a proposed schedule for the leave with reasonable promptness after the employee learns of the probable necessity of the leave. The schedule must be of sufficient definiteness that the County can schedule replacement employees, if necessary.
2. Provide the required medical certification, to include the date the serious health condition commenced; the probable duration; the medical facts regarding the condition; a statement that the employee is needed to care for the son, daughter, spouse, or parent; and an estimate of the amount of time that the employee is needed to care for him/her. Depending on the nature, duration, etc., of the leave, the employee may be required to obtain a recertification, and to request an extension to the leave of absence. (See section VIII.)

E. When medically necessary, an employee may take leave as an intermittent leave or leave on a reduced leave schedule (fewer hours per day or week) in increments of no less than one-half hour. An employee who does so will schedule the intermittent or reduced leave schedule so it does not unduly disrupt the County's operations. To comply with this requirement, an employee must provide the County, in writing, with the employee's proposed schedule of intermittent leave or leave on a reduced leave schedule with reasonable promptness after the employee learns of the probable necessity of such leave. Leave available during a calendar year may only be used within that year.

F. If an intermittent leave or a reduced leave schedule is allowed for planned medical treatments, provide medical certification stating the dates on which such treatment is expected to be given and the duration of such treatment.

G. If an intermittent leave or a reduced leave schedule is allowed, the County may temporarily transfer the employee to an available alternative position for which the employee is qualified and which better accommodates recurring periods of leave.

VIII. Medical Certificate

A. If a Federal and/or State family leave is designated for an employee under this policy, the employee must obtain a Medical Certification Form from the Human Resources Department. This form must be completed by the employee and the health care provider treating the employee’s family member, and returned to the Human Resources Department within fifteen (15) calendar days. If it is not practicable under the particular circumstances for the employee to do so within the fifteen day requirement, despite the employee's diligent good faith efforts, the employee will provide the certification as soon as possible. The County can require the employee to obtain subsequent re-certifications on a reasonable basis, and to report periodically on his/her status and intention to return to work. If requirements for the medical certification are not completed, the County may deny family leave.

B. The County may request a second and a third health care provider opinion at the County's expense. If, during the period of a State FMLA leave, a third opinion is desired due to conflicting opinions of health care providers, the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development may appoint a practitioner/provider to make the final determination

IX. Insurance and Benefits

A. While an employee is on Federal and/or State family leave the County will maintain group health, dental, and life insurance coverage under the conditions that applied before the leave began. If, prior to the leave, the employee was required to participate in the premium payments, the employee is required to continue with his/her share of the premium payments. The County's obligation to maintain health, dental, and life insurance benefits will stop if and when an employee informs the County of his/her intent not to return to work at the end of the leave period; if the employee fails to return to work when leave entitlement is used up; or if the employee fails to make any required payments while on leave. Employee contribution amounts are subject to any change in rates that occur while the employee is on leave. In some circumstances, the employee may maintain post-employment rights to continued coverage pursuant to the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA).

B. If the employee does not return to work after the leave entitlement has been exhausted, the County reserves the right to recover the health, dental, and life insurance premiums paid during the leave, unless the failure to return to work was for reasons beyond the employee's control.

C. The employee will continue to earn accrued benefits if paid leave is substituted for unpaid family leave. During unpaid leave, unless specifically provided by County policy or a labor agreement, an employee is not entitled to benefit accrual other than group health, dental, and life insurance coverage (to the extent that coverage would have been provided if the employee continued working), but will not lose any benefits accrued prior to leave unless such benefits are utilized. Based upon labor agreement, seniority will continue to accrue during the first calendar month of an unpaid leave.

D. Employees on approved leave of absence will not, as a condition of the leave, seek or accept employment elsewhere.

E. Further clarification of benefit entitlement and responsibilities should be obtained from the Insurance and Benefits Coordinator.

X. Return from Leave

A. An employee returning from leave as provided under this policy can return to his or her position under the provisions of County policy and/or an applicable labor agreement. Note that County policy and some existing labor agreements provide that an employee may be returned to his/her position at the time the leave was granted or to a comparable classification providing there is such a vacancy. An employee should provide two days written notice to the employee’s supervisor before returning to work.

B. An employee may return to work prior to the scheduled end of the leave, and will be allowed to return within a reasonable time after the request to return to work early is made.

XI. Policy Interpretation and Revision

Specific interpretation of the policy provisions contained herein can be obtained from the Dodge County Human Resources Department. Dodge County reserves the right to add to or delete from this policy, in whole or in part, within its rights to do so under applicable Federal and State laws.

An unpaid Family Leave of Absence (as provided by Federal and/or State legislation) for birth, adoption, or foster care placement is available to employees as specified below. In no event will an employee be entitled to more Federal and/or State family leave than the maximum number of weeks provided in one (1) calendar year by Federal or State FMLA statutes. The weeks of Federal and State FMLA leave will be considered concurrent. Current Federal law provides for a total of twelve (12) weeks of FMLA leave.

I. Eligibility

A. An employee is eligible for Federal and State Family Leave of Absence if the employee:

1. desires to take leave due to: a. the birth of their child, and to care for the newborn child, or b. due to the placement with the employee of a child for adoption (or as a precondition to adoption, but not both) or foster care, and to care for the newly placed child, and
2. has been employed by Dodge County for at least twelve (12) months, not necessarily consecutive, and 3. has worked 1,000 hours and/or has been paid for 1,000 hours during the twelve (12) month period preceding the leave.

B. Employees who meet eligibility requirements as defined by County Policy #210.2 or labor agreement may be eligible for County-provided medical leave.

C. Employees who meet eligibility requirements as defined by County Policy #210.1 or labor agreement may be eligible for County-provided general leave. II. Definitions Specific definitions relating to Federal and State Family and Medical Leave can be obtained from the Human Resources Department.

III. Leave Duration

A. In a calendar year, an employee may generally qualify for no more than twelve (12) weeks of Federal family and/or medical leave for any and all qualifying reasons (See also Policies #210.3 and #210.4). In addition, an employee may be eligible for up to six (6) weeks of State family leave if the reason for the State leave is different than that used for Federal leave. If both the employee and his/her spouse are employed by the County, they may be limited to a combined total of twelve (12) weeks of Federal family leave entitlement during a calendar year.

B. Federal and State family and/or medical leave (regardless of whether it is continuous, intermittent, or reduced work schedule leave) must be taken within one (1) year of its commencement.

C. Family leave for birth, adoption, or foster care placement must commence within sixteen (16) weeks prior to or after the birth or placement of the child for adoption or foster care (State FMLA), but must conclude within twelve (12) months of the birth or placement

IV. Leave Pro-ration for Part-time Employees

Family and/or medical leave entitlement for eligible part-time employees will be calculated on a pro-rata basis. The hours worked over the twelve (12) weeks prior to the beginning of the leave will be used for calculating the employee's average normal work week. Example: an employee who worked or was scheduled to work 56 eight-hour days in the twelve week period prior to the leave would have a twelve (12) week leave entitlement (in a one year period) of 56 eight-hour days that s/he would normally have been scheduled.

V. Substitution

During the first six (6) weeks of family leave for birth, adoption, or foster care an employee may choose that any of the following types of paid leave be substituted for part or all of the otherwise unpaid Federal or State family leave: sick leave; vacation; banked holidays; compensatory time (if available). After this initial period (six weeks) the County may require, to the extent of its rights under the law and labor agreements, that any paid sick leave benefit available to the employee be substituted for part or all of the family leave period. The County may also require (based on labor agreement) that any other such benefit be substituted for unpaid Federal or State family leave.

VI. Concurrence

A. Any paid leave substituted for unpaid family leave will run concurrent with the family leave provided under this Policy.

B. If a leave qualifies as both a County-provided leave (sick leave benefit, medical leave, or general leave) and a Federal and/or State FMLA leave as well, all leaves will run concurrently. For example, County-provided leave used for the birth of a child may also qualify as family leave under Federal and State law and, as such, is also deducted from an employee's leave entitlement under Federal and State laws.

VII. Scheduling Leave:

A. An employee eligible for and desiring family leave should submit a written request to the Human Resources Department thirty (30) days prior to the leave if the leave is foreseeable. Verbal requests must be followed by a written request as soon as possible. If the leave is not foreseeable, or thirty (30) days' notice is not practicable, the employee should still provide verbal notice, giving as reasonable and as practical notice as possible, and followed up by submitting a written request as soon as possible (which should be done no later than the end of the work shift on the day the leave is to begin.) (This requirement may be waived in medical emergency situations or for a change in circumstances. An employee who fails to give thirty (30) days notice without a reasonable excuse for the delay may be denied leave until at least thirty (30) days have passed.)

B. The notice should specifically state that FMLA leave is being requested. The County reserves the right to determine whether any leave qualifies as Federal and/or State family leave.

C. The notice should identify if and what type of paid accrued leave the employee intends to substitute as allowed under the law. The County will also make that determination to the extent of its right to do so under the law (See section V. above).

D. During the equivalent of the first six (6) weeks of a family leave for birth, adoption, or foster care, an employee may take family leave as an intermittent leave or leave on a reduced leave schedule (fewer hours per day or week) in increments of no less than onehalf hour. An employee who does so will schedule the intermittent or reduced leave schedule so it does not unduly disrupt the County's operations. To comply with this requirement, an employee must provide the County, in writing, with the employee's proposed schedule of intermittent leave or leave on a reduced leave schedule no less than thirty (30) days before the schedule is to begin, if at all possible.

The schedule must be of sufficient definiteness so that the County is able to schedule replacement employees, if necessary, to cover the absences. The County reserves the right whether or not to allow that family leave for birth, adoption, or foster care placement be taken as intermittent leave or leave on a reduced leave schedule beyond the equivalent of six weeks. Leave available during a calendar year may only be used within that year.

E. If an intermittent leave or a reduced leave schedule is allowed, the County may temporarily transfer the employee to an available alternative position for which the employee is qualified and which better accommodates recurring periods of leave.

VIII. Insurance and Benefits

A. While an employee is on Federal and/or State family leave the County will maintain group health, dental, and life insurance coverage under the conditions that applied before the leave began. If, prior to the leave, the employee was required to participate in the premium payments, the employee is required to continue with his/her share of the premium payments.

The County's obligation to maintain health, dental, and life insurance benefits will stop if and when an employee informs the County of his/her intent not to return to work at the end of the leave period; if the employee fails to return to work when leave entitlement is used up; or if the employee fails to make any required payments while on leave. Employee contribution amounts are subject to any change in rates that occur while the employee is on leave. In some circumstances, the employee may maintain post-employment rights to continued coverage pursuant to the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA).

B. If the employee does not return to work after the leave entitlement has been exhausted, the County reserves the right to recover the health, dental, and life insurance premiums paid during the leave, unless the failure to return to work was for reasons beyond the employee's control.

C. The employee will continue to earn accrued benefits if paid leave is substituted for unpaid family leave. During unpaid leave, unless specifically provided by County policy or a labor agreement, an employee is not entitled to benefit accrual other than group health, dental, and life insurance coverage (to the extent that coverage would have been provided if the employee continued working), but will not lose any benefits accrued prior to leave unless such benefits are utilized. Based upon labor agreement, seniority will continue to accrue during the first calendar month of an unpaid leave.

D. Employees on approved leave of absence will not, as a condition of the leave, seek or accept employment elsewhere.

E. Further clarification of benefit entitlement and responsibilities should be obtained from the Insurance and Benefits Coordinator.

IX. Return from Leave

A. An employee returning from leave as provided under this policy can return to his or her position under the provisions of County policy and/or an applicable labor agreement. Note that County policy and some existing labor agreements provide that an employee may be returned to his/her position at the time the leave was granted or to a comparable classification providing there is such a vacancy. An employee should provide two work days written notice to the employee’s supervisor before returning to work.

B. An employee may return to work prior to the scheduled end of the leave, and will be allowed to return within a reasonable time after the request to return to work early is made.

X. Policy Interpretation and Revision

Specific interpretation of the policy provisions contained herein can be obtained from the Dodge County Human Resources Department. Dodge County reserves the right to add to or delete from this policy, in whole or in part, within its rights to do so under applicable Federal and State laws.

An employee will be entitled to up to three (3) days of bereavement leave in the event of the death of an employee’s spouse, child, parent, brother or sister.

Two (2) days of bereavement leave will be allowed in the event of the death of an employee’s stepparent or stepchild.

One (1) day of bereavement leave will be allowed in the event of the death of an employee’s motherin-law, father-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, grandchild or grandparent of employee or spouse.

If additional time is required beyond the time specified above, such additional leave time may be taken and deducted from the employee’s sick leave accumulation or other earned time provided that authorization for additional leave is first obtained in writing from the individual’s supervisor.

Leaves of absence without pay will be automatically granted for all full time employees who are called or volunteer for military service providing that an application for re-employment is made within the time period specified under state or federal law or regulation.

Employees who do not return from any leave of absence on the return-to-work date or within the time period specified under state or federal law or regulation are considered to have voluntarily terminated. Any extension of a leave (i.e. new leave) that specifically states a return-to-work date must be approved prior to the return-to-work date of the original leave.

Dodge County will comply with all State and Federal laws and regulations relating to employment rights of persons in military service, including s.63.06, Wis. Stats., and 20 CFR 1002 (USERRA).

Employees may be granted up to a six (6) month unpaid educational leave of absence to attend a job related or career advancement program or school.

Employees must pay the entire cost of their health, dental and life insurance premiums. Employees returning from educational leave may be reinstated to the position they were employed in at the time their leave was granted or to a position of comparable classification provided such positions are vacant.

Approval is contingent upon adequate coverage being available to cover the duties of the person requesting the leave of absence.

Dodge County offers its employees who work 20 hours or more per week the opportunity to participate in a group Voluntary Long-term Disability Insurance plan. This benefit is administered by a third-party vendor and the terms of the policy are established by the provider. The employee pays the full premium. Qualifying employees are eligible to enroll in this benefit on the first of the month coinciding or following date of hire. Evidence of Insurability is required for late enrollment (employees not enrolled within the 31 days of initial eligibility) and for employees requesting an increase in current insurance levels.

All employees who are in benefit eligible positions will be entitled to longevity pay with the following schedule and conditions:

• Employees who have five (5) years (60 months) of continuous service will, starting as of the 61st month, receive an additional $10.00 per month.
• Employees who have ten (10) years (120 months) of continuous service will receive an additional $17.00 per month.
• Employees who have fifteen (15) years (180 months) of continuous service will receive an additional $24.00 per month.
• Employees who have twenty (20) years (240 months) of continuous service will receive an additional $30.00 per month.
• Employees who have thirty (30) years (360) months of continuous service will receive an additional $35.00 per month.

Eligibility for longevity will be determined as of November 1 of any calendar year. Longevity payments will be made on an annual basis between December 1 and December 20 of each year to all eligible employees who are on the payroll as of that time. In the event an eligible employee should retire or die, s/he or his/her heirs will receive longevity payments due as of the last day of employment and payment will be made at the time of retirement or death.

Pro-ration of Longevity

Pay Part-time benefit eligible employees, and non-exempt employees who have had unpaid time during the prior calendar year, will have their longevity pay pro-rated. The pro-ration calculation will take into consideration the number of hours paid to the employee during the prior year in comparison to the total number of full-time hours for the position.

Examples:

Employee A is a non-exempt employee who holds a 1040 hour/year benefit-eligible part-time position and would normally qualify for longevity pay equaling $60 ($10 per month for a full-time employee).

Employee A worked 992 hours during the past year, which resulted in a pro-ration that provided for $57.60 of longevity pay for the year. 992 hours worked during the past calendar year 992 / 2080 = 47.7% = 48% FTE (rounded to closest full number) $120 x 48% = $57.60 longevity pay

Employee B is a non-exempt employee who holds a 2080 hour/year position and would normally qualify for $120 of longevity pay.

Employee A had 12 unpaid days (96 hours) during the past year, which resulted in a pro-ration that provided for $114 of longevity pay for the year. 2080 – 96 = 1984 1984 / 2080 = 95.4% = 95% (rounded to closest full number) $120 x 95% = $114 longevity pay

Sick leave paid to a non-exempt employee that is donated by another employee is considered equivalent to unpaid time for the purpose of calculating the employee’s level of benefit. Employees on military leave will be entitled to all benefits and seniority rights afforded them under federal or state law.

