The County offers a wide variety of programs geared towards employee health, development, and overall work-life balance. Limited term employees are eligible for all of the following County-sponsored employee programs.
Wellness Program
The County’s Wellness Program is dedicated to creating healthy workspaces and supporting healthy employees. The program hosts a wide variety of activities from County softball and volleyball tournaments, to meditation and nutrition classes. Limited term employees are welcome to participate in any of the County’s Wellness classes, events, and programs.
Tuition Reimbursement
The County is dedicated to the professional development of its employees. Limited term employees are eligible to apply for the County’s Tuition Reimbursement Program, which provides financial assistance to employees who are enrolled in degree or certificate programs. For more information on the Tuition Reimbursement Program, please visit: http://hr.smcgov.org/tuition-reimbursement-program
Professional Reimbursement and Medical Staff Dues
Limited term physicians are eligible for Professional Reimbursement. Physicians may be reimbursed for up to $2,500 per fiscal year for educational expenses authorized for maintenance of their licensure/certification. When educational expense is authorized for training, physicians may be reimbursed for related travel expenses from the $2,500, provided the travel expense is directly related to the training or coursework. Physicians may also use the $2,500 to be reimbursed for the purchase of smartphones, iPads or tablets, related smartphone medical software or apps judged to be helpful in their work assignment, to pay for professional license fees, and for fees and memberships in professional associations related to their field of practice.
For Staff Physicians, Psychiatrists, and Dentists who are required to pay medical staff dues to the San Mateo Medical Center, the County agrees to pay the annual medical staff dues for each employee. These funds are in addition to the educational expenses detailed above.
Commuter Alternatives Program
Limited term employees are eligible to receive monthly public transit, vanpool, carpool, bike, and walk subsidies through the County’s Commuter Alternatives Program (CAP). The CAP is designed to reduce traffic congestion and encourage employees to find alternative modes of transportation. For more information on the CAP, please visit: http://smccap.org/
Voluntary Time Off
The Voluntary Time Off (VTO) Program is designed to provide flexible working hours for County employees. The County’s VTO policy allows term employees to reduce their time at work by 1%, 2%, 3%, 4%, 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20% without losing many of the benefits available to them. Time allotted to VTO is unpaid. For more information on VTO, please visit: http://hr.smcgov.org/voluntary-time-vto
Catastrophic Leave Program
Limited term employees can utilize the County’s Catastrophic Leave program, which allows employees who have exhausted all vacation, sick, compensatory, and holiday time due to a serious illness, injury, or condition to receive donations of paid time off from other employees so that they can remain on paid status longer. For more information on the Catastrophic Leave Program, please visit: http://hr.smcgov.org/catastrophic-leave-policy
Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
Limited term employees have access to the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) through Claremont EAP, which offers work-life assistance to help employees and their family members manage challenges related to work, personal relationships, stress, finances, substance abuse, and other life concerns. Claremont EAP services are accessible 24 hours a day, 365 days-a-year nationwide. For services, please contact 1-800-834-3773.
Telework
The County of San Mateo’s commitment to providing a flexible working environment includes the ability to telework. Telework allows County employees to work offsite, often from home. With supervisor approval, limited term employees in certain types of job classifications may be able to telework as part of their typical work week. To learn more about the County’s telework options, please visit: http://www.commute.org/files/programs/SMC_Telework_Toolkit.pdf
Employee Referral Program (ERP)
Limited term employees are eligible to receive up to $500 when successfully referring candidates to hard-to-fill positions. $250 will be awarded on initial hire of referred employee and an additional $250 will be awarded if the referred employee successfully completes probation. For hard-to-fill classifications, there will be a supplemental question requesting applicants to indicate if they were referred to the position by a County employee and if so, by whom. Every six months, the Human Resources Department will use the following criteria to determine which classifications are hard-to-fill:
- Over a 10% vacancy rate for a sustained period of time.
- Length of time of the ongoing recruitment for the classification.
- Number of appointable candidates on the eligible list.
For more information on the Employee Referral Program, please visit http://hr.smcgov.org/employee-referral-program