HomeMy WebLinkAbout831062.tiff RESOLUTION
RE: APPROVAL OF PAY—FOR—PERFORMANCE RULES AND PROCEDURES
WHEREAS, the Board of County Commissioners of Weld County, Colorado,
pursuant to Colorado Statute and the Weld County Home Rule Charter, is vested
with the authority of administering the affairs of Weld County, Colorado, and
WHEREAS, on September 22, 1982, the Board of County Commissioners
approved a Pay-For-Performance plan to be implemented on January 1, 1983, and
WHEREAS, since January, 1983, the Board has received additional input
from elected officials and department heads concerning the program and the
rules and procedures, and
WHEREAS, the attached plan, referred to as Exhibit "A" and incorporated
herein by reference, has been reviewed by the Board who believe the rules and
procedures as presented will benefit Weld County and its employees.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Board of County Commissioners of
Weld County that the attached Pay-For-Performance rules and procedures be
approved and incorporated into the Weld County Personnel Manual nunc pro tunc
January 1, 1983.
The above and foregoing resolution was, on motion duly made and seconded,
adopted by the following vote on the 7th day of March, A.D. , 1983.
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
�ATTEST `/,n('_6"v etA WELD COUNTY, COLORADO
Weld County Serk and Recorder Qom.
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and Clerk io the Board Ch ck Carlson, 'C_hsirman
1/0-141-..1 % 21/26S
B rtin, Pro Tem
Depu y County Cler
Approve as to form: 'Gene Brantner
ef Ordee-O Norman Carlson f'
ounty Attorney
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J quel'p e John o
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION 1
OBJECTIVES OF PAY-FOR-PERFORMANCE 1
GENERAL DEFINITIONS 2
PAY STEPS 3
KEY ELEMENTS OF THE PAY-FOR-PERFORMANCE SYSTEM 3
GRANDFATHERING 3
MECHANICS OF THE SYSTEM 4
PAY-FOR-PERFORMANCE 8
BONUS AWARDS ELEMENTS 8
PROCEDURAL STEPS FOR BONUS AWARD 9
a
PAY FOR PERFORMANCE
GUIDELINES
INTRODUCTION
Pay for Performance is a system developed by Weld County to provide a method
of paying people based on the quantity and quality of work performed.
OBJECTIVES OF PAY FOR PERFORMANCE:
The system has been developed to provide equity, increase productivity,
competitive compensation to employees, and to provide management with a
resource to measure and reward performance.
Objectives of the system include:
Equity: To assure that all eligible employees have an opportunity to compete
for and receive the rewards of the system.
Productivity: To establish a system that rewards performance so as to
increase productivity.
Competitive Compensation: To assure that employees' compensation is
competitive within the area.
Management Resource: To provide management with a means to reward and punish
based on performance.
PAY FOR PERFORMANCE CONCEPTS:
The Pay for performance concept includes:
Performance Based Compensation - To compensate employees for their performance
based on established standards.
Prevailing Wage - To pay individuals the prevailing wage in the Larimer-Weld
area as determined by the salary survey.
Upward Movement - To establish a system that allows for upward movement within
it in order to reward employees for their performance.
Downward Movement - To establish a system that allows for downward movement
within it in order or reduce compensation for non-productive employees.
Performance Appraisal - To provide a standardized tool to measure performance
based on pre-determined standards.
Learning Curve - The amount of time spent on the job to fully learn the tasks
required and function at a proficient level. The Pay for Performance system
recognizes a learning curve for all county positions.
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GENERAL DEFINITIONS:
General definitions for the system include:
Salary Survey - Performed each year with other jurisdictions to establish the
salary for job classifications.
Job Rate - The rate of pay for the proficient level on a monthly basis for a
particular classification established by the salary survey and adjusted on an
annual basis.
Incumbent - The employee occupying a specific position.
Position - Certain duties and responsibilities, which call for the time and
attention of some individual; allocated to offices and departments through the
budget process.
Classification - A group of positions sufficiently alike in respect to their
duties and responsibilities to justify common treatment in selection,
compensation, and qualification requirements of skills, knowledges, and
abilities.
Classification Series - Classifications in the same career path or career
ladder, e.g. , Office Technician I, II, III, IV, and Office Manager.