Each employee hired prior to July 1, 2011 who works at least six hundred (600) hours in any one year period is a participant in the Wisconsin Retirement Fund as provided by Wisconsin Statutes and rules established by the Wisconsin Retirement Fund Board.

Employees initially hired after July 1, 2011 must work twelve hundred (1200) hours in any one year period to become a participant, and are subject to a five (5) year vesting requirement.

Employer and Employee contribution rates are established annually by the Department of Employee Trust Funds. Employee contributions are made on a pre-tax basis, as allowed under Internal Revenue Code Section 414(h)(2). Taxation of the employee contribution amount is deferred until the participant starts receiving a retirement annuity from WRS.

All regular employees will, upon completion of the orientation period, be entitled to paid sick leave. Sick leave will accumulate at the rate of one (1) day for each month of regular full-time employment up to a maximum of one-hundred twenty (120) days. Eligible employees who are in active employment (not on unpaid leave, layoff, etc.) will be credited with accrued sick leave on the 15th day of each month.

Employees who have accumulated the one-hundred twenty (120) days of sick leave will continue to earn sick leave which will be placed into their emergency sick leave bank. These banked days may be used if the employee has exhausted his/her normal sick leave and is under verified physician's or chiropractor's care for serious illness or injury. Days in the emergency sick leave bank will not be subject to the payment provision noted below (*). Clearview employees working twelve (12) consecutive months (December 1 through November 30) without using a sick day or any portion thereof may, at their option, be paid out one (1) day quarterly, at their current rate of pay with the remaining days added to their accumulation.

During the fourth quarter, a request can be made to have the maximum payout – any days previously paid out throughout the year will count towards the maximum yearly payout of six (6) days. The maximum amount paid out per year will be reduced by the number of hours the employee has converted sick leave to personal days. Sick leave benefits will be paid at the regular hourly rate received by the employee at the time of illness or injury. Sick leave benefits will be paid up to the extent of an employee's accumulation for all bona fide illness, disease, injury and maternity excepting only those cases for which an employee would be entitled to receive Worker's Compensation.

Sick leave is hereby defined as to include: Diagnostic and physical examinations and dental and eye procedures (up to one-half [1/2] day allowed provided doctor's verification is obtained). Satisfactory evidence of illness and treatment warranting sick leave will be required in all cases of employee's absence because of illness of more than three working days and may be required in instances of absences for illness of less than three working days if the County considers it appropriate. Although a physician's certificate will be given consideration as evidence of disability, the County reserves the right where the period of time requested by the employee appears excessive in relation to the illness claimed to limit the period of sick leave to that normally required for such illness; and the County further reserves the right to call in its own physician to make a final determination of an employee's disability in all cases.

Employees who have been notified by management, due to their prior record of absences or other reason, that they are required to obtain a physician's certificate, either for their own illness or that of a family member, must have been seen by a physician for the certification to be considered valid. With the approval of the Department Head or designee, employees eligible for sick leave may be authorized to use up to an equivalent of three (3) days of sick leave per calendar year due to illness or injury to the immediate family (spouse, children, stepchildren, parent, stepparent) that would reasonably require the presence of the employee. Under special circumstances and approval of the Department Head or designee, an employee may be granted additional sick leave in excess of three [3] days.

The employee must submit a medical excuse for any days used under this provision. If an excuse is not submitted the use of sick leave will be denied and the employee will be required to use anyother available paid time (i.e. vacation, comp time, etc.). Sick leave will commence upon the first day of absence due to illness or injury and employees must notify the department in charge of the absence prior to the regular starting time if at all possible. (*) Except for involuntary termination, an employee who terminates employment will be paid out of their accumulated unused sick leave on their last pay check as follows:

• After five (5) years of service 20%
• After ten (10) years of service 30%
• After fifteen (15) years of service 50%
• After twenty (20) years of service 60%

Important note: See also Policy #214.1 regarding the Post Employment Health Plan. Pro-ration of Sick Leave Accrual Part-time benefit eligible employees, and non-exempt employees who have had unpaid time will have their sick leave accrual pro-rated. The pro-ration calculation will take all hours paid from the 15th day of each month through the 14th day of the following month and will credit the employee’s sick leave bank with the prorated amount of sick time on the 15th day of that month. Employees on military leave will be entitled to all benefits and seniority rights afforded them under federal or state law.

Employees who terminate employment and are eligible to receive a retirement annuity under the provisions of the Wisconsin State Retirement Plan, will have 80% of their accumulated regular sick leave converted into a post-employment health plan (PEHP) account as authorized by Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(9).

Sick leave which is in an employee’s “emergency sick leave bank” at the time of retirement is not eligible for conversion to the PEHP Plan. The conversion is calculated using the employee’s most recent rate of pay prior to retirement. Retired employees can use monies from their PEHP account to pay for health, vision, dental and COBRA premiums for plans under which they are covered. If the retired employee dies prior to the depletion of the account, then the surviving spouse and/or dependents who are participating in the retiree’s insurance plan must use the remaining monies in the account for insurance premiums.

There can be no exceptions to this policy for persons eligible to retire during the period during which this policy is in effect, or the tax-exempt status of any and all funds set aside in such deposit accounts will be negated. If the retired employee and his or her eligible dependent(s) should die prior to the depletion of the account, the remaining monies in the account will be divided equally among other retirees who have monies in deposit accounts created under the provisions of this section.

I. PURPOSE

The purpose of this policy is to provide a tool reimbursement to Highway Department employees who are classified as Mechanics and Welders.

II. POLICY

The maximum annual tool reimbursement is three hundred-fifty dollars $350.00 per calendar year.

III. GUIDELINES

a. New Hires Newly hired employees in these classifications will be eligible to receive a pro-rated amount of the maximum tool reimbursement upon completion of their orientation period.

b. Terminations/Retirements If an Employee terminates employment or retires during the calendar year and the employee has submitted and been reimbursed for a tool reimbursement, the reimbursement will be prorated, and the employee must repay to the County the difference between the prorated amount and the actual amount received. Repayment will be through payroll deduction, when possible.

c. Any portion of the annual tool reimbursement not used by the end of the calendar year will not be carried forward into the succeeding calendar year and will not be paid out.

IV. PROCEDURE

a. Reimbursement for tools is made upon approval of a receipt to either the Shop Superintendent, Assistant Highway Commissioner or the Highway Commissioner submitted within 30 days of the purchase. In the event the receipt is for the replacement of a broken tool, the broken tool must be turned in before the statement will be approved.

b. All purchases must be made and receipts submitted to payroll no later than the last day of the pay period of the last pay date of the calendar year.

All eligible employees of Dodge County are covered under the Wisconsin Unemployment Insurance laws. This coverage is provided at no cost to the employees.

I. PURPOSE

The purpose of this policy is to provide financial support for employees required to wear uniforms including footwear, ensuring employees have the necessary attire and uniform equipment to perform job duties professionally and safely.

II. POLICY

Dodge County provides a uniform allowance to the Sheriff’s Office Sworn employees in accordance with the labor contract language. A uniform allowance is also provided to the Sheriff’s Office Non-Sworn employees and to specific Highway Department employees.

III. STANDARDS

A. Sheriff’s Office Employees Uniform Allowance

1. Jail Division: Each regular employee receives an annual cash allowance of$500.00 for the purchase of uniforms.
2. All other Non-Sworn Employees: Each regular employee receives an annual cash allowance of $425.00 for the purchase of uniforms.
3. Certified Law Enforcement Management: Each regular employee receives an annual cash allowance equal to the Sworn Association Agreement amount for the purchase of uniforms.

B. Highway Department

1. In a two-year period Highway Department mechanics and welders will be furnished with a maximum of ten (10) pairs of coveralls; other Highway Department employees will be furnished with 3 pairs of coveralls in a 2 year period. Any additional pairs of coveralls are to be paid for by the Employee.
2. Dodge County will provide an annual reimbursement to Highway Department Employees for safety apparel, and boot reimbursement, up to a maximum of $200.00, which will be reimbursed to the employee upon presentation of an approved paid receipt.
   1. To qualify for reimbursement, high visibility safety apparel must meet ANSI 107 type R class 2 or class 3 compliance using reflective striping material (including vests, shirts, shorts, jackets, hats, and pants) shirts and vests must have at minimum half sleeves.
   2. Footwear must meet ASTM F2413-18 standards to qualify for reimbursement.

3. Dodge County will allow for an annual reimbursement to Highway Department employees of up to $125.00 per year for approved prescription safety glasses, if needed, upon presentation of an approved paid receipt.

IV. GUIDELINES

A. Sheriff’s Office Employees

1. Newly hired employees receive a proration of their first calendar year’s uniform allowance at the time of hire, as well as an initial uniform purchase allowance of $200.00.
2. The uniform allowance is intended to be used for initial purchase of non-issued uniforms and uniform equipment as well as replacement, repair and dry cleaning caused by normal wear, but not for replacement and/or repair of County owned leather goods and equipment. If an employee’s uniform, equipment or personal belongings are damaged, broken or destroyed in the course of his/her duties, these articles will be repaired or replaced by the County at their value when purchased at no cost to the Employee if the item is turned in to the County. The cost of repair or replacement will not to be deducted from the employee’s uniform allowance.
3. The value of watches is limited to $40.00 and glasses are limited to $100.00. Cosmetic and jewelry items are not eligible for reimbursement.
4. If an Employee terminates employment during the year, the uniform allowance is prorated and the employee must repay to the County the difference between the prorated amount and the actual amount received. Repayment will be through payroll deduction when possible.
5. Employees will be responsible for any issued items and must return them to the County upon termination of employment.
6. Please refer to the Sworn Association Agreement for uniform allowance for Sworn Association employees.
7. All uniform allowance payments will be made on the second payroll of each year.

B. Highway Department

1. Newly hired employees in these classifications will be eligible to receive a prorated amount of the maximum reimbursement upon completion of their orientation period.
2. If an Employee terminates employment during the year, the reimbursement is prorated and the employee must repay to the County the difference between the prorated amount and the actual amount received. Repayment will be through payroll deduction when possible.
3. Any portion of the reimbursement not used by the end of the calendar year will not be carried forward into the succeeding calendar year and will not be paid out.

V. PROCEDURE

A. Highway Department

1. Reimbursement is made upon approval of a receipt to either the Superintendent, Assistant Highway Commissioner or the Highway Commissioner submitted within 30 days of the purchase.
2. All purchases must be made and receipts submitted to payroll no later than the last day of the pay period of the last pay date of the calendar year.

The pool status 911 Communications Officer, Correctional Officer and Occasional Transport Officer positions are part time non-benefited positions working on average less than 20 hours per week.

Employees assigned to these positions must work a minimum of an average of 12 hours per month per year unless called off the schedule by management. Employees will receive an annual uniform allowance of $250 that will be prorated based on hire date or termination date.

Employee who do not meet the 12 hour per month requirement will forfeit the annual uniform allowance for the following year(s).  

I. PURPOSE

The purpose of this Vacation policy is to establish clear guidelines for the accrual, usage, and management of paid vacation time. This ensures employees have opportunities for personal time away from work while allowing the organization to maintain operational effectiveness.

II. POLICY This policy outlines how employees accrue vacation time based on their length of service and employment status. This policy applies to eligible employees except those employees covered by a collective bargaining agreement, unless specifically stated otherwise in the agreement.

A. Definitions 1. Day – A “day” is defined as eight (8) hours or 7.75 hours for some Clearview positions.

III. STANDARDS

A. Eligibility

1. Employees hired on or after January 1, 2022 are under the Paid Time Off (PTO) Policy and not eligible for vacation.

2. Employees hired after January 1, 1977 must take all vacation days off within twelve (12) months of the anniversary date they are earned.

B. Schedule

1. Regular full time employees will earn paid vacation based upon their anniversary date of employment in accordance with the following schedule:

• After 1 year - Ten (10) vacation days
• After 7 years - Fifteen (15) vacation days
• After 14 years - Sixteen (16) vacation days
• After 15 years - Seventeen (17) vacation days
• After 16 years - Eighteen (18) vacation days
• After 17 years - Nineteen (19) vacation days
• After 18 years - Twenty (20) vacation days
• After 19 years - Twenty-one (21) vacation days
• After 20 years - Twenty-two (22) vacation days
• After 21 years - Twenty-three (23) vacation days
• After 22 years - Twenty-four (24) vacation days
• After 23 years - Twenty-five (25) vacation days

2. Employees may take vacation in units of one (1) or more working days or one (1) or more working hours when the supervisor does not need to replace that employee. Vacation pay is equal to the pay employees would have received when working their normal schedule of hours, exclusive of shift premium, if any.

C. Guidelines Requests: Each department determines when preferred vacation requests must be submitted. Length of service will be given consideration in granting choice of vacation time within a given job classification, however Department Heads will make the final determination regarding vacation requests. Part time Proration Part-time benefit eligible employees, and non-exempt employees who have had unpaid time during the prior anniversary year, will have their vacation pay pro-rated. The proration calculation will take place prior to the start of the new anniversary year and will take into consideration the number of hours paid to the employee during the prior anniversary year in comparison to the total number of full-time hours for the position.

The calculation will result in a reconciliation of the number of vacation hours paid versus vacation hours earned. In the case of a part-time benefit eligible employee the calculation may result in a change in the determination of how many hours of earned vacation the employee will be credited for use during the upcoming anniversary year.

D. Military Leave Employees on military leave will be credited with all hours earned as if they were actively working.

E. Clearview

1. In the event the County finds it necessary to deny a vacation request by staff at Clearview, the affected employee may reschedule his/her vacation days during the remainder of the anniversary year.

2. If an employee desires to reschedule a vacation day or holiday/personal day, s/he will submit a written request to the Clearview Administrator for approval.

3. If multiple attempts to reschedule are unsuccessful, the employee may request an extension for consideration by the County Administrator.

F. Highway Employees must take all their vacation days off within 12 months of the anniversary date they are earned. Employees will receive cash payment if unable to take scheduled vacation days off because of an emergency in the department.

IV. PROCEDURE 

N/A

V. GUIDELINES

N/A

An employee who is classified an non-exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act and who is a volunteer fire fighter, emergency medical technician, first responder, or ambulance driver for a volunteer fire department or fire company, a public agency, or a nonprofit corporation may be allowed to be late for or absent from work if the lateness or absence is due to the employee responding to an emergency that begins before the employee is required to report to work and if the employee complies with all of the following requirements:

1. By no later than 30 days after becoming a member of a volunteer fire department or fire company or becoming affiliated with an ambulance service provider, the employee must submit to his/her Department Head a written statement signed by the chief of the volunteer fire department or fire company or by the person in charge of the ambulance service provider notifying Dodge County that the employee is a volunteer fire fighter, emergency medical technician, first responder, or ambulance driver for a volunteer fire department or fire company, a public agency, or a nonprofit corporation. This document will be forwarded to the Human Resources Department for inclusion in the employee’s personnel file.

2. When dispatched to an emergency, the employee must make every effort to notify his/her Department Head or designee that the employee may be late for or absent from work due to the employee’s responding to the emergency or, if prior notification cannot be made due to the extreme circumstances of the emergency or the inability of the employee to contact his/her Department Head, submits to the County a written statement from the chief of the volunteer fire department or fire company or from the person in charge of the ambulance service provider explaining why prior notification could not be made.

3. When late for or absent from work due to responding to an emergency, the employee must provide, on the request of Dodge County, a written statement from the chief of the volunteer fire department or fire company or from the person in charge of the ambulance service provider certifying that the employee was responding to an emergency at the time of the lateness or absence and indicating the date and time of the response to the emergency.

When the employee’s status as a member of a volunteer fire department or fire company or as an affiliate of an ambulance service provider changes, including termination of that status, the employee must notify his/her Department Head of that change in status. The Department Head is responsible for notifying the Human Resource Department of the employee’s change in status. Employees who are late for work or absent from work due to their status as a volunteer fire fighter, emergency medical technician, first responder, or ambulance driver for a volunteer fire department or fire company, a public agency, or a nonprofit corporation as described above are compensated by Dodge County for the time not worked.

Any employee who is entitled to vote at an election is entitled to be absent from work while the polls are open for a period not to exceed 3 successive hours to vote. The employee must notify his/her Department Head before Election Day of the intended absence.

The Department Head will designate the time of day for the absence. Any employee who wishes to serve as an election official under s. 7.30 of the Wisconsin State Statutes is entitled to be absent from work to attend to such duties.

