The purpose of this Ordinance is to establish a personnel system that shall promote a fair and effective means of employee recruitment and selection; develop and maintain an effective and responsible work force; promote understanding, cooperation, equal treatment, and efficiency; and provide the means for removal of unsatisfactory employees. This Ordinance is established under the authority of G.S. 153A, Article 5, and G.S. 126 of the General Statutes of North Carolina.

Section 2. Coverage

A. All employees in the County's service are subject to this ordinance, except as provided in this section.

B. Elected officials, the County Manager, the County Attorney, the Finance Director, the Clerk to the Board, consultants, volunteers, temporary and/or contract employees are exempt from the provisions of this Ordinance.

C. The following employees are covered only by the specifically designated articles and sections:

*1. The Director of Elections and all permanent employees of the County Board of Elections shall be subject to all articles except articles IV, V, VIII, and IX.

2. Employees of the County Sheriff and the Register of Deeds shall be subject to all articles except article VIII.

3. Employees subject to the jurisdiction of the North Carolina State Personnel Commission shall be subject to all articles except article II.

Section 3. Definitions (Listed Alphabetically)

Adverse Action. An involuntary demotion, an involuntary reduction in pay, an invol¬untary transfer, a suspension without pay, a layoff, or a dismissal.

Aggregate Service. The employee's combined total period of countable service (i.e., employment within a non-temporary position) as an employee of Buncombe County, inclusive of any time allowed as transfer credit from another jurisdiction for the purpose of determining entitlement to the particular benefit in question. Aggregate service for retirement purposes refers to total length of service under which retirement contributions are paid into the Local Government Employees Retirement System by the employee. Aggregate service for determining the rates at which annual leave and sick leave are earned by an employee is determined from the total years of service with Buncombe County only. *Employees rehired on or after August 1, 2002 will no longer be eligible to restore their previous years of service for determining annual leave accrual rate, longevity payment, and/or service award.

Anniversary Date. The date of successful completion of the probation period.

Appointing Authority. Any County board, official, or elected official with the legal authority to make hiring decisions.

Classification. A class or group of job classes having similar duties and respon¬sibilities requiring similar qualifications, which can be properly designated by one title indicative of the nature of work performed, and which carry the same salary range.

Demotion. The reassignment of an employee to a position or a classifi¬cation having a lower salary range than the position or the classification from which the reassignment is made; or the reduction in pay of an employee without also reassigning the employee to a position or classification having a lower salary range.

Exempt Employee (Fair Labor Standards Act Status). Full- and part-time employees who have been classified as "Exempt" from the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act are paid for the accom¬plishment of assigned accountabilities rather than being paid for the number of hours worked in a work period. These include executive, administrative and professional staff of the County.

Full-Time Employee.

A. Permanent - An employee, appointed to a permanently budgeted position, who is regularly scheduled to work the standard work period established by the County.

B. Temporary - An employee, appointed to a temporarily or permanently established position, for a temporary period of time, who is scheduled to work the standard work period established by the County.

Grievance. A claim or complaint alleging an event or condition which affects the circumstances under which an employee works, allegedly caused by misinterpretation, unfair application, or lack of established ordinance pertaining to employment conditions. A grievance may involve allegations of¬ involuntary demotion, suspension, dismissal, sexual harassment, discriminatory practices, and/or hostile work environment. A grievance is not allowed for Investigatory Suspension or voluntary demotion.

Hatch Act. A federal act limiting political activity for state and local government employees whose principal employment is in an activity that is financed either in whole or in part by loans or grants from the federal government in order to limit possible bias and political coercion.

Hiring Rate. The salary paid an employee when hired into County service, normally within the first quartile of the salary range.

Maximum Salary Rate. The maximum salary authorized by the pay plan for an employ¬ee within an assigned salary grade.

