In Procedures

COUNTY OF SAN MATEO HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT Inter-Departmental Correspondence DATE: May 2015 TO: All Management and Supervisory Employees FROM: Nicole McKay, Employee & Labor Relations Manager SUBJECT: Employee Relations Bulletin 19 Rest Breaks It is clear that providing rest breaks is beneficial to both workers and the County. Full-time workers are allowed one fifteen minute rest break prior to and after their mid-shift meal break. Part-time workers are allowed one fifteen minute rest break during any four hour work shift. For most workers, this equates to a lunch break and two rest breaks — one in the morning and one in the afternoon. The fifteenRead More →

In Procedures

COUNTY OF SAN MATEO HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT Inter-Departmental Correspondence DATE: May 2015 TO: All Management and Supervisory Employees FROM: Nicole McKay, Employee & Labor Relations Manager SUBJECT: Employee Relations Bulletin 16 Family School Partnership Act This act allows an employee who is a parent, guardian or custodial grandparent with children in a licensed day care facility or in Kindergarten through 12th grade to take up to 40 hours a year to participate in day care or school activities. The employee may use vacation, compensatory or holiday time to take time off to attend these activities. The employee must provide reasonable notice to the employer andRead More →

In Procedures

COUNTY OF SAN MATEO HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT Inter-Departmental Correspondence DATE: April 2015 TO: All Supervisory and Management Employees FROM: Nicole McKay, Employee & Labor Relations Manager SUBJECT: Employee Relations Bulletin 10 Investigating Employee Complaints Consider the following scenarios: An employee tells you that she was sexually harassed by a co-worker. An employee alleges that a co-worker is making long distance phone calls on County time and charging them to the County and is using the photocopier and fax machine for personal business. An employee writes you a note reporting a health/safety hazard and asking that you provide expensive safety equipment to all employees in theRead More →

In Procedures

COUNTY OF SAN MATEO HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT Inter-Departmental Correspondence DATE: April 2015 TO: All Supervisory and Management Employees FROM: Nicole McKay, Employee & Labor Relations Manager SUBJECT: Employee Relations Bulletin 8 Work-Out-Of-Class The MOUs and Ordinance Code provide that employees who are assigned work of a different classification having a higher rate of pay will be paid at the higher classification. The purpose of this bulletin is to provide guidance in making work-out-of-class assignments. It does not supersede MOU language. Employees are worked-out-of-class because there is a need to temporarily fill a vacant position due to attrition, leaves of absence, or vacation/sick leave on theRead More →

In Procedures

COUNTY OF SAN MATEO HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT Inter-Departmental Correspondence DATE: April 2015 TO: All Supervisory and Management Employees FROM: Nicole McKay, Employee & Labor Relations Manager SUBJECT: Employee Relations Bulletin 7 Employees’ Right to Representation The question: You tell your employee that you want to meet with him or her about something. Your employee tells you that she or he will not meet with you unless a union representative is present. Is the employee correct? The answer: “Whenever an employee is required to meet with a supervisor and the employee reasonably anticipates that such a meeting will involve questioning leading to disciplinary action, he/she shallRead More →

In Procedures

COUNTY OF SAN MATEO HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT Inter-Departmental Correspondence DATE: April 2015 TO: All Management Employees FROM: Nicole McKay, Employee & Labor Relations Manager SUBJECT: Employee Relations Bulletin 5 Dealing with the Impaired Employee We have received a number of questions asking what to do when you suspect that an employee is under the influence of alcohol or drugs while at work. Listed below are recommended steps to follow: First, you should annotate your observations. The attached checklist is an excellent document to use for this purpose. Next, you should ask another manager to observe the employee and complete a checklist without reviewing the checklistRead More →

In Procedures

COUNTY OF SAN MATEO HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT Inter-Departmental Correspondence DATE: April 2015 TO: All Management Employees FROM: Nicole McKay, Employee & Labor Relations Manager SUBJECT: Employee Relations Bulletin 4 Appeals Before the Civil Service Commission Civil Service Rule XIV provides that employees may request an appeal of disciplinary actions before the Civil Service Commission. Rule XII provides that employees may appeal to the Commission for a review of substandard performance evaluations. The attached guidelines are to assist Departments in preparing for and presenting cases before the Commission. Please note that these are general guidelines which may vary from case to case. The method of presenting individualRead More →

In Procedures

COUNTY OF SAN MATEO HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT Inter-Departmental Correspondence DATE: April 2015 TO: All Management Employees FROM: Nicole McKay, Employee & Labor Relations Manager SUBJECT: Employee Relations Bulletin 3 Personnel Files Various types of personnel files are maintained in the County. This bulletin explains what the various files are, where they are maintained, and what types of materials should be placed in each file. The Civil Service Personnel File is the official personnel record for each employee and is maintained in the Human Resources Department. This file contains copies of all personnel actions, Leave of Absence forms, performance evaluations, disciplinary letters, reprimands, and other recordsRead More →

In Procedures

COUNTY OF SAN MATEO HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT Inter-Departmental Correspondence DATE: April 2015 TO: All Management Employees FROM: Nicole McKay, Employee & Labor Relations Manager SUBJECT: Employee Relations Bulletin 2 Skelly Process BACKGROUND The Skelly decision (Skelly vs. California Personnel Board) determined that a permanent public employee has a property interest in his/her job, which is protected by “due process,” entitling him/her to a hearing prior to discipline. In this context, discipline includes suspensions, demotions, and dismissals. The Skelly court concluded that, at a minimum, safeguards must include: notice of the proposed action; the reasons for the proposed action; a copy of the charges and materialsRead More →

In Procedures

COUNTY OF SAN MATEO HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT Inter-Departmental Correspondence DATE: April 2015 TO: All Management Employees FROM: Nicole McKay, Employee & Labor Relations Manager SUBJECT: Employee Relations Bulletin 1 Material Relied On When it is your intent to initiate disciplinary action, a Skelly “Intent” letter is issued to the employee. In the last paragraph of the letter, you advise the employee that “All written materials, reports and documents upon which this action is based are attached.” These “materials, reports, and documents” are referred to as the “materials relied on” and usually consist of counseling notes, written complaints from customers or coworkers, attendance records, previous corrective/disciplinaryRead More →