Employees who absent themselves from work to vote or to serve as an election official are not compensated by Dodge County for the time not worked.

The purpose of the paid time off (PTO) plan is to provide employees a flexible means of accruing and utilizing paid leave. Flexibility is vital for work-life balance and PTO provides employees the autonomy to manage time away from the workplace.

Paid Time Off (PTO)

PTO provides a single pool of paid time off to use for any purpose, subject to the required request and approval procedures. PTO covers paid leave previously available under vacation, bereavement, and sick leave. PTO is intended to substitute paid leave for missed work time, and is not treated as a separate paid compensation benefit.

Eligibility

PTO is accrued upon hire or transfer into a position designated by the County as a benefits-eligible position. PTO is available to be selected as a one-time option alternative to previously available vacation, sick and bereavement leave for all eligible employees hired prior to January 1, 2022. All eligible newly hired employees and employees who are transferred from a nonbenefits eligible position to a benefits-eligible position on or after January 1, 2022 are required to participate in PTO.

Procedures

New hires (hired on or after 1/1/2022): PTO accruals are available following completion of 30 days of employment. On the 31st day of employment, accrued PTO hours will be transferred into the employee’s PTO bank and will be available for use. Employees cannot borrow against their PTO bank. PTO hours are not transferrable to other employees.

Transfers from Represented to Non-Represented

Position transfers from Represented to Non-Represented will provide a one-time enrollment opportunity to participate in Paid Time Off. Employees must complete and return to Human Resources a Paid Time Off (PTO) Election Form no later than two (2) weeks after the transfer date. If a form is received late or not submitted, the employee will automatically be enrolled in the Paid Time Off option. Employees with an original hire date of on or after January 10, 2023 transferring from represented to non-represented must participate in the Paid Time Off.

Accrual and Payment of PTO

Accruals are based upon paid hours (i.e. regular work hours, sick leave (if applicable), PTO, comp time used, holiday), excluding overtime, comp time earned/payouts, work back hours or other benefit payouts. Length of service determines the rate at which the employee will accrue PTO. PTO does not accrue while on unpaid leaves of absence, on workers compensation leave or through PTO cash outs upon termination. PTO is not eligible for any cash-out options during employment. PTO is only subject to a cash-out upon end of employment, retirement or death as provided herein.

Movement to Higher Multiplier:

Employees become eligible for the higher accrual rate based on the employee’s anniversary date/benefit eligible date as defined below.

Calculation:

Employees earn PTO for every hour paid (excluding overtime hours, comp time earned/payouts, work back hours or other benefit payouts) that an employee is paid during the pay period. Hours earned are added to the employee’s PTO bank on the first day of the next pay period. The hours are tied to a multiplier, based upon years of service (anniversary date or benefit eligible date) as defined below:

Years of Service (Anniversary or Benefit Eligible Date)	Multiplier on Each Hour Worked/Paid	PTO Max Hours
0 to 2	0.077	480
3 to 4	0.084	480
5 to 6	0.093	480
7 to 10	0.103	480
11 to 14	0.113	480
15 to 17	0.122	480
18 to 19	0.132	480
20 plus	0.146	480

Miscellaneous Rule:

1. While PTO accumulates in hundredths of an hour, employees shall continue to mark their timecards in quarters of an hour.
2. If an employee requests to use PTO as a result of the death of a loved one, the employee shall at a minimum be approved PTO hours equivalent to the designated hours under the Dodge County Bereavement Leave of Absence Policy 210.6.

Accrual Limits

An employee’s accrued PTO shall not exceed 480 hours at any given time. Once an employee’s bank reaches the maximum 480 hours the employee will continue to earn hours which will be placed into an Emergency Sick Leave bank (see below).

Leave Banks

Extended Leave Bank (ELB): The Extended Leave Bank (ELB) is a bank of time separate from PTO and contains the hours that were previously earned under the traditional sick leave policy as of the date the PTO policy went into effect. This bank of hours is intended for use in situations where the employee is absent from work due to a medical necessity after a three (3) calendar day waiting period, and/or for Years of Service (Anniversary or Benefit Eligible Date) events qualifying under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). The hours in this bank are not transferrable to other employees.

Emergency Sick Leave Banks (ESLB): The Emergency Sick Leave Bank (ESLB) is a bank of time separate from PTO and contains the hours that were previously earned under the traditional emergency sick leave policy as of the date the PTO policy went into effect and/or employees who have reached 480 hours in the PTO bank as per above. These banked hours may be used if the employee has exhausted all other paid leave and the employee is under a verified physician's or chiropractor's care for serious illness or injury. Hours in the emergency sick leave bank will not be subject to any payout or payment provision. The hours in this bank are not transferrable to other employees.

Coordination with County Leave of Absence, FMLA and Worker’s Compensation

The County reserves the right to require substitution of paid leave, subject to any legal restrictions. An employee will be required to use PTO leave for unpaid leaves of including the Worker’s Compensation waiting period (typically 3-day waiting period) and for any Federal-only FMLA qualifying leave including, but not limited to, intermittent leaves. Please refer to Dodge County Policy #210 and #221.

Military Leave: Any County employee who is called to active duty as a result of membership of the National Guard or Military is considered to be on an unpaid leave of absence and will have their PTO banks frozen until such time as the employee returns to work and resumes earning PTO hours. Rules covering PTO accrual and usage shall apply to these employees.

Termination of Employment

PTO is intended to substitute paid leave for missed work time, and is not treated as a separate paid compensation benefit. Only in the following limited circumstances identified below for resignation or retirement will the County pay to an employee PTO when not used as a paid time off.

Years of Service (Anniversary or Benefit Eligible Date)	Percent Payout at Termination or Retirement
0 to 2	0%
3 to 4	10%
5 to 6	20%
7 to 10	30%
11 to 14	50%
15 to 17	70%
18 to 19	80%
20 plus	100%

a) Qualifying Resignation or Voluntary Retirement: An employee who: (1) is not in their new hire orientation period and, (2) gives the required notice of termination as outlined in Policy #123-Resignations and Discharges, shall receive a PTO percentage payout as defined in the table above. The payout will be made on the employee’s final paycheck based on the employee’s base rate of pay. In all other circumstances, including when an employee is terminated, an employee shall not be eligible to receive a PTO pay out. Years of Service (Anniversary or Benefit Eligible Date)

An individual may be excused from the notice requirement because of compelling reasons as determined at the discretion of the Human Resources Director or County Administrator. The individual may appeal the decision of the Human Resources Director or County Administrator to the Human Resources and Labor Negotiations Committee. The appeal will be heard at the meeting immediately following the resignation/retirement date of the individual provided proper open meetings notice is given.

b) An employee cannot extend his/her last day of employment by use of any accrued benefit (i.e., PTO, vacation, compensatory time, etc.). Please also see Policy 201.2-Benefit Payout Upon Retirement or Termination.

c) Extended Leave Bank (ELB) payout at termination will be made as per Policy 214–Sick Leave.

d) Extended Leave Bank (ELB) conversion at retirement will apply to eligible employees. Eligible employees will receive a contribution into their Post Employment Health Plan (PEHP) account based on the hours in the ELB as defined by the Policy 214.1-PEHP policy.

e) Emergency Sick Leave Banks (ESLB) banks are for emergency use and not subject to any payout provisions.

f) Employees must have their final time sheet approved on the last day of employment and all termination pay must first receive verification from the Human Resources Department before any payments are made by the Finance Department.

Death

Upon the death of an employee, the employer shall pay to the estate any earnings due to the employee at the time of his or her death. Further, all accrued unused PTO and ELB which the employee may otherwise have been eligible to use will be converted to a qualifying death benefit and will be paid out in accordance to the table in the “Termination of Employment” section as defined above, will paid out as per Policy 214–Sick Leave or will be transferred to the PEHP account as defined by the Policy 214.1-PEHP policy if eligible.

Managing Employee Time-Off Under Two Programs

Managers shall review all applicable policies that govern each program. Human Resources should be consulted with any questions or need for clarification prior to approving time off under either program.

Paid Time Off / Vacation Scheduling: It is the responsibility of each department to establish procedures to ensure employees who have paid time off, and employees who remain under the traditional vacation leave, that requests are processed in a fair and equitable manner, with the understanding the priority is the efficient operation of the department.

I. PURPOSE

The purpose of this policy is to provide guidelines to employees who experience a work-related injury or illness.

II. POLICY

A. Eligibility for benefit continuation (ie health, dental, life, etc.) while receiving Workers Compensation benefits will be based on the employee’s leave status under Federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), State FMLA, and/or County provided Medical or General Leaves of Absence.

B. Benefit Accruals Benefits do not accrue (ie: vacation, PTO, sick, etc.) while receiving compensation from the County’s third-party Worker’s Compensation Administrator including but not limited to: paid time off (PTO), vacation, and sick time.

C. Worker's Compensation leave runs concurrently with Federal and State FMLA leave and/or County-provided Medical Leaves of Absence, if eligible, and is governed by the applicable Dodge County Policy.

D. Employees will be paid regular base wages on the date of injury when seeking medical attention, or if directed by a medical provider, excused from work until the next scheduled shift. If an employee does not seek medical attention on the date of injury or report back to work as instructed, the employee will be required to use available paid time (i.e. PTO, sick, vacation, comp time, etc.) or may take time as unpaid for time missed on the day of the injury and during any waiting period statutorily required.

E. Employees are not allowed to substitute any paid time off while receiving compensation from the County’s third-party Worker’s Compensation Administrator.

III. STANDARDS

A. Employees must report any work-related accident, illness, or injury to their immediate supervisor or the Employee Health Nurse (Clearview) no later than 24 hours after the occurrence. Employee, if able, will call the 24/7 Nurse Triage Line 833-507-8121 for all injuries, even if not seeking medical treatment. Instructions and a Physician’s Report will be provided to the employee from Human Resources. The Nurse Triage may also provide the Physician’s Report to the provider.

B. If an injured employee seeks medical treatment, they must provide medical documentation immediately after the appointment or as soon as possible thereafter regarding work status (including if employee is released to full duty) to Human Resources. See also section F.

C. Employees may use available sick leave, vacation, PTO or other paid leave to cover lost time not compensated by Workers Compensation benefits.

D. Immediately after seeing a medical provider for re-evaluations, the employee is to return a Physician’s Report to Human Resources or Workers Compensation Claim Adjuster.

E. Employee must keep Human Resources, Scheduling (Clearview), and their immediate Supervisor informed of their status including the following:

1. Date physician states return to work without restrictions.
2. Date physician states return to work with restrictions and a list of the restrictions.
3. Date of next re-evaluation date.
4. Any change in condition or referral to another physician/specialist.

F. Employees will return to work as scheduled.

G. The consequences for employees who do not meet the above responsibility will be as follows:

1. Employees who fail to report any work-related accident, illness or injury to the 24/7 Nurse Triage Line, their immediate supervisor, or the Employee Health Nurse (Clearview), will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including discharge.
2. Failure to return from Workers Compensation status as scheduled will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including discharge.
3. Employees who attempt to return without providing a fully completed Physician’s Report on or before the date of return will not be permitted to work, will be placed on unauthorized absence and be subject to disciplinary action, which may include discharge.
4. Employees who perform work duties outside of their work restrictions are subject to discipline, which may include discharge.
5. Employees who fail to notify/update Human Resources, Scheduling (for Clearview), and their immediate Supervisor of work status are subject to disciplinary action, which may include discharge.
6. Employees who are on unauthorized absence for three consecutive scheduled work days will be considered a voluntary termination.

H. Questions and comments regarding this policy may be directed to the Human Resources Department.

IV. OTHER

A. Dodge County uses a Third-Party Administrator to administer the self-funded Worker’s Compensation benefit.

B. Failure to properly follow outlined procedure could result in a denial of benefits.

C. Filing a false claim could result in discipline, up to and including discharge.

V. PROCEDURE See STANDARDS

VI. GUIDELINES

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I. PURPOSE

The purpose of the program is to supplement Dodge County’s normal recruiting activity and enhance the pool of diverse, qualified candidates available to hire for any full-time position.

II. POLICY

A. Definitions

1. Employee Referral Program i. This program is set up to help identify those skilled individuals who may not ordinarily apply to open positions through traditional channels and provides a system by which employees can be involved in the identification of candidates for positions and recognized for their efforts thereby.

ii. Employee referral is defined as recruitment method in which the current employees of Dodge County (including Clearview) are encouraged and rewarded for introducing suitable recruits from among the people they already know.

III. STANDARDS

A. Employee Referral Program

1. All Dodge County (including Clearview) employees will be eligible for the program with the exclusion of Department Heads and any other Supervisor/Manager in a direct hiring authority position.

2. The Human Resources Department will continue to oversee the hiring process of all candidates. Referred candidates will not be given preference over non-referred candidates.

3. If a referred candidate is hired, the employee who referred the candidate will qualify for $500 cash payout once the referred candidate successfully completes six (6) months of continuous full-time employment, as defined herein, as long as the referring employee is employed with the County and in good standing at the time. The referring employee will receive the cash incentive on the next paycheck following the referred employee’s completion of the required six (6) months of continuous full-time employment.

i. To be eligible to receive a bonus as a referring employee, the referred employee must:

a. Be employed by Dodge County when the bonus is paid on the bonus pay date, or, if no longer employed by Dodge County, all of the following conditions must have been met:

1. Separation must have been voluntary.
2. Termination by Dodge County is involuntary.
3. Employee must have given written notice at least 14 days prior to the last day of work (two-week notice period). For the purposes of this policy, the date the notice is given is not included in the 14-day notice period.
4. Employee must have worked the final two-week notice period with good attendance. For purposes of this policy, good attendance is defined as no instances of unexcused absence, unexcused tardiness, or vacation, sick or paid time off days (PTO) days taken without a doctor’s written excuse.

4. Bonus payments are subject to applicable Federal/State taxes and withholdings and will be paid in accordance with the County’s normal payroll practices. The referring employee is not eligible for the $500 referral payment until the referred employee successfully completes six (6) months of continuous full-time employment.

5. For purposes of calculating when an employee has completed six (6) months of continuous full-time employment under this Policy, the County shall not include any leaves of absence, whether protected or unprotected by state or federal law, that exceed three continuous scheduled work days (i.e., each continuous leave of absence ranging three consecutive scheduled work days or more will extend the time it takes Employee to achieve the (6) months of continuous full-time employment by the length of such continuous leave of absence).

6. The Referral Bonus will be charged to the department recruiting the candidate.

IV. PROCEDURE

A. Employee Referral Program

1. All referred candidates must complete a job application via the Dodge County website for review by the Human Resources Department.
2. Referred candidates must list the referring Dodge County/Clearview employee as a reference on their application.
3. In the event the same candidate is referred by more than one employee, the date of the earliest referral will govern.

V. GUIDELINES

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I. PURPOSE

The purpose of this policy is to create and maintain a safe, drug-free work environment for Dodge County employees, safeguard the County’s and employee property, and ensure County operations are conducted safely and efficiently.

II. POLICY

Employees are forbidden to use or possess alcohol or illegal drugs at any time during the work day or anywhere on Dodge County property. Employees are forbidden to engage in any sale or transaction involving illegal drugs on County property. Employees violating this policy will be subject to immediate discipline.

Any sale of illegal drugs during the workday or on County property will result in immediate discharge. Employees under the influence of alcohol or drugs on the job will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including termination. Employees who must use a prescription drug that causes adverse side effects which effects their ability to perform assigned work should inform their supervisor that they are taking such medication, what the side effects are and if requested produce a copy of the original prescription.

If the side effect of the prescription drug interferes with the employee's ability to perform assigned work, the employee may be required to use available paid time off.

III. STANDARDS

A. PRE-EMPLOYMENT TESTING

All candidates who have received a written offer of employment are required to pass a Pre-employment Drug Test. Candidates must advise the testing lab of all prescription drugs taken in the past month before the test and be prepared to show proof of such prescriptions to testing lab personnel. All testing will be conducted by a licensed independent medical laboratory, which will follow testing standards in accordance with state law.

Testing will be conducted on a urine sample provided by the candidate to the testing laboratory under procedures established by the laboratory to ensure privacy of the employee, while protecting against tampering/alteration of the test results. All records concerning test results will be kept in medical files that are maintained separately from Dodge County personnel files.