Non-Exempt Employee (Fair Labor Standards Act Status). Full- and part-time employees who have been classified as "Non Exempt" from the overtime provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act and who must be paid for overtime hours worked or given compensatory time off in accordance with the guide¬lines in this Ordinance. Overtime is paid or compensatory time off is given to non exempt employees for hours worked in excess of the standard work periods established by the County.

Part-Time Employee.

A. Permanent Part-time Employee - An employee appointed to a permanently budgeted position who is regularly scheduled to work less than the standard work period established by the County.

B. Temporary Part-time Employee - An employee appointed to a temporarily or permanently budgeted position, for a temporary period of time, who is scheduled to work less than the standard work period established by the County.

Pay Plan. A schedule of pay ranges arranged by sequential rates for each classification assigned to a salary range.

Permanent Employee. An employee who has successfully completed the probationary period and has been approved for permanent status by his/her department head (with the approval, where applicable, of the County Manager and/or Personnel Director).

Permanent Full-Time Position. A position that has been approved by the Board of County Commissioners, the duties and responsibilities of which are required to be performed on a continuous basis, normally requiring full time employment of an individual.

Permanent Part-Time Position. A position that has been approved by the Board of County Commissioners, the duties and responsibilities of which can be performed in less than a regular work day and/or work period.

Position. A group of current duties and responsibilities requiring the full or part time employment of one person.

Position Classification Plan. A plan approved by the Board of County¬ Commissioners that assigns classes (positions) to the appropriate pay grade.

Probationary Employee. An individual appointed to a permanent position who has served less than the probationary period in the position. (See Article IV, Section 10.)

Probationary Period. The required period of time an employee serves before obtaining permanent status when entering County service.

Promotion. The reassignment of an employee to an existing position or classification in the County service having a higher salary range than the position or classification from which the reassignment is made.

Reclassification. The reassignment of an existing position from one classification to another based on changes in job or job class content.

Salary Grade. All positions which are sufficiently comparable to war¬rant one range of pay rates.

Salary Plan Revision. The uniform adjustment of the salary ranges of every grade within the pay plan.

Salary Range. The minimum and maximum salary levels for a given classification.

Salary Range Revision. The adjustment of the salary range for one or more specific classifications of positions within the classification plan.

Salary Schedule. A listing by grade and quartile of all the approved minimum and maximum salary ranges authorized by the Board of County Commissioners for various position classifications of the County.

Temporary Employee. An individual appointed to serve in a position for: (1) performing hourly work on an as needed basis, (2) completing a specific job, or (3) performing work for an indefinite duration.

Temporary Position. A position for which the duties and responsibilities are required to be performed which may or may not require attendance by a person for a full work-day and/or work period.

Trainee. An employee designated as such, appointed to a position in any class for which the corresponding appointing authority, County Manager and/or Personnel Director has author¬ized "trainee" appointments. An individual may not be appointed as a trainee if he/she possesses the acceptable training and experience for the regular class, and must be appointed to the regular class when he/she gains the acceptable training and experience. A trainee must be paid at a rate below the minimum of the regular classification.

Transfer. The reassignment of an employee from one position or de¬partment to another.

Work-Against Appointment. When suitable qualified applicants are unavailable, and there is no trainee provision for the classification of the vacancy, the appointing authority may appoint an employee below the level of the regular classification in a work against situation, provided an appropriate work-against classification is available. A work against appointment is for the purpose of allowing the employee to gain the qualifications needed for the full class through on the job experience. The appointee must meet the minimum education and experience requirements of the class to which initially appointed.

For example, an applicant meeting the education and experience requirements for a Social Worker I classification may be hired in work-against status to fill a vacancy for a Social Worker III position for which the County has been unable to recruit a suitable applicant possessing the education and experience requirements of a Social Worker III position. An employee thus hired would be classified and paid as a Social Worker I until such time as the minimum education and experience requirements are met. A work against appointment may not be made when applicants deemed suitable for the position are available who meet the education and experience requirements for the full class for the position in question.