Initial Probation - All new employees will be placed on probation for the
first six months of their employment. During the probationary period an
employee will accumulate vacation time, but will not be eligible to use it
until the probationary period is satisfactorily completed. During the
probationary period an employee may be terminated for any reason without
cause, except for discrimination. An employee has no grievance rights while
on their initial probation. The probationary period may be extended up to an
additional 90 days. The employee and the Personnel Department must be
notified in writing that the probationary period has been extended, listing
length of extension, cause for extension, and training to be furnished during
the extended period. A Job Performance Evaluation must accompany the notice
of extension. At the completion of the extension a performance evaluation
will be required. If the six month probationary period or extension runs past
the established date without the employee being notified by the department
head/elected official, the employee will automatically have the probationary
period lifted and become a member of the permanent work force.
Promotional Probation - Each promotion or re-classification upward carries a
new six month job performance probationary period. This requires a
Performance Evaluation upon completion of the first 90 days and the six month
probationary period. During the Promotion Probationary Period, the employee
may be demoted for cause. He/She does not have grievance rights while in the
Promotion Probationary status. This probationary period does not include the
restriction of taking vacation as the initial employment probation does.
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PAY STEPS:
A. Entry Level - Persons with training but little or no experience.
Pay - 95% of job rate.
B. Qualified Level - Persons with training and experience and exceed the
minimum requirements for the classification. Pay - 97.5% of job rate.
C. Proficient Level - Persons with training plus experience in a County
department. Pay - 100% of job rate.
D. 3rd year Proficient Level - Persons who have completed 3 years in the
same classification and have demonstrated sustained satisfactory
performance at the proficient or highly proficient level as recorded
through the appraisal system. Pay - 1021% of established job rate.
E. 5th year Proficient Level - Persons who have completed 5 years in the
same classification and have demonstrated sustained satisfactory
performance at the proficient or highly proficient level as recorded
through the appraisal system. Pay - 105% of job rate.
NOTE: The above pay steps would not correspond to time in classification
if the incumbent was promoted into a higher step due to minimum 5%
increase for promotions.
KEY ELEMENTS OF THE PAY FOR PERFORMANCE SYSTEM
Key elements of the step/bonus approach include:
-- Five performance levels for employees (entry, qualified, proficient, 3rd
Year proficiency and 5th Year proficiency.)
-- Optional bonus of once or twice per year based on highly proficient
performance standards. Determination of frequency by department
head/elected official. Amount of bonus determined by department
head/elected official with a minimum award of $50.00.
-- Appraisals to be completed at pre-determined time frames.
-- Bonuses restricted to 50% of department/office workforce unless waiver is
given by a Board of County Commission resolution.
GRANDFATHERING
A basic assumption is that no County employees will receive a decrease in pay
due to conversion to the recommended system. Therefore, upon conversion, any
employee whose base salary is above the job rate will be allowed to retain
that base salary upon conversion December 16, 1982.
In moving to the new pay system, approximately 72% of employees fall into the
new system with little or no transition problems. 28% of the employees, due
to the longevity portion of the old system, would exceed the pay for the fifth
year proficient step and therefore must be grandfathered into the new pay
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system. No employee will lose pay during the grandfathering process. All
grandfathered employees will receive a 21 pay increase for 1983. Annually the
Board will address grandfathered employees' pay adjustments.
Grandfathered employees will be considered and can compete for all bonuses.
MECHANICS OF THE SYSTEM
New Hires
New hires will begin at the entry level step for the classification with one
exception. An applicant may be hired at the qualified step if he/she exceeds
the minimum standards for the classification as established by the class
description and specifications.
When this occurs, the department head/elected official will submit the
justification to Personnel to hire at the qualified level and request
approval. This request must document the fact that the applicant's training
and experience warrants the higher pay level. No commitment to hire at other
than the entry level should be made to an applicant without written approval
from Personnel.
The practice of hiring at other than entry level is limited.
Promotions
When a County employee is promoted to a higher level classification in the
same classification series, they will be placed in the entry level step for
the classification. Promotions will insure a minimum of 5% pay increase. In
the event the promotion in the classification series is less than 5% the
incumbent shall be placed at the step which provides a 5% minimum increase.
In all cases of a promotion a six month promotional probation period shall
exist for the incumbent.
When a position is determined to be mis-classified and is changed to a higher
classification, the incumbent must qualify for the higher level position
within one year. The incumbent will be placed at the entry level step unless
the former pay grade in the lower class is less than 5%. In the event the
entry level is less than a 5% pay increase the person will be placed at a step
providing a 5% minimum increase. In no case will a reclass result in a pay
decrease. In the event a position is downgraded the current incumbent's
salary will be frozen until the pay table of the lower classification reaches
the incumbent's salary. The incumbent will be eligible to compete for
bonuses.