Candidates who refuse to submit to a drug test or who fail to show up for a drug test within 24 hours of a conditional offer of employment will no longer be considered for employment, and any offer of employment will be rescinded.

B. REASONABLE SUSPICION

Employees who appear to be in an impaired condition on the job may be asked by their supervisor to submit to a test to determine whether they are under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs. Any refusal to submit to a test will be treated as insubordination and will be subject to discipline.

C. OTHER

Based on an assessment by the department head or designee, a drug test may be required in the including but not limited to the following situations: moving violations resulting in citation, incident causing significant property damage, and incident involving a fatality. Employees of the Highway Department are subject to drug testing in accordance to Department of Transportation (DOT) guidelines. The Sheriff’s Office is subject to drug and alcohol testing according to Dodge County Sheriff’s Office Policy #1005 – Drug-and Alcohol-Free Workplace.

IV. PROCEDURE

A. PRE-EMPLOYMENT TESTING

Upon receipt of a conditional offer of employment, candidates must complete required drug testing by reporting to Human Resources within 24 hours and then to the testing site within two (2) hours.

B. REASONABLE SUSPICION

Employees are subject to testing based on, but not limited to, observations of apparent workplace use, possession or impairment by at least two (2) members of management before sending an employee for testing. Two (2) observers must independently use the reasonable suspicion observation checklist to document specific observations and behaviors that create a reasonable suspicion that an employee is under the influence of illegal drugs or alcohol. Under no circumstances will the employee be allowed to drive himself or herself to the testing facility. Refusal by an employee will be treated as a positive drug test result and will result in immediate termination of employment.

V. GUIDELINES

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The County requires all employees to present a professional image to the public and clients. Accordingly, each employee is required to maintain appropriate standards of dress, grooming and hygiene while on duty or conducting County business. Employees will also display a positive customer service attitude and maintain a pleasant disposition.

Clothing is to be neat, clean, in good repair and appropriate to the nature of their position.

Examples of appropriate clothing may include:

• Dress pants, capri pants, dresses and skirts
• Colored denim and corduroy pants and skirts, blue jean skirts and jumpers
• Blouses, long and short sleeve dress shirts, ties, knit tops, knit shirts, polo/collared shirts
• Sweaters, vests, jackets or blazers, suits
• Dress shoes/boots, dress sandals, athletic shoes

Examples of clothing not appropriate include, but are not limited to:

• Soiled, torn or ripped clothing
• Blue jeans (except for those in maintenance or doing outside work), culottes, shorts, skorts, sweatpants or workout attire
• T-shirts, halter, crop, or tank tops, thin strapped tops and other backless and/or low-cut apparel (unless a sweater or short sleeve shirt is worn over at all times)
• Sweatshirts (except in positions where appropriate), sports jerseys
• Dresses or skirts more than three (3) inches above the knee
• Sheer clothing or clothing that is otherwise revealing, distracting, or provocative
• Pants or skirts worn below the waistline
• Clothing, t-shirts, or pins with language or pictures that are considered offensive or inappropriate (i.e. sexually suggestive, advertising alcohol or tobacco products, promoting advertising firms and/or contractors that do business with the County)
• Beach type sandals/shoes (flip flops, plastic/foam/mesh shoes)

While the County observes a business casual dress environment, there may be situations requiring more formal attire. If you are conducting or attending meetings, seminars, etc. where you come in contact with other business professionals, you are expected to represent the County in a professional manner and dress appropriately for conducting such business.

Because of the varying work situations in County employment, some departments may, out of necessity, provide dress/grooming rules that are different or more stringent than those listed in this policy.

It is the responsibility of each employee to assure that s/he abides by not only the rules listed herein, but also is in compliance with any departmental rules.

The Sheriff’s Department, Highway Department and Clearview Long-term Care and Rehabilitation have separate and distinct personal appearance policies which must be followed by certain employees of those departments.

All employees who may be required to appear in court, regardless of whether the appearance was scheduled in advance, must comply with the dress code established by the court.

Employees who are issued uniforms (i.e., maintenance employees) must wear the assigned uniform and must return all uniform items when they leave Dodge County employment.

Employees who perform field inspection work may be allowed to wear shirts and/or jeans that would otherwise not be approved when they are performing such work. These employees must have field clothing available at work at all times in the event it is necessary to perform field work on a day that no such work was anticipated.

Hair, beards, and mustaches are to be clean, trimmed, and well-groomed.

Colognes, after-shave lotions, perfumes, accessories and cosmetics should be worn with consideration for a professional image and the comfort of co-workers. Strong scents should be avoided because coworkers or individual citizens might be offended or allergic to these scents. Visible body jewelry, such as used for nose, lip, eyebrow, cheek and tongue piercings, is allowed if it is no greater than 1/16” in diameter. Body jewelry larger than 1/16” in diameter must be covered if worn while working or whenever representing Dodge County.

Earrings must be conservative in nature and not pose a safety risk.

All body tattoos must be covered to the extent possible, however small tattoos (i.e., ankle tattoos) that are not likely to be considered offensive may be allowed at the Department Head’s discretion.

Employees who appear for work inappropriately dressed will be sent home and directed to return to work in proper attire. Under such circumstances, employees will not be compensated for the time away from work.

The same will apply to employees exhibiting unacceptable oral or physical hygiene. Employees who violate dress code standards may also be subject to disciplinary action.

Casual Dress Days

Casual dress days may be authorized by the County Administrator and may have certain requirements. Department Heads will determine whether employees of a particular department will be allowed to participate in casual dress days. If a department is participating in a casual dress day, the department will display a sign indicating an employee casual day is being observed, so that the public will be aware of the reason for the casual attire worn by employees that day.

The following will apply on casual dress days:

• Blue jeans that are not torn, frayed, worn, faded, or patched may be allowed on casual dress days.
• Sweatshirts and sports jerseys may be allowed on casual days
• All other items deemed inappropriate above are also inappropriate for casual days
• Employees who are required to wear uniforms or employees required to appear in court may not be able to dress in casual attire

Department heads and supervisors are responsible for communicating and enforcing this policy within their department.

All employees, except those holding the position of Highway Commissioner, Assistant Highway Commissioner, Office Manager and Account Clerk II, are required to have in their possession a valid Wisconsin Commercial Drivers License, Class A. Employees who held a Class B license at the time of the ratification of the 2005-2007 labor agreement are grandfathered from the requirement of having a Class A license.

Employees who hold an “N’ endorsement for tank vehicle operation must maintain that endorsement, All newly hired employees are required to obtain an “N” endorsement prior to hire.

Disqualification from holding a CDL

The provisions of this section apply to employees who are disqualified from holding a CDL under the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulations and the Wisconsin Department of Transportation regulations.

This section does not apply to employees who are disqualified from holding a CDL for a work-related CDL disqualification, a positive alcohol and/or drug test result under the Federal Drug & Alcohol Testing Regulations or any illegal acts referenced in the CDL major offense regulations, including but not limited to, the use of illegal controlled substances. Permanent disqualification from holding a CDL will result in termination of employment.

a. If an employee is in one of the following classifications at the time he/she loses his/her CDL, that employee’s employment will continue for up to fifteen (15) months without the CDL, provided the employee continues to meet the minimal qualifications for the position and reobtains his/her CDL as soon as possible:

• Foreman
• Engineering Technician I, II, III, IV, V and VI
• Mechanic
• Welder
• Excavator Operator
• Equipment Operator
• Roller Operator
• Inventory Clerk Stock Clerk

b. No more than two (2) employees may qualify for the accommodation provided in paragraph (a) above at any one time, however this number may be waived by the Highway Commissioner. If more than two (2) employees need an accommodation at any one time, the Highway Commissioner has the sole discretion to decide whether to provide an accommodation or terminate the employment of the most recently effected employee.

c. If an employee is in a classification that is not listed in (a) above at the time he/she loses his/her CDL, that employee will be reclassified as a Utility II operator for a period of up to fifteen (15) months, and will receive Utility II pay. The provision in Policy #127 – Wages regarding out-of-classification pay will not apply for that employee while holding the Utility II classification. The County will assign work to the employee which does not require a CDL. The determination of work availability for an employee who has lost his/her CDL and the specific work to be assigned is a matter within the exclusive authority of the superintendent. If it is not possible to assign non-CDL work to the employee, the employee will be placed on an unpaid leave of absence until work becomes available or the expiration of the fifteen (15) month period, whichever occurs first.

d. The position formerly held by the employee described in (c) above may be permanently filled at the discretion of management.

e. No more than two (2) employees are eligible for the accommodation described in paragraph (c) at one time, however this number may be waived by the Highway Commissioner. If more than two (2) employees need an accommodation at any one time, the Highway Commissioner has the sole discretion to decide whether to provide an accommodation or terminate the employment of the most recently effected employee.

f. All employees who are required to have a valid CDL have an affirmative duty to report any offenses, tickets, or violations they receive to the Highway Commissioner, or the Commissioner’s designated representative, as soon as possible if it could result in disqualification of the employee’s CDL. Failure to report violations on a timely basis will make the employee ineligible for the provisions of this policy, and may result in discipline up to and including discharge.

g. Employees who are placed on a leave of absence under the provisions of this policy understand that the loss of their CDL may result in their being ineligible for unemployment during the period of unpaid leave of absence.

I. PURPOSE

This policy governs the use of Dodge County's computers and information systems (hereinafter referred to as "computer network") by its employees. Dodge County encourages staff to use information technology to its fullest potential in order to provide services of the highest quality to Dodge County residents or customers, enhance services, and to promote staff development.

The guidelines and prohibitions established in this policy are meant to protect Dodge County's computer equipment, software and data from damage caused by the unauthorized use of the Dodge County computer network by Dodge County employees or unauthorized access by third parties to the network. This policy is also intended to protect Dodge County employees from harm that may result from the improper use of Dodge County's computer network by other Dodge County employees or unauthorized third parties.

Nothing in this policy shall be construed or interpreted as restricting protected speech. Employees are encouraged to contact the County Administrator or Human Resources Department with questions concerning prohibited speech under this policy.

II. POLICY

A. In accordance with this policy, the Information Technology (IT) Department will be responsible for:

1. Administering and maintaining the various servers and workstations that connect to the Dodge County network
2. Establishing disaster back-up procedures for storing Dodge County data from the Dodge County network and servers;
3. Installing and maintaining anti-virus/malware software, encryption on servers and workstations, including a "firewall" between County servers and Internet connections;
4. Providing each authorized user on the Dodge County network authentication with a user identification (User ID) and unique password providing access for each user to resources available on the network;
5. Procuring new hardware and software to meet Dodge County's current and future network needs; and
6. Monitoring and maintaining a record of all communications, software applications on the Dodge County computer network and Internet use in order to assess the productivity and to identify and report any abuses to the appropriate authority.

B. Software

The Dodge County Information Technology Department has the exclusive right to install all software used on Dodge County's computer network and workstations. The installation of any software on Dodge County's computer network and workstations during work time or personal time without the express approval of the employee's Department Head and the IT department is prohibited, and may subject the employee to discipline. Dodge County will remove all unauthorized software from its servers or workstations. Dodge County will monitor software use by Dodge County employees for licensing purposes and to protect against viruses, and other unauthorized use of Dodge County's servers or workstations by third parties.

C. Data

1. All data, whether on a server a workstation, USB device or other media source is the sole property of Dodge County. It is against Dodge County policy for a Dodge County employee to purposely delete or modify the work product of another Dodge County employee without the consent of the employee that created the work product, or that employee's supervisor. For the purposes of this policy, work product means any compilation of data, analyses, reports or correspondence selected, coordinated, or arranged by an employee.
2. Transferring Dodge County data to a non-Dodge County device is prohibited. Employees will not transfer Dodge County data for use on their home computers or personal cell phones.
3. All data on Dodge County's computer network is confidential. The release of such Dodge County data to third parties will be governed by applicable laws and regulations, and policies adopted by Dodge County concerning the release of County data.

D. Security

1. The IT department will provide each employee with unique user identification (User ID) and associated password to gain access to the Dodge County computer network. Authorized users of the Dodge County network will also be required to enter a password to gain access to their individual and shared areas on the network servers and other information resources located on the network.
2. Dodge County employees will be responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of their user ID's and passwords. Dodge County employees are required to change their passwords every 90 days. Dodge County employees will immediately notify the IT Department if they believe that unauthorized users have gained access to or obtained their User ID or password information to gain access to their user area or Dodge County's network.
3. If the IT Department believes that the security system of the Dodge County computer network has been compromised by an unauthorized user, IT will take appropriate action to disable the User ID and passwords of users, workstations or other access points to the system that may be involved. The IT Department will revoke an employee's User ID access to the Dodge County computer network upon termination of employment at Dodge County or at any time based on information indicating the employee has engaged in conduct that could disrupt, interfere or expose the network to damage or to unauthorized use. It is the responsibility of the supervisor of a terminated employee to notify IT to revoke the terminated employee's password.

E. Prevention of Computer Viruses

1. Computer viruses, malware and other debilitating programs present a major threat to the integrity of Dodge County's information systems. Viruses/malware are programs that infiltrate a computing environment and disrupt or damage computers, networks, program applications and data. To prevent such problems from occurring on Dodge County's computer network, the Information Technology Department will install antivirus/malware software on servers and workstations. IT shall scan servers and workstations on a regular basis to detect, counteract and remove computer viruses/malware.
2. All media sources will be presumed to have viruses. Therefore, whenever possible, the virus software will automatically scan every file accessed by a user.

F. Monitoring Communications and Software Use

All communications and data on the Dodge County computer network may be public records subject to disclosure under the state Open Records Law, with certain exceptions. All communications on and uses of Dodge County's network or applications of any software program installed in a workstation or server during work or personal time may be monitored from time to time by the IT department. Dodge County employees should be aware that any such communications and other uses of the network are not private and that Dodge County reserves the right and may exercise the right to review, audit, intercept and disclose all messages on the Dodge County network at any time with or without prior notice to the employee.

G. Data Storage

1. IT will be responsible for maintaining all data on the Dodge County computer network in a manner that will allow users to readily access files and other information on the network. IT will further establish procedures or protocols governing the deletion and retention of all data on the network.
2. The IT Department will be responsible for disaster recovery and back up of all data on the Dodge County network. Users who save data locally are doing so at their own risk. All data should be saved to network drives. H. E-mail 1. With the passing of the Telecommunications Act, February 1996, it is unlawful to use a telecommunications device (e-mail) without disclosing one's identity. It is also unlawful to use e-mail to annoy, abuse, threaten, or harass any person. This law also addresses the unauthorized use of office communications and provides protection to the employer. 2. The content and maintenance of Dodge County's e-mail/voicemail and shared file storage areas are the user’s responsibility. Employees are expected to communicate in a professional manner that will reflect positively on them and Dodge County.
3. Like all other communications on the Dodge County computer network, Dodge County employees should be aware that e-mail/voicemail messages sent within the Dodge County network or on the Internet using Dodge County's computer equipment are not private communications and that all e-mail/voicemail messages are the property of Dodge County. Dodge County reserves the right to access, review and disclose all e-mail/voicemail messages. Dodge County staff should regard all email/voicemail messages as non-private communications that may be viewed by others.
4. Employees are expected to communicate in a professional manner that will reflect positively on themselves and Dodge County. Employees should be aware that their communications may be perceived by recipients as expression of official County policy and should conduct themselves accordingly.
5. The Information Technology department archives all email/voicemail messages.
6. Employees using e-mail/voicemail should delete unwanted messages or files immediately in order to preserve disk storage space.

I. Personal Use of Network and Computer

1. Personal use of Internet access, when provided, is permitted upon prior authorization from the user’s Department Head/Supervisor. Personal use will be permitted during personal time provided that the accessed sites are at no cost to Dodge County and with the understanding that any activity may be subject to review by Dodge County.
2. The use of Dodge County computer resources constitutes a waiver of any right to privacy concerning such use, including any personal communications using the Dodge County resources.

J. Mass Communications

1. A mass communication is defined as a message that is sent to a large number of recipients simultaneously with the primary goal to reach a broad audience with a single communication (ie: email, text, chat.) using Dodge County’s information technology systems.
2. Employees may send mass communications on behalf of Dodge County using the County’s information technology systems, subject to the following requirements:

i. Must be trained on this policy as well as email best practices including but not limited to: professionalism, compliance with laws and respect for recipients’ preferences.

ii. Authorized users must not engage in unacceptable use of electronic resources including widespread dissemination of unauthorized communications (e.g., mass mailings, spam, email chain letters, inaccurate or misleading information, harassing or discriminatory information)

iii. Mass communications, intended for a large segment of Dodge County, must be sent to the County Administrator and Human Resources Director first, to determine whether the communication is appropriate for mass distribution.