Section 4. Merit Principle

All appointments and promotions hereunder shall be made solely on the basis of merit. All positions requiring the performance of the same duties and fulfillment of the same responsibilities shall be assigned to the same class and the same salary range. No applicant for County employment or employee shall be deprived of employment opportunities or otherwise adversely affected as an employ¬ee because of such individual's race, color, religion, sex, national origin, political affiliation, non-disqualifying handicap or age.

Section 5. Responsibility of Board of County Commissioners

The Board of County Commissioners shall establish a Personnel Ordinance, including the classification and pay plan, and shall make and confirm appointments when required by law.

Section 6. Responsibility of County Manager

The County Manager shall be responsible to the Board of County Commissioners for the administration of the personnel program subject to his/her authority. The County Manager shall appoint, suspend, and remove all County employees under guidelines established in the Personnel Ordinance, except those elected by the people or whose appointment is otherwise provided for by law. The County Manager shall make appointments, dismissals, and suspensions in accordance with 153 A 82 of the General Statutes of the State of North Carolina and Articles IV, V, VII, and VIII of this Personnel Ordinance.

An official copy of the Personnel Ordinance and rules shall be available in the County Manager and/or Personnel Director's office. The corresponding appointing authority, County Manager and/or Personnel Director shall provide written procedures and forms necessary for the proper administration of the Ordinance set forth in this manual, and shall instruct staff in their appropriate use. Any questions concerning the application or interpretation of the Ordinance's guidelines or rules stated herein shall be directed by employees through appropriate supervisory channels. Any questions on the part of department heads concerning the applicability or interpretation of the Ordinance's guidelines or rules should be directed to the corresponding appointing authority, County Manager and/or Personnel Director before proceeding.

Section 7. Responsibility of the Personnel Director

A. Unless otherwise stated in the policies of this ordinance, the Personnel Director shall be responsible for the administration of the policies and procedures and recommend to the County Manager revisions to this document for approval by the Board of County Commissioners; recommend revisions to the (1) position classification plan, (2) pay plan, (3) leave policies, (4) retirement, health insurance, and other employee benefits; investigate periodically the operation and effect of this document; establish and maintain a roster of all persons in the County services, setting forth (1) each supervisor and employee, (2) position (3) salary, (4) any change in position and status, and (5) such data as may be deemed desirable or useful; develop and administer such recruiting programs as may be necessary to obtain an adequate supply of competent applicants to meet the needs of the County.

B. The Personnel Director shall be responsible for keeping policies and procedures in conformance with any legal requirements which may be imposed by other levels of government.

C. The Personnel Director shall be responsible for furnishing advice, technical direction and assistance to County Departmental Directors and administrative staff in effectuating this ordinance; including devising and implementing detailed procedures and records.

D. The Personnel Director shall also be responsible for performing such other duties as may be assigned by the County Manager, not inconsistent with this document.

Section 8. Responsibility of Employees

A. County employees are expected to keep a neat, well-groomed appearance while on duty.

B. County employees are expected to be at work on time. In emergency cases you must notify your Supervisor immediately if you shall arrive late.

C. County employees are expected to conduct themselves in a business-like manner, avoiding loud behavior or discussing personal problems within hearing range of visitors.

D. County employees are responsible for their personal obligations and must handle them privately. Do not permit personal obligations to extend into business premises.

E. Utilize materials and equipment with care, caution, and economy. Follow the procedures which you have learned step-by-step.

F. Strive to perform your job duties more effectively each day. Learn more about your work and how to improve it by asking questions and by reading related materials. Ideas for suggested improvements are encouraged to be brought to your immediate supervisor and/or through the County Suggestion Program.

G. County employees are part of the public relations image for Buncombe County. Be pleasant and helpful to visitors. Employees are servants of the people and should project a professional courteous and helpful attitude to all visitors and callers.

H. County employees are expected to perform ethically.

I. Resolve any problems and conflicts by going to the person to whom you are responsible. Departmental problems should remain in the department and not become general gossip.