Effective the first full pay period following Board of Supervisors approval of this successor MOU, a salary differential of Seventy Dollars ($70.00) biweekly shall be paid to incumbents of positions requiring bilingual proficiency as designated by their respective Department Heads or their designee. Said differential shall be prorated for employees working less than full-time or who are in an unpaid leave of absence status for a portion of any given pay period.
An employee may submit a request for bilingual pay to their Department Head or designee. Upon receipt of an employee request for bilingual pay, the Department Head or designee shall approve or deny the request within thirty (30) calendar days. If the Department Head or designee does not respond within thirty (30) calendar days, the employee may submit the request to the Human Resources Director or designee, who will approve or deny the request within thirty (30) calendar days. Within one (1) week of approval, the County shall contact the bilingual examiner and offer the employee appointment dates and times for the bilingual examination.
Bilingual pay is effective the first pay period after Human Resources certifies the result of the bilingual exam. Human Resources may approve retroactivity for bilingual pay on a case-by-case basis.
Designation of positions for which bilingual proficiency is required is the sole prerogative of the Department and is based on operational and staffing needs of the Department. Human Resources will oversee the bilingual examination, certify exam results and determine effective date of bilingual pay of any individual submitted by the Department for testing. The Union shall be provided listings of employees receiving bilingual pay on a biweekly basis.
If an employee who has not been designated/approved for bilingual pay is required by the Department to perform bilingual services, the employee may report this issue to Employee Relations, who will investigate the matter within thirty (30) calendar days.
Individuals who promote or transfer to another position or Department will be reevaluated by the receiving Department to determine if bilingual pay should be continued. Should bilingual pay be continued, the Department must submit a request for continuation with the Human Resources Department.
If any employee’s request for bilingual pay consideration is denied by the Department, such denial shall be subject to appeal to the Human Resources Director whose decision shall be final.
The County and the Union agree to meet and confer, at the request of either party, to make appropriate changes to the above lists based upon the factors discussed in this section and/or to discuss other related issues such as employees required to use bilingual skills while performing job duties outside of their assigned classifications. At the request of the Union, the County will meet with the Union to discuss the need for additional bilingual positions.
11.1 Hiring and Selection
The County will continue to recruit and hire employees based on a specific need for bilingual skills. Within thirty (30) days of hire, the employee’s Department Head or designee shall submit a Bilingual Salary Differential Allowance form to the Bilingual Pay Coordinator. If the Department Head or designee does not submit the form within thirty (30) calendar days, the employee may submit a request to the Human Resources Director or designee, who will submit a Bilingual Salary Differential Allowance form to the Bilingual Pay Coordinator within thirty (30) calendar days. Within one (1) week of approval, the County shall contact the bilingual examiner and offer the employee appointment dates and times for the bilingual examination.
11.2 Testing
All employees hired to fill positions requiring bilingual skills will be tested for bilingual proficiency. Present employees may be certified by the appointing authority as possessing sufficient bilingual skills to be appointed to a bilingual pay position; provided, however, nothing herein precludes the County from requiring that said employees be tested. Requests by employees to be tested for bilingual skill proficiency will be referred to the Human Resources Director or his/her designee whose decision shall be final.
11.3 Continued Use of Bilingual Language Skill
Employees hired to fill positions requiring bilingual skills may be required to remain in bilingual pay positions. Employees who were selected to fill positions requiring bilingual skills during the implementation of the bilingual program will be allowed to voluntarily leave such positions provided management can reasonably replace said employees and there are sufficient positions within the classification that said employee can fill. Nothing herein precludes any of the above- specified employees from promoting to higher classifications.
11.4 Transfers
Transfers of employees occupying bilingual pay positions shall be in accordance with County policy and practice and shall not be in violation of the MOU. It is recognized that utilization of a bilingual skill may be the sole reason for transfer in order to meet a specific County need.
11.5 Review
The number and location of bilingual pay positions shall be periodically reviewed by management. If the number of filled positions in a specific division or geographical location are to be reduced, employees will be given reasonable notice prior to loss of the bilingual pay differential.
11.6 Administration
Administration of the bilingual pay plan will be the overall responsibility of Human Resources. Any disputes concerning the interpretation or application of the bilingual pay plan shall be referred to the Human Resources Director whose decision shall be final.