III. GUIDELINES

A. Any use of Dodge County's computer network and information systems and devices by an employee constitutes a waiver of any right to privacy concerning such use, including any personal communications using Dodge County resources. Dodge County reserves the right and may exercise the right to review, audit, intercept and disclose all communications on the Dodge County network at any time without prior notice to employees.

B. Prohibited Activities

1. Dodge County employees are responsible for preserving the integrity of Dodge County's computer network and computer systems and agree not to interfere with or disrupt Dodge County's computer network, other network users, services, programs, software, or equipment.
2. Interference or disruption with the Dodge County network, other network users, services software or equipment may include, but are not limited to the following:

i. the use of the Dodge County system and/or networks to gain unauthorized access to remote systems;

ii. use of the Dodge County system to copy unauthorized system files or copyrighted material, such as third-party software;

iii. intentional attempts to "crash" the Dodge County network systems or program, attempting to secure unauthorized higher level privileges on the networked systems; iv. the willful or negligent introduction of computer viruses/malware or destructive programs that could adversely affect the Dodge County network v. sharing or displaying User ID's and password information;

vi. deleting, examining, modifying, moving files or work product belonging to other users without their prior consent; vii. using the network or any of its authorized software for personal gain or solicitation, to harass or threaten others; to send junk mail, solicitations for the sale or purchase of items (i.e. non-County supported fundraisers) or "for-profit" messages.

3. It is also against Dodge County policy for an employee to engage in the following conduct on the Dodge County network:

i. to use the network for unlawful activities,

ii. to use abusive or obscene language in any messages transmitted on the network, including any internal or external E-mail messages and Internet communications,

iii. to use computer resources with the intention of accessing, viewing, storing, or distributing obscene or pornographic material except when authorized in performance of official law enforcement investigation of a formal complaint,

iv. to use computer resources to visit any site or to transmit or store any document which is contrary to the County’s interests, policies or work rules (e.g. sites that deal with gambling, sites which promote racism and racial hatred, sites which promote discrimination in any form, documents containing sexually explicit messages or cartoons, documents containing ethnic or racial slurs, etc.),

v. to use computer resources to harass or threaten any person, or to invade the privacy of any person in any way,

vi. to use computer resources for political or commercial purposes, advancement of individual views or needs, or for personal gain,

vii. to use computer resources in support of any organization or group without authorization from the Department Head/Supervisor, viii. to subscribe to mailing lists, bulletin boards, chat groups, commercial on-line services or other information related services without authorization from the Department Head/Supervisor for a work related purpose,

ix. to engage in behavior on the network that is prohibited under the Dodge County Personnel Policies, including but not limited to harassment, or

x. to engage in any other conduct that could cause congestion and disruption of Dodge County’s networks and systems.

C. An employee’s failure to follow provisions of this policy may result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination.

D. Compliance with Laws

Dodge County employees will be responsible for respecting and adhering to local, state and federal laws in conducting their work on Dodge County's computer networks. Any attempt or actual violation of those laws through the use of the network may result in prosecution of or litigation against the offender by the proper authorities. If such an event should occur, Dodge County Administration will fully cooperate with the appropriate authorities to provide any information necessary to assist the relevant law enforcement authorities during the investigation process.

IV. PROCEDURE

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Dodge County is dedicated to conducting business honestly and ethically. Dodge County will continually improve the quality of its services, products, and operations and will maintain a reputation for honesty, fairness, respect, responsibility, integrity, trust, and sound business judgment. Dodge County will not compromise its principles for short-term gain.

A. All employees are expected to adhere to high standards of personal integrity. No illegal or unethical conduct on the part of officers, managers, or employees is in Dodge County’s best interest.

B. Employees may not allow their personal interests to conflict or appear to conflict with the interests of Dodge County. No County employee shall use his/her office or position for personal financial gain or financial gain of his/her family. Employees must be particularly careful to avoid representing Dodge County in any transaction with others with whom there is any outside business affiliation or relationship. Dodge County contacts shall not be utilized to advance a private business or personal interest at the expense of Dodge County. No employee shall engage in his/her own business activity, accept private employment, or render services for private interests when such employment, business activity or service is incompatible with the proper discharge of his/her official duties or would impair his/her independence of judgment or action in the performance of his/her official duties. Employees should not seek employment or be employed with another entity if that position compromises their position with Dodge County.

C. Bribes, kickbacks, or other similar remuneration or consideration shall not be given to or accepted by any person or organization in order to attract or influence business activity. No County employee shall solicit or accept for himself/herself or another person any gift, campaign contribution, gratuity, favor, services, promise of future employment, entertainment, loan or any other thing of monetary value from a person who has or is seeking contractual or other business activities from or regulated by the County. This does not include acceptance of loans from banks or other financial institutions on customary terms of finance for personal use, such as home mortgage loans.

D. Employees are allowed to accept unsolicited gifts of a nominal value such as advertising or promotional material (i.e. pens, calendars, etc.) and awards for meritorious public or personal contributions or achievements. Employees attending conferences are allowed to participate in conference activities, (i.e. meals, banquets, entertainment, door prizes, etc.) if it is available to all attendees.

E. Appropriate steps must be taken to ensure the confidentiality of information that may be obtained including but not limited to strategic business plans, operating results, customer lists, personnel records, resident information, costs, processes, and methods.

F. No employee shall use or disclose "privileged information" gained in the course of or by reason of his/her official position or activities.

G. Employees must report all information accurately and honestly, and as otherwise required by applicable reporting standards.

H. All forms of money compensation, except expense reimbursements, for outside services performed during the hours when the employee is actually providing services to the county, shall be turned over to employee’s Department Head or the County Administrator for deposit with the County Treasurer.

I. Under the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards, 2 CFR 200.113, any violations of law, fraud, or bribery in any federally funded grant program must be reported to the federal grantor agency or pass through entity. Any employee who becomes aware of any such violations of law, fraud or bribery must report the matter to his/her supervisor who in turn will report it to the County Administrator. The County Administrator will notify the federal grantor agency or pass through entity.

J. Employees are prohibited from gathering competitor intelligence by improper means and refrain from acting on knowledge that that has been gathered in such a manner. Employees will seek to avoid exaggerating or disparaging comparisons of the services and competence of competitors.

K. Employees must comply with all applicable Equal Employment Opportunity laws and act with respect and responsibility towards others in all of their interactions. Employees must promptly disclose any unethical, dishonest, fraudulent or illegal behavior, or any violation of Dodge County policies and procedures to their supervisor.

L. Political Activity. No employee is precluded from engaging in political activity provided that such activity does not interfere with normal work performance, is not conducted during normal working hours and does not involve the use of County equipment or property. All employees and elected officials shall have the right to freely express their views as a citizen and cast their vote, subject to the following:

1. No employee or elected official shall directly or indirectly use or seek to use his or her authority or the influence of his or her position to control or modify the political action of another person.
2. No employee or elected official during his or her hours of duty shall, except as provided by law, engage in political activities including, but not limited to, the following:

a. Campaign for any candidate or political party;

b. Make campaign speeches or engage in other activity to elect a candidate;

c. Collect contributions or sell tickets to political fund-raising functions;

d. Distribute campaign material in any election;

e. Organize or manage political meetings;

f. Circulate nominating petitions;

g. Display political badges, buttons or stickers in any county building or wear such items during working hours.

3. No employee or elected official shall at any time use any county-owned or leased equipment for any personal political activity.

4. No employee shall be removed, discharged, reduced in pay or position, or otherwise discriminated against because of the employee's political opinions or affiliations except as provided for in this section.

5. Employees whose principal employment is in a federally grant-aided program are subject to prohibitions in the Federal Hatch Political Activities Act as amended, 5 U.S.C. §§ 1501-1508.

Policy Enforcement

Department heads and supervisors will be responsible for enforcing this policy, and for reporting any serious violations of the policy to the Human Resources Department. Employees found to be in willful violation of the policy may be disciplined up to and including discharge.

I. PURPOSE

The purpose of this policy is to reimburse employees for necessary work-related expenses incurred.

II. POLICY

Determines employee eligibility for reimbursement for necessary work-related expenses incurred relating to car travel, meals, lodging, and conferences.

III. GUIDELINES

A. Car Travel

1. Dodge County will reimburse the IRS Business Rate per mile by the most direct route. Travel between County buildings /facilities and travel to conduct County business within the City of Juneau will be exempt from reimbursement. The rate of reimbursement will be adjusted administratively without necessity of County Board action to coincide with the standard business rate as established by the IRS.
2. Parking charges, tolls or other payments related to car travel will be reimbursed when accompanied by a receipt.
3. Mileage reimbursement shall be limited to the distance between the employee’s office (place of work) and conference/meeting location or the distance between the employee’s home and conference/meeting location, whichever is less. This paragraph #3 applies when leaving from home to attend a conference/meeting.

B. Meals

1. Reasonable expense will be allowed for meals outside Dodge County. Meals will be reimbursed according to the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) rates for the State of Wisconsin for breakfast, lunch and/or dinner not to exceed the daily GSA rate.
2. Employees are required to provide documentation of date, time spent out of the County and number of meals to be reimbursed by submitting a Monthly Statement of Expense Form with receipts per Article IV below. The documentation must be turned over to the Finance Department for audit purposes.
3. The amount will be paid on the next regular paycheck and will be subject to income taxes (Federal, State & FICA). Dodge County does not reimburse for tips or alcoholic beverages.
4. Purchase cards cannot be used to purchase meals.

C. Lodging

1. Actual and reasonable expenses will be allowed for lodging for County Board members, County officers, elected officials, department heads, employees and members of County commissions and committees, not to exceed the established State of Wisconsin Rate, except in the event that County personnel are lodging at the convention site, in which case the full cost of lodging will be paid by Dodge County on the basis of a purchase order obtained in advance.
2. Purchase orders are not required if the employee uses a County purchase card.

D. Conference Registration

1. Conference registration and banquet expenses will be allowed.
2. Use of a County purchase card is recommended for conference registrations.

E. Other

1. A purchase order must be obtained for items of $50.00 or more. Dodge County does not reimburse Wisconsin sales tax. Wisconsin sales and use tax exemption certificate must be presented at time of purchase.
2. Approval of the Executive Committee of the County Board is required before any employee may attend a meeting or function outside of Wisconsin for which expenses will be claimed.
3. No County employee or officer, other than County Board members, will be reimbursed for travel or other expenses for attending meetings of a Committee of the Dodge County Board, unless their attendance at such Committee meeting or session of the County Board is requested by the Chairman of the Committee, such request being supported by the minutes in the Committee proceedings, unless the Chairman of the Dodge County Board of Supervisors has requested attendance at such Committee meetings or sessions of the Board of the Supervisors. This rule will not apply to persons required by Wisconsin Statutes to attend Committee or Board meetings.
4. Commercial Transportation. Use of commercial transportation including but not limited to bus, train, plane, taxi or rental car shall be used on a limited basis and only when absolutely necessary. Reimbursement of actual and reasonable expenses for commercial travel will be provided upon the submission of a Statement of Monthly Expenses with receipts per Article IV below.

IV. PROCEDURE

A. Monthly Statement Expense Form

1. Dodge County Department Heads, Employees, and Elected Officials, are required to complete a Monthly Statement of Expense Form which must be submitted to the Supervisor by the 15th of month for all expenses incurred the month prior. Proper documentation must be submitted with the statement of expense form. Monthly 3 Statement of Expense Forms must be approved and signed by the Department Head/Supervisor and sent to the Finance Department. The Finance Department will review the forms for proper documentation and correct mileage, rates and calculations before submitting it to the Audit Committee.
2. Failure to follow this policy will result in denial of reimbursement of expenses

It is the policy of Dodge County to keep all services, offices and departments open and available to the public to the fullest extent possible.

Applicability

County employees who perform non-essential or non-emergency-type services during periods of severe weather or emergency situations are covered by this policy. All pay procedures set forth in this policy apply to non-exempt employees. Department Heads who are responsible for essential services will designate essential operations and positions. Essential operations will include, but will not be limited to, patient care, protection of the public, or services required to improve driving conditions (Health Facilities, Sheriffs Department and Highway Department). In unique emergency situations other positions may also be considered essential. Employees holding positions so designated will be expected, as a condition of their employment, to report to work. 70 08/05/14

Maintenance of Operations

All County buildings will be open at normal operating times as to allow employees to reach their work site. All County employees should report to work as usual, unless notified otherwise. In cases of inclement weather, County employees should make a good faith determination about their safety when attempting to travel to work. The County Administrator will make a determination regarding the severity of the weather conditions and whether special consideration may be given to excuse employees who, for good reason, arrive late for work or who do not report for work. Employees who do not report for work will have the lost time deducted from their pay. In lieu of lost time, the employee may elect to use vacation time, a banked or floating holiday or compensatory time (if already earned). Department Heads may, at their discretion, allow employees to flex their hours during the current work week in order to avoid loss of hours, provided that the hours worked do not result in overtime compensation or accumulation of compensatory time. Department heads may allow employees to leave work early for inclement weather subject to the pay procedure above. County departments will notify the County Clerk's office any time there is no one present to cover office phones.

Closure of Non-emergency Services Due to Emergency Situation

In the event that an emergency situation should occur requiring closure of buildings or curtailment of non-emergency services, the County Administrator and County Board Chair will make such determination known to Department Heads. If such decision is made prior to the commencement of the work day, local radio stations will be asked to broadcast an announcement. Other methods of communicating with employees may be used if available and if it is practical to do so. When notification has been provided prior to the commencement of a work day, employees may use vacation or compensatory time in lieu of time not worked.

Department Heads may, at their discretion, allow employees to flex their hours during the current work week in order to avoid the loss of some or all of the hours not worked, provided that the hours worked do not result in overtime compensation or accumulation of compensatory time. When offices are closed early, employees will be paid for time worked, and may use vacation or compensatory time in lieu of time not worked. Department Heads may, at their discretion, allow employees to flex their hours during the current work week in order to avoid the loss of some or all of the hours not worked, provided that the hours worked do not result in overtime compensation or accumulation of compensatory time.

Any decision regarding the curtailment of non-emergency services or closure of offices which operate under the direction of an elected official or State employee will be made by that respective department head. County employees of these offices may be allowed to not report to work, arrive late or leave early based on such decision, and pay for time not worked will be as described in this policy. County employees of these offices who wish to report to work or remain working (when their office is closed but all other County offices are still open) will report to the Human Resources Department for re-assignment at their regular rate of pay. (Example: The Chief Judge decides to close court operations for the remainder of the day. Two county employees who work directly for the Circuit Court judges choose to go home, while two others wish to remain working. The two employees who want to continue to work are re-assigned to work in the Clerk of Courts Office.) 

When employees are allowed to use vacation, compensatory time, work a flexible schedule (with department head approval) or take the time unpaid as described in this policy, they will advise their supervisor as soon as possible as to which option they are choosing. If notification to the supervisor is not made in a timely fashion, the time not worked will be considered unpaid time. When offices/departments are closed, employees will not be allowed to continue to work beyond the designated closing time, and will not be allowed to remain in the building after the office has been closed without department head approval.

If offices/departments are closed on an employee’s last scheduled work day prior to a holiday or first scheduled work day after a holiday, the closing will not affect the employee’s eligibility for holiday pay. Employees who are on a scheduled absence from work due to vacation, illness or injury, or leave of absence will not be affected by the provisions of this policy, or to any exception made to this policy as a result of an emergency situation.

It is a primary goal of Dodge County to maintain a safe, comfortable work environment for its employees. For that reason it is important to stress the need to evaluate the purpose of personal appliances within each department.

Personal appliances that are considered necessary items are generally not of concern; however personal appliances that are a luxury and not a necessity must be approved by the Department Head and/or Director of Building Maintenance.

For example, a necessity might be the use of one or two coffee makers based on staffing levels, but a luxury would be the use of numerous coffee makers for brewing flavors of the day.

