7.1. Authorization

All overtime must be authorized by the department head prior to being worked. If prior authorization is not feasible due to an emergency, a confirming authorization must be made on the next regular work day. Overtime worked must be in the job class in which the person is regularly employed, unless otherwise required under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

7.2. Definition

Except as otherwise provided by Charter, any authorized time worked in excess of forty (40) hours during the employee’s normal work week (a fixed and regularly recurring period of seven (7) consecutive twenty-four (24) hour periods) shall be considered overtime compensable at the rate of one and one-half (1 ½) times the overtime worked, by monetary payment or compensatory time off. Overtime resulting from required attendance at training classes or training meetings shall be compensable at the straight-time rate in an amount equal to the overtime worked unless monetary payment at a different rate is prescribed for employees covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

For purposes of determining eligibility for overtime compensation, only County recognized paid holidays shall be considered time worked, except that vacation and CTO shall count as hours worked when the employee is called back to work after regular hours pursuant to Section 7.4 of this MOU. Vacation and CTO shall count as hours worked when the employee is called back to work as a result of being in an on-call status, pursuant to Section 9. All other absences with pay shall not be considered time worked.

The smallest incre­ment of time that may be credited as overtime is six (6) minutes. Portions of six (6) minutes worked at different times shall not be added together to credit overtime. Overtime shall be calculated from the employee’s base pay only unless monetary payment at a different rate is prescribed for employees covered by the FLSA.

7.3. Work Groups

The Human Resources Department Director shall allocate all job classes to the following work groups for purposes of determining overtime compensation as set forth below. The Director’s decision shall be final. All employees considered non-exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act shall be in Work Group 1.

Work Group 1 employees may be compensated for overtime worked by monetary payment or compensatory time off (“comp time”) at the employee’s option. Comp time which accrues in excess of eighty (80) hours must be liquidated by monetary payment. Monetary payment for overtime must be paid not later than the next biweekly pay­roll following the pay period in which the overtime was worked.

Work Group 5 employees are considered exempt under the Fair Labor Standards Act and may be compensated for overtime worked either by mone­tary payment or by comp time off at the option of the employee. Comp time which accrues in excess of eighty (80) hours must be liquidated by monetary payment.

Notwithstanding the allocation of job classes to work groups, any employee covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act shall be compensated in accordance with the Act. Should the County, through some future Federal ruling, be exempted from the Act, the County shall then revert to the base rate for the computation of overtime.

7.4. Call Back

Employees not in an on-call status who are required to report back to work during off‑duty hours shall be compensated for a minimum of three (3) hours of overtime.

7.5. Compensatory Time Off

When authorizing comp time off, department heads shall consider when employees wish to utilize the comp time. Department heads’ decisions shall be final. The smallest increment of comp time which may be taken off is six (6) minutes.

2016-02-23