When feasible, the County will offer work-out-of-class assignments to interested permanent employees who meet the minimum qualifications of the position prior to offering such assignments to extra-help employees. If offered, it is the employee’s responsibility to inform management of their interest in work-out-of-class assignments. Departments will solicit interest in such assignments via bulletin board posting, internal memo, and/or email within the department or division as the department deems appropriate. The intent of this section is to provide additional career development opportunities to permanent County employees when such assignments do not cause unreasonable disruptions to the work environment or work production.

When feasible, the County will offer to rotate interested employees in previously identified long-term (more than 20 days) work-out-of-class assignments, and the County will notify the Union when this occurs. The intent of this section is to provide additional career development opportunities to permanent County employees when such assignments do not cause unreasonable disruptions to work environment or work production.

When an employee has been assigned in writing by the department head or designated representative to perform the work of a permanent position having a different classification and being paid at a higher rate, and if they have worked in such classification for 5 consecutive workdays (or four consecutive workdays for employees on a 4 day workweek, or where due to a County holiday, the workweek is only 4 days), they shall be entitled to payment for the higher classification, as prescribed for promotions in subsection 5.5 of this MOU, retroactive to the first workday and continuing during the period of temporary assignment, under the conditions specified below:

  • The assignment is caused by the temporary or permanent absence of the incumbent, or the assignment is caused by a special project or need;
  • The employee performs the duties regularly performed by the absent incumbent, or at the classification level for the special assignment and these duties are clearly not included in the job description of their regular classification;
  • The temporary assignment to work-out-of-class which extends beyond 20 working days be approved by the Human Resources Director, a copy of the approval form to be given to the employee; and
  • A copy of the department head’s written approval must be submitted in advance to the Human Resources Director. If the Director determines that they will not approve pay for work in the higher class which exceeds 20 workdays, the employee will be so notified and have the opportunity to discuss this matter with the Director whose decision shall be final.

The employer shall not schedule work-out-of-classification assignments in a manner so as to purposely avoid paying work-out-of-class pay as described in this Section.

34.1     Salary Step Increases

Employees in work-out-of-classification assignments shall be advanced to the next higher step in the salary schedule (for the higher classification) after the completion of 2080 hours of satisfactory service in each of the salary steps for the higher classification, and upon recommendation of the appointing authority.

2015-09-24