Other examples:

• Open element appliances used for cooking or heating food would be allowed in the break rooms but only if items that are being reheated or cooked are attended at all times.
• Items such as two-slice toasters are preferred over a combination broiler/toaster.
• Pizza ovens will be permitted for use in areas where employees can’t leave their work locations based on responsibilities.
• Refrigerators on the Dodge County Fixed Asset Inventory are acceptable; other refrigerators will be reviewed on an individual basis taking into consideration the size, location and available electrical capacity.
• Personal space heaters will be reviewed on an individual basis taking into consideration the work space environment.

Please note: all personal appliances are subject to available electrical capacity. The addition of electrical circuits to enable the use of personal appliances will be discouraged. Policy Enforcement Department heads and supervisors will be responsible for enforcing this policy, and for reporting any serious violations of the policy to the Human Resources Department. Employees found to be in willful violation of the policy may be disciplined.

The purpose of this policy is to ensure the appropriate use of both Dodge County social media sites and employees personal social media/social networking sites as relates to Dodge County business. Social media/social networking includes various forms of information sharing, and uses technology to create web content communication and conversations. Examples include, but are not limited to, Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc. Employees must be attentive to the fact that inappropriate and/or unauthorized postings to official Dodge County social media sites or employee personal social media/social networking sites may have a negative impact on Dodge County’s relationship with the general public. An employee’s failure to follow provisions of this policy may result in disciplinary action.

DODGE COUNTY SOCIAL MEDIA SITES

Only authorized employees can prepare and modify content for official Dodge County social media sites. Persons authorized to do so will be responsible for compliance with Dodge County’s social media standards contained in the Social Media – Administrative Policy.

EMPLOYEE PERSONAL SOCIAL MEDIA/SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES

Employees who have personal social media/social networking sites should ensure these sites are personal in nature and be used to share personal opinions or non-work related information. The employee must maintain a distinction between sharing personal and official government views. In addition, employees should never use their Dodge County e-mail password or e-mail account in conjunction with personal social media/social networking sites unless authorized to do so by the Department Head for official Dodge County business. When employees operate personal social media/social networking sites, they should use a disclaimer to ensure that their stated views and opinions are understood to be their own and not those of Dodge County.

A disclaimer is required when they:

a. Refer to work done by the County,

b. Comment on any County related business or issues, or

c. Provide a link to a County website.

Bloggers, posters and tweeters must also disclose any material connection or relationship they have to what is being described in a blog, post or tweet. Employees are prohibited from uploading, posting or sharing information in any format (text, images, video, audio, etc.) of County personnel, clients, or Clearview residents, gained in the course of employment. This includes images, video, and audio taken at any County sponsored event, inside any County facilities or involving County equipment, or any other work-related documents or e-mail exchanges on a County site or their personal site.

Employees may request prior approval from their Department Head to post any of the information described above. Employees must not post or release anything related to Dodge County that is proprietary, confidential, sensitive, Personally Identifiable Information (PII) or other County intellectual property on their personal social media/social networking site. Unless otherwise authorized by management, Sheriff’s Department, Humans Services and Health Department and Clearview employees must not create an association with a resident or client on a social media site.

Employees of all other departments must give careful consideration to whether the employee and resident/client relationship is compromised if the employee creates an association with the resident or client on a social media site. Employees must comply with the confidentiality and privacy requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) and other legal requirements of privacy and confidentiality, including information concerning minors, Clearview residents, public assistance recipients and County employees. I

t is the responsibility of the employee to not post any HIPAA related information, or any other information that is private, confidential, proprietary, or inappropriate to his/her social media/social networking site.

Employees may comment on issues of general or public concern (as opposed to personal grievances) so long as the comments do not disrupt the workplace, interfere with important working relationships or efficient workflow or undermine public confidence in the employee. Instances must be judged on a case by case basis.

• Matters of public concern are those matters of interest to the community as a whole, whether for social, political or other reasons.
• Examples of state or national issues of general or public concern include election campaigns, elected officials, legislation, national security, budgets, foreign policy or any topic of broad public interest or debate.
• Examples of personal grievances include disciplinary action, work schedule, morale or complaints about supervisors or co-workers that do not involve actual wrong-doing, illegal discrimination, corruption or waste.

These types of comments may subject an employee to disciplinary action. Negative comments on internal operations of Dodge County or specific conduct of supervisors or peers that impacts the public perception of Dodge County operations is not protected First Amendment speech, in accordance with established case law.

Posted content has the potential to be shared broadly, including with individuals you did not intend to communicate. Therefore an employee is responsible for ensuring that any content related to a coworker is consistent with County policy regarding how to treat co-workers. For example, do not post content that would violate the County’s policy regarding discrimination and harassment. Employee bloggers are personally responsible for their commentary on blogs and social media/social networking sites and can be held personally liable for commentary that is considered defamatory, obscene, proprietary or libelous by any offended party, not just the County.

The County is not responsible for protecting employees from the consequences of any information posted even if the employee has received prior authorization to participate in social media/social networking. If any employee is at any time uncertain as to how to apply the directives found in this policy, the employee should seek guidance from his/her Department Head prior to engaging in electronic communication activities.

PURPOSE

This policy governs the use of Dodge County's telephones, mobile (cellular) telephones, Blackberry/smartphone transmissions, pagers and two-way radios along with any other electronic communication equipment other than computers and fax machines.

The guidelines, prohibitions and information established in this policy are meant to provide departments and employees with specific information regarding the intended use of telephone and other communication equipment, as well as procedures related to their procurement and use. The policy also defines guidelines intended to protect Dodge County's telephone equipment, software and data from damage.

An employee’s failure to follow the provisions of this policy, or any subordinate departmental policy, may result in disciplinary action up to and including discharge. An employee’s failure to follow provisions of this policy may result in disciplinary action.

POLICY

Telephone Courtesy/Voice

Mail When using telephones and other communication equipment, you represent the County to anyone who receives or monitors the communication. It is important to be courteous and professional. Confirm information received from the other party, and end the communication only when the other party has finished his or her message or inquiry. Voice mail, like other components of our communication systems, is intended for business use only. Employees should review their voice mail messages regularly, respond promptly, and delete old messages. (See Computer Use Policy under Email for parameters) Departmental Needs Assessment The respective Department Heads are responsible for identifying the needs of their departments, requesting needed equipment and services, and authorizing their use by designated employees. The Information Technology (IT) Department is assigned the responsibility to manage and administer the County’s telephone systems which include cellular equipment and all telephone contracts. The IT Department will place all orders for equipment, services, accessories and telephone contracts with vendors. The IT Department is responsible for vouchering all telephone invoices.

Assignment of Equipment

Eligibility and approval for assignment of telephone equipment and services may be provided to certain county employees that conduct work activities relating to their employment. All requests for telephone usage and equipment must be approved by the employees Department Head. The IT Department will research and identify the type of equipment.

Monitoring Usage

Periodically, Department Heads or their designee will be asked to review telephone billing records for their department in order to validate compliance with the County’s Policy on Use of Telephones. Cellular billing will be reviewed monthly.

Reimbursement for Use of Home Telephone

Dodge County business related calls should be made from County telephones whenever possible. Requests for reimbursements for calls made from home or by credit card must be accompanied by receipts and an explanation of the purpose of the call. No reimbursement will be made for calls from personal cellular phones, whether business related or not. The only authorized business use of cellular phone is by employees using County-owned cellular devices. 

Personal Use of Telephones

Dodge County provides telephones to employees for the purpose of conducting County business. The use of telephones to place or receive personal calls is discouraged. Personal telephone calls include interoffice calls with co-workers as well as calls involving non-employees. Each outbound call is an expense to the County and the taxpayers of Dodge County. It is recognized however, that it may be necessary in certain situations to use county owned telephones for personal reasons.

Examples of such situations include:

1. Life/death emergency, contacting family.

2. Sudden on-set of illness, contacting family or physician.

3. Unexpected late departure from work or schedule change which affects family.

The employee will notify the Department Head or designee as soon as reasonably possible when these situations occur. It will be the responsibility of each department head and each person in a supervisory capacity to monitor compliance with the rules regarding personal calls, and to determine when exceptions will be permitted. If a department head authorizes an employee to use Dodge County equipment for a personal call, such calls should be limited to two minutes or less, and should be made during the employees meal or break periods whenever possible.

Prohibited Activities

It is against Dodge County policy for an employee to engage in the following conduct, or any other conduct determined to be of a serious and detrimental nature:

1. Making personal long distance calls except in emergency situations, and only if made collect or charged to a personal credit card, a personal phone card, or a non-County phone number.
2. Using a Dodge County or personal cellular telephone or mobile device at any time while operating a Dodge County vehicle, or while operating a personally owned vehicle on County paid time, unless responding to a life-threatening emergency situation or unless required to do so as part of the employee’s job responsibilities.
3. Willful or negligent use of equipment that is destructive.
4. Sharing user access password with another person.
5. Using Dodge County equipment for personal gain or solicitation, including a personal private business or enterprise.
6. Using equipment to harass or threaten others.
7. Use of a County-provided cellular phone when a less costly Dodge County alternative is readily available.
8. Use of picture/video phone technology or any other camera or device technology that may capture visual images without the prior permission of the department head or supervisor.

Departmental Policies

The functions and roles of County Departments are diverse and the telephone and other communication requirements may differ. Department Heads may develop written procedures subordinate to this policy that are in the best interest of their respective department in the use of communication equipment. Such procedures are subject to the approval of the Human Resources and Labor Negotiations Committee. These departmental procedures will not circumvent the intent of the County’s general policy on Use of Telephones and Other Communication Equipment.

Compliance with Laws

Dodge County employees will be responsible for respecting and adhering to local, state and federal laws in conducting their work using Dodge County's telephone equipment. Any attempt to break those laws through the use of equipment or service may result in litigation against the offender by the proper authorities. If such an event should occur, Dodge County will fully cooperate with the appropriate law enforcement authorities to provide any information necessary during the investigation process. It should be understood that telephone records and information regarding the use of Dodge County’s telephone system is subject to Open Records Law, including records, logs and other information related to personal use. Although employees need a password to access the voice mail system, they should not expect that voice mail messages are private. All messages are also public records.

Policy Enforcement

Department heads and supervisors will be responsible for enforcing this policy, and for reporting any serious violations of the policy to the Human Resources Department. The IT Department will also inform the department head and the Human Resources Department of any known serious violations of the policy. Employees found to be in willful violation of the policy may be disciplined, and/or may be restricted in their use of Dodge County communications systems. Very serious or repeated willful violations of this policy may result in suspension or discharge.

Definitions

1. “Employee” means, for the specific purpose of this policy, all regular, limited term, or temporary employees, volunteers, and elected or appointed officials of Dodge County.

2. “Licensee” means a person who has a current concealed carry weapons license issued by the State of Wisconsin or who is an “out-of-state licensee” as defined by Wis. Stat. §175.60(1)(g).

3. “Weapon” means a weapon as defined by Wis. Stat. §175.60(1)(j).

4. All references to the Wisconsin Statutes within this policy are intended to refer to the Wisconsin Statutes in effect at the time of adoption of this policy and include any future revisions, amendments, modifications, or renumbering of such statutory provisions.

Policy

I. Concealed Carry. An employee who is a licensee may carry a concealed weapon while in the course of employment, subject to the following additional conditions:

A. The employee must first notify his or her supervisor in writing that the employee is a licensee and intends to carry the weapon in the course of employment. An employee whose license is suspended, or who is otherwise prohibited by a court from carrying a weapon, must immediately provide written notice of that fact to his or her supervisor.

B. The employee’s weapon must, at all time, be concealed, on his or her person, unless the employee is lawfully using the weapon.

C. The employee is solely responsible for maintaining control of his or her weapon at all times.

D. The employee may not carry a concealed weapon in any of the places listed in Wis. Stat. §175.60(16)(a), except as permitted by Wis. Stat. §175.60(16)(b).

E. The employee may not carry a concealed weapon in any area, building, or vehicle, whether public or private, where doing so is posted as prohibited or over the objection of the owner.

F. If the employee stores a weapon in a county vehicle, the employee must secure the weapon with a suitable trigger lock, barrel lock or by enclosure in a locked case, and place the encased or secured weapon out of plain view and lock the vehicle.

G. If the employee stores a weapon in his or her own vehicle in a parking lot owned or controlled by the county, the employee must place the weapon out of plain view and the vehicle must be locked.

H. If the employee stores a weapon in his or her own vehicle and the employee uses the vehicle in the course of employment, the employee must place the weapon out of plain view and the vehicle must be locked whenever the employee parks the vehicle.

1. Any employee who, in the course of employment, transports a non-employee in the employee’s own vehicle in which the employee is storing a weapon, must secure the weapon with a suitable trigger lock, barrel lock, or by enclosure in a locked case, and store the secured weapon out of plain view.

Nothing in this policy may be construed to support or permit intimidating, threatening, or violent behavior related to the possession of a concealed weapon. Intimidating and threatening behavior includes, but is not limited to, intentionally displaying a concealed weapon, referring to a concealed weapon, or referring to a weapon not on the employee’s person with the intent to implicitly or explicitly intimidate or threaten another person. However, the mere carrying of a concealed weapon by an employee who is a licensee does not constitute an intimidating, threatening, or violent act.

II. Open Carry

An employee, other than a law enforcement officer, may not openly carry a weapon in the course of his or her employment.

To protect and enhance our indoor air quality and to contribute to the health and well-being of all employees, Dodge County shall be entirely smoke free.

The use of all tobacco and smoking products, including but not limited to, chewing tobacco, electronic cigarettes (E-cigarettes), is prohibited in all County buildings, and outside all County buildings except in specifically designated areas.

Such designated areas will be marked with "Smoking Permitted" signs. Violators of the smoking restrictions will be subject to progressive discipline and may be subject to any financial penalties as prescribed by state statute.

Overtime/compensatory time must have department head/supervisor approval before working. Compensatory time is for time already worked. No one may take compensatory time off and then work the overtime.

Time sheets will be filled out by all full-time, part-time, temporary and seasonal employees. All time sheets will be filled out completely and signed by the employee.

All time sheets will be countersigned by the department head. All completed time sheets will be forwarded to the Finance Department. Any falsification on a time sheet is cause for disciplinary action. Employees will be at work at their scheduled time and are expected to stay on the job until their scheduled time is up.

All money received by any County employee in the course of their duties and from whatever source is to be turned over to the Dodge County Treasurer immediately. Employees who do not fill out a time sheet on a regular basis will not be entitled to payout of accumulated benefits when terminating from County employment. Work rules specific to c

Dodge County recognizes that the employment of close relatives and those in a close personal relationship can have the potential to cause serious concerns involving favoritism and employee morale and can also create the appearance of impropriety. In these circumstances, all parties involved, including supervisors and managers, are open to charges of inequitable consideration in decisions concerning work assignments, transfer opportunities, performance evaluations, promotions, demotions, disciplinary actions, pay increments, sexual harassment and terminations. In addition to claims of partiality, personal relationship conflicts from outside the work environment can be carried into the workplace, which has the potential to negatively impact day to day operations and negatively affect other employees in the workplace. For these reasons, Dodge County disfavors a supervisor or manager supervising an employee with whom the supervisor or manager has a close personal relationship.

A close personal relationship involves situations such as the following:

• The employee is a close relative of the supervisor or manager, such as a spouse, sibling, child, grandparent, grandchild, aunt, uncle, cousin, or an in-law of the same.
• The employee is in a romantic relationship with the supervisor or manager such that it is or is perceived by one or both parties as more than a general friendship.
• The employee is involved in an outside business relationship with the supervisor or manager as a partner, owner, shareholder, employee, vendor, or contractor.

A supervisor or manager involved in a close personal relationship shall inform the Department Head, County Administrator or Human Resources Director immediately. Efforts will be made to ensure fair treatment in the workplace for the individuals involved. If the Department Head identifies that a close personal relationship exists, then the Department Head shall promptly notify the Human Resources Director.