A promoted employee entering the classification at higher than the entry level
due to the 5% minimum pay increase requirement will still have the promotional
probation period. Pay movement will be based upon the normal movement of the
higher step. For example, an employee placed at the proficient step initially
will not move to 3rd Year Level Proficient Level until he or she has been at
that step for two years.
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If a County employee takes a new position in a class series other than their
current series the employee will be hired at the entry level step of the new
classification. (Example: Office Technician to Deputy Sheriff).
A voluntary demotion to a lower classification in the same class series by an
employee will move the employee to the proficient step of the lower class, or
the steps he/she held prior to promotion.
Performance Steps for Pay
Entry step:
New hires and normally promoted employees will begin at the Entry step for the
classification and will be paid 95% of the established job rate. After
completing the first 90 days of employment, the employee will be evaluated
against the established entry standards. Upon completion of 6 months of
employment, the employee will again be evaluated but the evaluation will be
against qualified performance standards. If the employee receives a
satisfactory appraisal, he/she will move to the qualified step and receive a
2'% pay increase.
Qualified step:
The qualified step is 97.5% of the job rate. The employee functions at the
qualified level and is rated against the standards for a proficient employee.
After six months at the qualified level and if the employee meets the
performance or training standards for the qualified level an evaluation will
be submitted raising the individual to the proficient step. The pay will be
100% of the job rate.
Proficient step:
The Proficient step is the job rate for the position. While at the proficient
level the employee will be measured against established proficient level
standards. Evaluations will be completed every six months.
3rd Year Proficient Level: To be eligible for movement to this step, the
employee must complete three years with the County in the same classification,
except if promoted or demoted, and have demonstrated a performance at the
proficient level or above for the last two year period. Movement to this step
is not automatic but a combination of performance and longevity in the
classification. Pay will be at 102 % of the established job rate. Department
heads, chief deputies of elected officials, the Undersheriff, hourly or part
time employees are not eligible for this pay increase.
Should the department head/elected official deny movement to the 3rd Year
proficient step based on the employee's performance, the employee will be
eligible for consideration of movement to that step every six months
thereafter based on performance.
5th Year Proficient Level: To be eligible for movement to this step, the
employee must complete five years with the County in the same classification,
except if promoted or demoted, and have demonstrated performance at the
proficient level or above for the last two year period. Movement to this step
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is not automatic, but a combination of performance and longevity in the
classification. Pay will be at 105% of the job rate. Department heads, chief
deputies of elected officials, the Undersheriff, hourly or part time employees
are not eligible for this pay increase.
Should the department head/elected official deny movement to the 5th Year
proficient step based on the employee's performance, the employee will be
eligible for consideration of movement to that step every six months
thereafter based on performance. If at any time during employment at Weld
County, the employee's performance drops below the proficient standards of the
classification/position the employee can be placed on probation for a minimum
of 90 days and maximum of 180 days, and reduced in pay to the next lower step
(2'% reduction). If improvement is made at the conclusion of the probation
the employee can be returned to the proficient level and pay step occupied
prior to the reduction.
Transition for Current Employees
Persons currently in the Weld County system will transition into the new
system according to the following:
Persons currently in the "A" step will move to the "A" "Entry" steps in
the new system.
Persons currently in the "B" step will move to the "B" or "Qualified"
step in the new system.
All persons in the "C" or above steps will move to the "C" or
"Proficient" step in the new system.
Persons who have completed three years with the County in the same
classification will move to the "D" 3rd Year Proficient Step and persons
currently at the "D" step will stay at the "D" step.
Persons who have completed five years with the County in the same
classification will move to the "E" 5th Year Proficient Step and persons
currently at the "E" step will stay at the "E" step.
Persons on steps above "E" will be grandfathered (See section on
grandfathering.)
Pay impact dates, i.e. six month, one year anniversary dates, 3rd and 5th year
proficient level dates will remain on schedule for evaluations. Pay changes
will take place on the appropriate hire or job class anniversary dates if the
employee has met all other criteria for advancement, including any
certification requirements established for the position as well as the
employee meeting all classification and position specific standards.
Evaluations: Purpose - Evaluations are management judgments about the
behavior and effectiveness of employees. Assignments, advancements, reward,
discipline, utilization, and motivation all depend ultimately on management
judgments of employee performance. The objectives of evaluations are:
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1. Clarification of what is expected - that is, to develop standards of
satisfactory performance, setting forth what quality and quantity of
work of a given type is acceptable and adequate for pursuing the
functions of the organization.