The County may consider the following measures to avoid workplace conflicts if practical and in the interests of the County:

1. Inform the supervisor or manager and the subordinate involved in the close personal relationship of the County’s expectations of professional behavior applicable both on and off duty and compliance with County policies including the County’s policy commitment against sexual harassment.
2. Remove responsibility for various important supervisory or managerial decisions involving that subordinate from the supervisor or manager involved in a close relationship with the subordinate. 
3. Assign responsibility for supervision of the subordinate to another manager within the department.
4. Assign responsibility for performance evaluations, investigations, complaint management, and any compensation or merit-based pay decisions relating to the subordinate to another manager within the department.
5. Afford protections for the assigned manager by having the manager’s responsibilities with regard to the subordinate reviewed by the Human Resources Director.
6. Inform the subordinate of the new chain of command, reporting, and supervision structure.
7. If a vacant position is available and the employee meets the minimum qualifications of the vacant position, the Department Head of each Department and the County Administrator reserves the right to transfer the employee into the vacant position.
8. Inform co-workers that gossiping and rumor-mongering are inappropriate and that employees are required to use the appropriate channels to report concerns and observations.
9. Inform the supervisor or manager and the subordinate involved in the close personal relationship and their coworkers of the County’s Ethical Advocate hotline and the applicable personnel policies and procedures.
10. Separation from employment for the supervisor or manager or the subordinate involved in the close personal relationship.

The measures listed above shall not be considered an all-inclusive list, may not be applicable or necessary in every case and should be implemented with the assistance of the Human Resources Director. The Department Head shall consult with the Human Resources Director prior to implementing any of the measures herein. In the case of a Department Head being involved in a close relationship with a subordinate, the County Administrator, in consultation with the Human Resources Director, shall consider the measures described herein.

The supervisor or manager is responsible for maintaining a positive and productive work environment conducive to professional growth, development and opportunities for all employees. Dodge County maintains a strong commitment and policy against unlawful harassment in the workplace (Unlawful Harassment Policy) and a Grievance Procedure.

Employees are encouraged to refer to these policies to address issues, if any, that may arise. This policy is not intended to be a barrier to hiring qualified employees nor shall it be interpreted as excluding family members of County employees from applying for Dodge County employment.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this policy is to establish guidance on Short Message Service (SMS), Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS), Instant Messaging, SnapChat and other chat applications by members of the County workforce, and addresses security risks and procedural issues presented by text messaging.

GENERAL REQUIREMENTS FOR ALL TYPES OF TEXT MESSAGES:

Consult and inform your direct supervisor prior to using texting for County purposes. Texting for County purposes is a relatively new form of communication. Management along with Information Technology will provide assistance and messaging guidance and support.

Administrative Safeguards:

• Do not text clients or the public without their consent except for law enforcement purposes.
• Texting for County purposes is only allowed when authorized by the Department Head or supervisor of the employee.
• Personal use of texting on a County-provided phone is strictly prohibited.
• Employee communications by text message shall be done in a professional manner.
• No messages that are harassing, intimidating, offensive, obscene, or discriminatory toward anyone may be sent.
• All text messages sent and received in the conduct of County business may be subject to open records laws.
• The County reserves the right to read or disclose, for any reason, texts sent and received on County-provided cell phones when not prohibited by federal or state law.
• When an employee uses a County-provided cell phone for Internet and/or email, this use must comply with the County's Computer Use Policy.
• The County does not store any texts. The custody of the text remains solely with the cell carrier.

Safety Safeguards:

Absolutely no texting is allowed while operating a motor vehicle, unless exempted as an operator of an emergency response vehicle as per WI State Statutes, 346.89(3).

Introduction

Dodge County committed to protecting its information including Federal Tax Information (FTI). IRS Publication 1075 requires that the Agency establish a written policy that ensures compliance with IRS standards for persons having access to FTI.

Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to define and establish procedural guidelines, background check requirements, timeframes and suitability standards for individuals within the Dodge County Child Support Agency in identified positions with access to FTI. The Agency will make this policy, procedure and sample of completed background investigations available for inspection during an on-site safeguard review.

Applicability

This policy applies to all current employees, applicants for employment, vendors, volunteers, work-study students, contractors and sub-contractors (“individuals”) who are or may be authorized by the Agency to access FTI as part of their job duties. Appendix A attached hereto identifies the Job Titles for those Agency employees to which this Policy applies.

Definitions

Background Check means all necessary checks required in order to have access to FTI. IRS Pub 1075 requires that checks must include, at a minimum, fingerprint checks (as permitted by the FBI), local law enforcement checks, and citizenship verification. Background Check Coordinator means the Dodge County Human Resources Department. Citizenship Requirement Check means to validate an individual’s eligibility to legally work in the United States. Utilizes Form I-9. (e.g., a United States citizen or foreign citizen with the necessary authorization).

Child Support Agency (CSA) means the Dodge County Child Support Agency.

Federal Tax Information (FTI) consists of tax returns or tax return information, or both tax returns and tax return information. FTI is any return or return information received from the IRS or an IRS secondary source, such as the Social Security Administration, Federal Office of Child Support Enforcement, Bureau of Fiscal Services, or the Center of Medicare and Medicaid Services. FTI is also shared under agreements allowed by statute or regulations.

FieldPrint means the Federal Bureau of Investigations and Wisconsin Department of Justice authorized vendor for fingerprinting.

FBI Fingerprinting (FD-258) means review of FBI fingerprint results conducted to identify possible suitability issues. A check of federal and state criminal records conducted by the FBI through an agreement with the Wisconsin Department of Justice, when authorized by federal and state law. Identified Position are all positions that have or may have access to FTI. A list of all “FTI covered positions” within the Agency is provided in Appendix A to this Policy.

IRS Publication 1075 is a publication issued by the Internal Revenue Service that gives detail requirements for governmental agencies and their employees that have access to FTI. This publication provides guidance to ensure the policies, practices, controls, and safeguards employed by recipient agencies, agents, or contractors (including subcontractors) adequately protect the confidentiality of FTI.

Local Law Enforcement Check means a check of local law enforcement agencies where the subject has lived, worked, and/or attended school within the last 5 years, and if applicable, of the appropriate Agency for any identified arrests. This will assist agencies in identifying trends of misbehavior that may not rise to the criteria for reporting to the FBI database but is a good source of information regarding an applicant.

Suitability Standards means the criteria for determining an individual’s suitability to have access to FTI.

General Provisions

Background check requirements are conducted in conjunction with the Wisconsin Department of Justice, applicable law enforcement agencies and Wisconsin Circuit Court Access (CCAP). The Dodge County Child Support Agency and the Dodge County Human Resources Department shall work collaboratively to ensure that all requirements of this Policy have been completed before an individual is allowed access to FTI. This requirement must be noted in the employee’s Position Description Form and applicable recruitment announcements (see the Recruitment Section). The individual will not be allowed access to FTI until the individual passes all required background checks with a favorable rating under the Agency’s Suitability Standards below. All background checks must include 1) Federal Bureau of Investigation Fingerprinting (FieldPrint); 2) Citizenship Requirement Check; and 3) Local Law Enforcement Check.

A. Implementation Timeline

1. Currently Employed Individuals. Background Check Coordinator shall conduct background checks on current Agency employees whose job title is listed on Appendix A on or before September 30, 2019.
2. Candidates for Employment. This policy applies to all candidates for Agency employment at the time of a conditional offer.
3. Other Individuals. This policy applies to other individuals prior to allowing access to FTI.

B. Suitability Standards

1. Suitability Standards are set forth below and include a background check by obtaining information from the FBI and local law enforcement agencies, confirmation of citizenship, review of CCAP and any other criteria the Agency determines is applicable, as stated in this policy.

2. A criminal record will not automatically disqualify an individual from employment consideration or from access to FTI. The Agency will consider various factors in evaluating whether a conviction disclosed by an applicant warrants revoking a conditional offer of employment.

C. Reinvestigation Check Requirements IRS Pub 1075 requires that a reinvestigation of employees must be conducted within five (5) years from the date of the previous background investigation for each individual having access to FTI. Re-investigations shall encompass the full five (5) year period.

D. Recruitment When the Agency announces openings for any covered position that requires a criminal background check by operation of state or federal law, the announcement shall state the following: Prior to hire, a background check including criminal record history will be conducted. Information from the background check will not necessarily preclude employment but will be considered in determining the applicant’s suitability and competence to perform in the position.

E. Retention of Background Check Results The Agency will retain and store background check authorization forms, result notifications and information according to the Dodge County Record Retention/Destruction Schedule set forth in Chapter 1 of the Dodge County Code of Ordinances or for ten (10) years, whichever period is greater.

F. Confidentiality of Records Except as otherwise required or expressly permitted by state or federal law, information gathered pursuant to this policy including criminal history obtained by the Agency shall be confidential and shall not be disclosed unless required by federal or state law or court order. Any unauthorized disclosure (intentional or unintentional) shall be reported to the Dodge County Human Resources Department immediately. Persons who release or use this information without proper authorization may be subject to disciplinary action up to and including dismissal. Disclosures that violate criminal laws may also be referred to prosecuting authorities. The Human Resources Department shall be the repository for all information gathered pursuant to this policy and shall maintain such documentation in a separate, confidential file in a secured, locked file cabinet, not the individual’s personnel file.

G. Providing Background Check Results to Subject Individual

1. The Background Check Coordinator, if requested, may provide all information required by law about the results of the individual’s background check. In accordance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act, an employer shall provide an individual against whom the employer intends to take adverse action with a copy of the report.
2. The Background Check Coordinator shall provide an individual for whom a background check has been conducted with timely information about the avenues for challenging or appealing the background check results that may preclude that individual from accessing FTI.

Procedure A. Obtain Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) background check information by submitting individual’s fingerprints to DOJ and FBI via FieldPrint and conduct Suitability Determination. Conduct a determination based on the Suitability Standards defined herein. Consideration should be given to the Wisconsin Fair Employment Act (Wisconsin §111.31) which does not allow discrimination based on arrests, convictions, or pending charges unless a substantial relationship exists between a conviction, pending charge, and the duties of the job. As outlined below, CSAs should consider a multitude of factors when assessing returned results. A subject shall be determined suitable to have FTI access if all of the following inquiries are favorably adjudicated by the Background Check Coordinator:

1. A subject’s FBI criminal background check will be favorably adjudicated if the subject has no criminal history substantially related to the position for which they are being considered, as determined pursuant to Wis. Stat. § 111.335.
2. A subject may not be discriminated against on the basis of a pending charge and/or conviction record unless there is a substantial relationship between the circumstances of the pending charge and/or conviction and the duties and responsibilities that the position requires. If the background check reveals a pending charge and/or conviction, conduct the substantial relationship test to assess whether the subject’s tendencies and inclinations to behave in a certain way within a particular context are likely to reappear later in a related context, based on the traits revealed in the test.

Consider the following factors:

a. The Position:

1. The nature and scope of public or client contact required by the position. The nature and scope of the position’s discretionary authority and degree of independence in judgment relating to decisions or actions that affect the public or clients.
2. The extent to which acceptable job performance requires public or client trust or confidence.
3. The amount and type of supervision received in the position.
4. The amount and type of supervision provided by the position to subordinate staff, if any.
5. The sensitive nature of the data or records maintained.
6. Whether the position includes fiduciary responsibilities.
7. Whether the position is one that the Legislature has determined that certain offense(s) bar the subject from employment.
8. The nature and scope of the position, including key access to facilities, access to cash, or access to vulnerable populations.

b. The Offense:

1. Whether intent is an element of the offense.
2. Whether the elements of the offense are substantially related to the job duties.
3. Whether the circumstances of the pending charge or conviction arose out of an employment situation.
4. Whether the offense is one that under Federal or State law is a bar to employment for the specific job.
5. The elements of the offense.

c. The Person:

1. Consider the recency of the offense.
2. Whether there are patterns or reoccurrences of offense(s).
3. Whether the person completed a rehabilitation program.
4. The seriousness and nature of the violation in relation to the duties and responsibilities of the position.

B. Check with local law enforcement agencies for any identified arrests or convictions.

1. For subjects who have lived, worked, or attended school only in Wisconsin for the past five years, information obtained through the WIDOJ criminal background check will be considered, along with information obtained from the FBI background check and any supplemental information obtained by the Background Check Coordinator and/or Human Resource representative in determining whether there is a substantial relationship between the circumstances of a pending charge and/or conviction and the duties and responsibilities of the position.

2. For subjects who have lived, worked or attended school in states other than Wisconsin during the past five years, the Background Check Coordinator and/or Human Resource representative must check with local law enforcement agencies that are the equivalent of DOJ, in each state where the candidate has lived, worked or attended school or obtain that information from a third party vendor. Information obtained about arrests with pending charges or convictions in other states will be considered along with information obtained from the FBI background check and any supplemental information obtained by the Background Check Coordinator and/or Human Resource Personnel in determining whether there is a substantial relationship between the circumstances of a pending charge and/or conviction and the duties and responsibilities of the position.

3. Only information about arrests related to currently pending charges and/or convictions may be considered.

4. See Suitability Determination and Substantial Relationship Test above. Utilize criteria above if arrests or convictions are revealed.

C. Determine eligibility to work in the United States. a. For new hires only, validate the individual’s eligibility to legally work in the United States by: i. Completion of USCIS Form I-9 ii. Within three (3) days of completion of Form I-9, process the individual through E-Verify.

b. For new contractors, subcontractors, vendors, the contracting Agency shall provide documentation validating its employees’ eligibility to legally work in the United States.

Authority and References

• 26 U.S. Code §6103
• 2017 Wisconsin Act 154
• DCL-15-10 Dear Colleague Letter dated July 9, 2015 https://www.acf.hhs.gov/css/resource/irs-background-investigation-requirements
• Executive Order 16-05, Building safe and strong communities through successful reentry. http://www.governor.wa.gov/sites/default/files/exe_order/eo_16-05.pdf
• IRS Publication 1075, September 2016 Revision. https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1075.pdf
• U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. https://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/publications/background_checks_employers.cfm

Appendix A: Covered Positions for FTI Account Clerk I, II, III 0 (updated 7/1/2021) Financial Specialist 1 (updated 7/1/2021) Child Support Director 1 Child Support Attorney 2 (updated 7/1/2021) Child Support Assistant Attorney 0 (updated 7/1/2021) Child Support Lead Worker 0 (updated 7/1/2021) Child Support Specialist – Lead 1 (updated 7/1/2021) Child Support Specialist Initiation I and II 0 (updated 7/1/2021) Child Support Specialist – Paternity/Establishment 1 (updated 7/1/2021) Child Support Specialist Enforcement I and II 0 (updated 7/1/2021) Child Support Specialist - Enforcement 4 (updated 7/1/2021) Child Support Services Aide 0 (updated 7/1/2021) Child Support Assistant 1 (updated 7/1/2021) Document Scan Clerk 1 (updated 6/1/2021)

I. Purpose:  

This policy provides guidelines for telecommuting employees and outlines the expectations, responsibilities, and safety requirements for remote work. The goal of this policy is to provide telecommuting employees with the resources and support they need to work safely and effectively, while also ensuring the security and confidentiality of company information and assets.

II. Policy:

Telecommuting allows employees to work at home, on the road or in a satellite location for all or part of their workweek. Dodge County considers telecommuting to be a viable, flexible work option when both the employee and the job are suited to such an arrangement. Telecommuting may be appropriate for some employees and jobs but not for others. Telecommuting is a privilege, not an employee right, and it in no way changes conditions of employment with Dodge County.

Telecommuting can be informal, such as working from home for a short-term project or on the road during business travel, or a formal, set schedule of working away from the office as described below. Either an employee or a supervisor can suggest telecommuting as a possible work arrangement. Department Heads may, subject to this policy, develop and implement a telecommuting work schedule provided that the Department is open to the public under the established office hours of Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.  

A. Eligibility/Criteria Individuals requesting telecommuting arrangements must have completed the required Orientation Period and must have a satisfactory performance record.  Before entering into any telecommuting arrangement, the employee and manager, with the assistance of the Human Resources Department, will evaluate the suitability of such an arrangement, reviewing the following areas:

1. Employee suitability. The employee and manager will assess the needs and work habits of the employee, as appropriate for successful telecommuters.
2. Job responsibilities. The employee and manager will discuss the job responsibilities and determine if the job is appropriate for a telecommuting arrangement.
3. Equipment needs, workspace design considerations and scheduling issues. The employee and manager will review the physical workspace needs and the appropriate location for the telework.  
4. Employees are reminded during working hours they must comply with all existing policies as defined in the Dodge County Personnel Policies and Procedures Manual including, but not limited to: Computer Use, Electronic Communications, Use of Telephones and Other Communication Equipment, hours of work, meal/break periods, and confidentiality laws and regulations.
5. Tax and other legal implications. The employee must determine any tax or legal implications under IRS, state and local government laws, and/or restrictions of working out of a home-based office. Responsibility for fulfilling all obligations in this area rests solely with the employee.
6. Any telecommuting arrangement may be discontinued at will and at any time at the request of either the telecommuter or the Department Head. Every effort will be made to provide 30 days’ notice of such change to accommodate commuting, child care and other issues that may arise from the termination of a telecommuting arrangement. There may be instances, however, when no notice is possible. The telecommuter may, at the discretion of their immediate supervisor, be called to work at their centrally located worksite at the County on any telecommuting day during their regular work hours to meet workload requirements.

III. Standards:

A. Equipment   On a case-by-case basis, Dodge County will determine, with information supplied by the employee and the supervisor, the appropriate equipment needs (including hardware, software, modems, phone and data lines and other office equipment) for each telecommuting arrangement. The Human Resources and Information Technology Departments will serve as resources in this matter. Equipment supplied by the County will be maintained by the County. Equipment supplied by the employee, if deemed appropriate by the County, will be maintained by the employee. County laptop with working speakers, web camera and earphone jack; County cellular phone, wireless mouse, mobile monitor; and earphones are approved for telecommuting.  County desktop monitors and computers, printers, scanners, headsets, VOIP desk phones, and County office peripherals are not approved for telecommuting and must stay within a County building.  Personal devices including: printers, scanners, internet, monitors, wireless are approved to be used with a County laptop, however, County IT support staff cannot support or troubleshoot personal devices. 

Home office setup requires the following:

• Dedicated workspace meeting requirements of the Dodge County Telecommute Safety Checklist including: General Safety, Fire Safety, Ergonomics, and Security
• Reliable High Speed Internet with 25mbps download or higher
• Wired internet access or secured wireless with encryption password (Cellular hotspots are not allowed with the exception of a county-issued hotspot)  

The County accepts no responsibility for damage or repairs to employee-owned equipment. The County reserves the right to make determinations as to appropriate equipment, subject to change at any time. Equipment supplied by the County is to be used for County business purposes only. The telecommuter must sign an inventory of all County property received and agree to take appropriate action to protect the items from damage or theft. Upon termination of employment or arrangement, all County property will be returned to the Department within seven (7) days, unless other arrangements have been made. When using County equipment or software, the telecommuter must follow all softwarelicensing provisions agreed to by the County. Dodge County will supply the employee with appropriate office supplies (pens, paper, etc.) as deemed necessary. The County will also reimburse the employee for business-related expenses, such as phone calls and shipping costs that are reasonably incurred in carrying out the employee’s job responsibilities with prior approval for the expenses from the Supervisor and/or Department Head. The County reserves the right to pursue recovery from the employee for any County property deliberately or negligently damaged or destroyed while in employee’s care, custody, and control.

B. Work Environment Telecommuting employees are responsible for setting up a safe and ergonomic work environment in their home workspace. This includes following ergonomic best practices, such as using an ergonomic chair and keyboard, and maintaining proper posture and lighting.  The County will not be responsible for costs associated with the setup of the employee’s home office, such as remodeling, furniture or lighting, nor for repairs or modifications to the home office space.  Employees are required to review and follow the Policies; including but limited to:   HR Policy 304 – Computer Use HR Policy 305 -  Ethics HR Policy 309 – Social Media  HR Policy 310 – Use of Telephones and Other Communication Equipment  HR Policy 314 – Texting Policy  

C. Security Consistent with the County’s expectations of information security for employees working at the office, telecommuting employees will be expected to ensure the protection of confidential County and client/customer information accessible from their home office at all times and follow all security compliances. Steps include: taking only minimally necessary confidential information out of the office, use of locked file cabinets and desks, performing regular password maintenance, using the County VPN at all times, using multi-factor-authentication (MFA) to access County systems remotely, logging off and shutting down a County laptop when not in use, preventing inadvertent disclosure, and any other measures appropriate for the job and the environment.  

D. Safety Employees are responsible for maintaining their home workspace in a safe manner, free from safety hazards, similar to what is provided in the County’s physical work environment.  Injuries sustained by the employee in a home office location and in conjunction with his or her regular work duties may be covered by the County’s workers’ compensation policy. The County reserves the right to perform safety audits to assess the home work environment to identify and mitigate any potential safety risks or in the event of a work-related injury in the home environment. Telecommuting employees are responsible for notifying the employer of such injuries as soon as practicable. The employee is liable for any injuries sustained by visitors to his or her home worksite.

E. Childcare Telecommuting is not a replacement for appropriate childcare and alternative childcare must be arranged. Although an individual employee’s schedule may be modified to accommodate child care needs, the focus of the arrangement must remain on job performance and meeting County demands. Prospective telecommuters are encouraged to discuss expectations of telecommuting with family members prior to beginning telecommuting.

F. Time Worked Telecommuting employees who are not exempt from the overtime requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act will be required to accurately record all hours worked using the Kronos time-keeping system. Hours worked in excess of those scheduled per day and per workweek require the advance approval of the telecommuter’s supervisor. Failure to comply with this requirement may result in the immediate termination of the telecommuting arrangement.

G. Ad Hoc Arrangements Temporary telecommuting arrangements may be approved for circumstances such as inclement weather, special projects or business travel. These arrangements are approved on an as-needed basis only, with no expectation of ongoing continuance.  Consideration will be given for other informal, short-term arrangements requested by the employee for extenuating circumstances this may include family or medical leave with consent of the employee’s health care provider and approval by the Department Head and Human Resources Department.  All ad hoc telecommuting arrangements are made on a case-by-case basis, focusing first on the business needs of the County.  Employees who are sick or have restrictions are not eligible to telecommute. In these circumstances, employees are expected to stay at home and take the necessary time off to recover.

Telecommuting may be a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Requests for telecommuting as an accommodation are on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the essential functions of the employee's job and the impact of telecommuting on the business operations.  An employee seeking a reasonable accommodation under the ADA must make a request to their supervisor to begin the interactive process.

IV. Procedure

A. A Telecommuting Request Form and signed Dodge County Telecommute Safety Checklist must be completed by the employee and submitted to the Department Head/County Administrator for approval prior to beginning telecommuting. The telecommuting schedule consists of preset days of the week and hours as defined and approved in the Telecommuting Request Form. Any changes to the schedule requires submission of a new Telecommuting Request.

B. Approval or denials by the Department Head (or County Administrator) of such requests must be in writing and provided to the employee.

C. All completed and approved requests and denials must be sent to the Human Resources Department to be placed in the employee’s personnel file.  

D. Any request for telecommuting outside the parameters defined in this policy must be reviewed and approved by the County Administrator and Human Resources Department Director.

V. Guidelines

Dodge County Telecommute Safety Checklist 

Dodge County recognizes the importance of its employees having a proper work-life balance. It is understood that allowing employees to have a degree of control over their work schedules may make it easier for them to manage non-job-related responsibilities and to be more efficient and productive at work.

As a result, the County supports alternative work schedules for employees … provided that such schedules are mutually beneficial to County and employee, and continue to satisfy the needs and objectives of the County.

Department Heads may, subject to this policy, develop and implement an alternative work schedule provided that the Department is open to the public under the established office hours of Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Alternative Work Schedule Options

NOTE: A “week” is defined as a pay week of Thursday through Wednesday

4/9 and 1/4 Schedule

Employee works four (4) nine (9) hour days and one four (4) hour day, Thursday through Wednesday between the hours of 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., however, must cover the established office hours of 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Start and end times must be on the hour or half-hour and in thirty-minute increments (e.g., start-time of 7:00 a.m.; end-time of 5:30 p.m.)

The work schedule will be consistent with established starting and ending times that remain the same week after week.

The employee will be eligible for break and lunch periods as per Policy #111-Hours of Work.

Holidays: The Employee and the Supervisor will work out the work schedule for the week in which a holiday falls (i.e. the employee works 4 – eight hour days). Employees under the Alternative Work Schedule are only eligible for eight (8) hours of holiday time; they are not eligible for holiday hours as defined under Policy #207 – “Holidays will be based upon regularly schedule hours, exclusive of shift premium, if any”.

Vacation: Vacation time earned as defined in Policy #218-Vacation. Vacation taken in day increments will be charged at nine (9) hours per day. Note: A week of vacation will equal forty (40) hours.

Sick Leave: It is understood that sick leave will be earned at the rate of eight (8) hours per month. Sick leave taken will be charged at nine (9) hours per day.

4/10 Schedule

• Forty-hour (40) weeks in four (4) days. 
• Employees on 4/10 schedules work four (4) ten hour days Thursday through Wednesday between the hours of 6:30 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., however, must cover the established office hours of 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
• No more than forty-hours can be worked in any one week.
• Exempt employees are normally expected to work beyond the standard eighty (80) hour biweekly pay period or forty (40) hours per week.
• Non-Exempt employees must have pre-approval for any hours worked over forty (40) in the work week.
• The work schedule will be consistent with established starting and ending times that remain the same week after week.
• The employee will be eligible for break and lunch periods as per Policy #111-Hours of Work.

Holidays: The Employee and the Supervisor will work out the work schedule for the week in which a holiday falls (i.e. the employee works 4 – eight hour days). Employees under the Alternative Work Schedule are only eligible for eight (8) hours of holiday time; they are not eligible for holiday hours as defined under Policy #207 – “Holidays will be based upon regularly schedule hours, exclusive of shift premium, if any”. Vacation: Vacation time earned as defined in Policy #218-Vacation. Vacation taken in day increments will be charged at ten (10) hours per day. Note: A week of vacation will equal forty (40) hours. Sick Leave: It is understood that sick leave will be earned at the rate of eight (8) hours per month. Sick leave taken will be charged at ten (10) hours per day. Any or all of the foregoing alternative schedule options may be utilized.

Eligibility/Criteria

• Working an alternative work schedule is a privilege, not an employee right and it in no way changes the terms and conditions of employment with Dodge County.
• Employees must maintain an acceptable time and attendance record and maintain a satisfactory work performance.
• Alternative work schedules are not appropriate for all positions, all Departments, or all situations.
• Alternative work schedules, to the extent such are appropriate, should be uniformly available to all positions in a Department. Employees can each have a different schedule as long as the normal business hours are covered.
• The Department Head is responsible for ensuring the fair and equitable administration of this policy to employees.
• Alternative work schedules will not result in a change in the County’s or a Department’s regular hours of operation.
• Each Department Head is responsible for ensuring that all services of the Department are available to internal and external clients during regular business hours and that the efficiency and effectiveness of the Department’s operations will not be interrupted or negatively impacted.
• The alternate work schedule will not cause overtime. All overtime must have Supervisor approval prior to incurring the overtime.
• Any alternative work schedule may be discontinued at will and at any time at the request of either the employee or the Department Head with approval from the County Administrator. Every effort will be made to provide 30 days’ notice of such change to accommodate commuting, child care and other issues that may arise from the termination of the alternative work schedule. There may be instances, however, when no notice is possible.

Process

• All requests for an alternative work schedule must be in writing, completed by the employee, and submitted to the Department Head for approval. Requests by Department Heads are to be submitted to the County Administrator. Please use the Alternative Work Schedule Request Form.
• Approval or denials by the Department Head (or County Administrator) of such requests must be in writing and provided to the employee.
• Once an alternative work schedule is approved, it cannot change without the prior written permission of the Department Head (or County Administrator).
• All completed and approved requests, and denials, must be sent to the Human Resources Department to be placed in the employee’s personnel file.
• Any request for an alternative work schedule option outside the parameters defined in this policy must be reviewed and approved by the County Administrator and Human Resources Department.

The objective of this County Vehicle Policy is to establish administrative regulations which standardize the procedures utilized by employees in the use of County-owned vehicles or privately owned vehicles in the conduct of official County business. The basic guideline of this policy shall be that the use of a county vehicle by an employee will be only for official county business.

1. Authority: The Dodge County Board of Supervisors.
2. Application: The regulations and procedures outlined in this policy statement are to apply to all County-owned vehicles assigned to individual departments (except for the Dodge County Sheriff’s Office)
3. Assignment of County-Owned Vehicles: The Department Supervisor or Department Head shall assign County-owned vehicles, which have been assigned to its department, to its employees, volunteers or agents according to its own policy, procedures and departmental operational requirements.
4. Employees who operate a County-owned vehicle shall comply with the Dodge County Driver Qualification Policy.
5. The following rules and regulations are established as a supplement to all rules and regulations contained in this and other administrative and personnel policies. The rules and regulations contained herein apply to all County employees who are authorized to use a County-owned vehicle or who are compensated for the use of their privately-owned vehicle in the conduct of County business. Any employee in violation of these rules may be disallowed from using any County owned vehicle or privately owned vehicle on County business and shall be disciplined appropriately, up to and including discharge.

Expense Reimbursement: Employees requesting reimbursement for use of their personal vehicle for conducting county business shall comply with the Dodge County Expense Reimbursement Policy #306. The policy requires monthly submittal of reimbursement requests. Employee reimbursements shall be reviewed by the Dodge County Audit Committee.

Personal Use of County Vehicles: County employees shall refrain from making any personal use of county issued vehicles, except as permitted by Dodge County Ordinance Number 570.

6. Identification of County Owned Vehicles: County owned vehicles except certain law enforcement vehicles are to display marking(s) clearly identifying the vehicle is Operated by Dodge County. The minimum criteria includes a State of Wisconsin Municipal License Plate and the standard Dodge County logo. The Dodge County logo shall be prominently displayed on each side of county vehicles. The County Administrator has the authority to approve individual written requests for exclusion from the identifying criteria. Exclusion requests shall be kept on file with the Dodge County Clerk’s office.

Non-Employees Operating a County Vehicle

Employees are prohibited from allowing individuals who are not employees, volunteers or agents of Dodge County from operating any county-owned vehicle.

Purpose

To provide guidelines and assign responsibility for the safe operation and use of all vehicles operated during the course of County business. It is the intent of this policy to ensure that all operators of vehicles while on County business adhere to all local, state and federal laws. Travel by motorcycle or moped is not allowed during the course of conducting County business. This provision doesn't apply to the Sheriff's Office in exigent circumstances or for a motorcycle patrol.

Policy

Minimum standards require to operate any vehicle during the course of conducting County business:

1. 1. Shall have a valid operator’s license. This includes a valid regular license or an occupational license (see below for requirements of an occupational license**).
2. 2. Shall have a minimum of two (2) years of licensed driving experience.
3. 3. Shall be at least eighteen (18) years of age.

_{** Occupational License Requirements: Restrictions on the hours an employee can operate a vehicle must allow for the employee to complete all the duties of his/her position. The employee must provide a copy of the restrictions to his/her Supervisor and Human Resources.}

Drivers and passengers must comply with all local, state and federal laws, including the Wisconsin seat belt, cell phone and texting laws. Using a mobile device at any time while operating a vehicle while on County business is prohibited unless responding to a life-threatening emergency situation, or is required to do so as part of the employee’s job responsibilities, or they are an operator of an authorized emergency vehicle as per WI State Statute, 346.89(3).

Employees should not allow anyone to ride in a seat that does not have a working seat belt. Properly installed car seats or booster seats must be used for all children under 8 years old who are less than 80 lbs. and less than 57 inches in height or as otherwise determined by law. Drivers are personally responsible for the cost of all traffic citations, parking tickets, and locksmith calls for retrieving keys, unless the driver is carrying out his or her duties as an officer or employee and is acting within the scope of his or her employment. Drivers are responsible for immediately reporting to their Supervisor and Human Resources all accidents or any damage to the vehicle operated in the course of County business.

1. A police report must be completed when an accident occurs as required by law.
2. When bodily injury occurs to an employee an Incident Report of Injury must be completed and filed with the Department Head and Human Resources regardless of whether or not the employee seeks medical care.
3. When bodily injury occurs to a passenger, a Non-Employee Incident Report of Injury must be completed and filed with the Department Head and County Administrator.
4. If damage occurs to the vehicle, notification to the Department Head and County Administrator must be made as soon as possible.

No vehicle shall be operated if the driver has consumed or is under the influence of alcohol, prescription, or non-prescription drugs which may affect control, operation and safety of the driver/passengers of the vehicle. Vehicle insurance must be carried by the employee on their own vehicle as required by WI Stats. Chapter 344, Vehicles-Financial Responsibility. Failure to comply with, or abuse of, this policy may result in the suspension of the ability to drive on County business and possible other disciplinary action up to and including termination of employment.