2. Fortifying and improving employee performance - by identifying
strong and weak points in individual achievement, recording these as
objectively as possible, and providing constructive counsel to each
worker.
3. Refinement and validation of personnel techniques - serving as a
check on qualification requirements, examinations, placement
techniques, training needs, or instances of maladjustment.
4. Establishment of an objective base for personnel actions - namely,
in selection for placement and promotion, in awarding salary
advancements within a given level, in making other awards, in
determining the order of retention at times of staff reduction, and
in otherwise recognizing superior or inferior service.
Evaluation Process: All County employees will be evaluated against
established standards every six months. Standards to be used are as follows:
Standards Time Frame
Entry After Completion of the first ninety days
in the class.
Qualified After completion of the first six months in
the class.
Proficient Every six months after successful
attainment of qualified step.
Highly Proficient Standards to be used to determine bonus
award.
Performance Evaluations Due
Performance evaluations are due on the following time schedules:
90 days (3 months) from date of hire: All new employees, whether hired at the
entry or qualified level will receive a 90 day evaluation. Promoted employees
and employees reclassified upward will also receive a 90 day evaluation.
No pay increases will result from satisfactory evaluations but the department
head/elected official should use this evaluation process to advise the
employee of his/her progress during the first ninety days. Adverse
evaluations at the 90 day period can result in termination of the employee or
extension of the probation period.
180 days (6 months) from date of hire: All employees will receive a six month
evaluation whether they enter County employment at the entry or qualified
level.
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Based on the evaluation of the employee against pre-determined standards, the
department head/elected official will indicate whether the employee will move
to the next pay step.
Every six months: After completion of the first six months of County
employment, employees will receive evaluations every six months.
Upon termination: An evaluation will be required on every voluntary or
non-voluntary termination. This provides a completed personnel file on each
employee's performance.
Special: Special evaluations can be done for praise or reprimand at the
department head/elected official's discretion. Special abbreviated
evaluations will be submitted for all bonus awards.
Counseling Form: The format that has been used in the past will still be
available for use at the department head/elected official's discretion.
Process for Updating Performance Standards: All classification and position
specific standards will remain constant during each six month interval
identified for bonus awards, i.e. , January 1-June 30 and July 1—December 31.
Only mechanical changes will be made to the forms, i.e. , spelling errors, etc.
Changes may be submitted and will be reviewed by Personnel along with the
appropriate supervisor. If the changes are accepted, they will be entered
into the standards in July and December of each year. The system will remain
constant during evaluation intervals to assure that all individuals within a
classification are rated against the same standards.
PAY-FOR-PERFORMANCE
Bonus awards are established to reward the top performers in the work force.
Bonuses are not to reward employees for average or marginal jobs performed.
The evaluation report for the bonus will utilize the highly proficient
standards. The evaluation form provides a block to indicate the dollar bonus
amount to be rewarded to the employee.
The Board of Commissioners, per the Home Rule Charter, has the ultimate
responsibility for establishing and maintaining a system of employment
policies, rules, job classification, and compensation plans.
Commissioner Coordinators for each department will review the department
nominations for the merit pay bonus to insure compliance with the Board's
policy intent of the pay for performance program.
The Board of County Commissioners, as a whole, will review merit pay bonuses
of employees in the elected officials departments to monitor compliance with
the Board's policy intent of the pay for performance program.
BONUS AWARDS ELEMENTS
Funding: Funds for bonus awards will be identified in department budgets.
The level allocated per department will be determined by the Board. Salaries
for elected officials, chief deputies, department heads, hourly personnel,
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volunteers, and those people not in the County system will not be part of the
base for calculating bonus amount in a given department or office. The Board
as the legislative appropriation body of the County reserves the right to
determine the specific budgetary amount granted each office or department for
pay for performance bonuses annually.
Eligibility: To be eligible for a bonus award, an employee must have been in
full time County employment for one year, not be on probationary status, and
have received an overall evaluation rating in the Exceeds category for
proficient standards.
Frequency: Bonus can be awarded once or twice a year at the department
head/elected official's discretion. Established award dates will be June 30
to be paid July 31 and December 31 to be paid January 31 annually.
Award Amount: The amount of each award is established by the department
head/elected official but will not be less than $50.00 per person nor more
than the amount allocated in the budget identified as the bonus amount.
Distribution: Awards each year to employees eligible for the
pay-for-performance program cannot exceed 50% of the total number of the
department's or office's eligible workforce. Awards to supervisors cannot
exceed 50% of the total number of supervisors eligible for the program in each
department or office.
Any department head or elected official wishing to exceed either or both of
the 50% figures annually must send written justification to the Board of
County Commissioners. The Board, if they concur, will waive the 50%
requirement on a one time annual basis by a formal Board resolution setting
forth the justification.
The 50% of workforce will be determined by listing the names of recipients of
the bonus in June and December against the total number of bonuses authorized.
An employee terminated between July and December, receiving a bonus in June
will be removed from the annual list of recipients for determination of the
50% figure. Department heads/elected officials may want to leave some of the
bonus slots unused in June in order to add high performers between July and
December to the bonus list in December.
PROCEDURAL STEPS FOR BONUS AWARD
1. Eligibility: To be eligible for consideration for a bonus award, the
employee
A. Must have been in County employment for one year.
B. Not be on probationary status, to include promotional probationary
status.
C. Must have been rated against proficient standards and placed in the
exceeds level on the overall appraisal category for the most recent
six months evaluation.
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2. Appraisal Process for Bonus Awards
A. During June or December of each year the Personnel Department will
supply each department/office with a list of those employees
eligible for bonuses and a shortened evaluation form with highly
proficient standards for each eligible employee.
B. Department heads/elected officials will complete an evaluation
against highly proficient standards on each employee eligible for a
bonus award.
3. Reporting process.
Base of the Evaluation. Department heads/elected officials will indicate
on a bonus award report supplied by the Personnel Department those
employees to receive an award and the dollar amount awarded to each of
those employees.
4. Review & Approval Process.
A. A copy of the report will be supplied to the Commissioner
Coordinator for the department; or the entire board for elected
officials offices for review and final approval before checks are
issued.
B. Should the Commissioner Coordinator or the Board of County
Commissioners have questions on the Bonus Awards, a meeting will be
scheduled with the parties involved to answer the questions or
resolve any problems.
C. Any department/office wishing to exceed the 50% of eligible
workforce or supervisor figure will submit justification to the
Board for consideration. The Board will approve or deny the request
by Board resolution.
5. Awarding of Bonuses
A. Once approval is received from the Commissioner's Office, Personnel
will process awards for payment on July 31st and January 31st pay
dates.
Bonus Awards for Small Departments: To assure equity in the award of bonuses
for small departments, the department head will meet with the Board of County
Commissioners during the budget process and justify the reason for an increase
or decrease in the allocated amount.
Rescinds Conflicting Policies and Procedures: This policy replaces and
rescinds Section 3.3.1 Merit Pay of the Weld County Personnel Manual upon
adoption by the Board of County Commissioners.
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mEmORnnDUdi
ILD To Board of County Commissinnern Date March 3, 1924
COLORADO From Don Warden
Subject: Pay-for-Performance Program
On March 3, 1982, the Board of County Commissioners approved a proposal for
the development of a Pay-for-Performance Plan tied to employee evaluations to
motivate and reward performance in Weld County employees. The management
advisory firm of Deloitte, Haskins, and Sells was selected to assist in the
design of the program. A key element during the initial stage of the
development was to receive input through an interview process of all elected
officials, department heads, and a sample of county employees. In addition,
significant and progressive employers in the area were surveyed to gain their
input and ideas for the development of a performance-oriented pay system.
The final study was submitted to the Board of County Commissioners on May 21,
1982. A presentation to all department heads and elected officials was made
on June 3, 1982. On September 22, 1982, the Board approved a resolution
adopting the Pay-for-Performance Plan, effective January 1, 1983. The
Pay-for-Performance Program was presented again in the 1983 Budget Message
(pages 26 - 30) , and 1983 salaries approved by the Board during the hearing
process were based upon the Pay-for-Performance Program. Presentations to all
county employees were made during the week of December 6 - 10, 1982 by the
Personnel Department.
Concerns were raised about the Pay-for-Performance Program on January 10, 1983
in an elected officials meeting with the Board of County Commissioners. As a
result of the expression of concerns and questions, a meeting was held on
January 26, 1983 with all elected officials and department heads. The Board
took all input under advisement at that point. On February 14, 1983 a
complete copy of the amended rules and procedures of the Pay-for-Performance
Program was sent to all elected officials and department heads for comments
back to the Board by February 28, 1983. Copies of the comments have been
provided to the Board.
The amended program attempts to address the concerns and questions raised, as
well as, maintain the intent and integrity of a performance based compensation
plan. Compromise on the methodology has been made by the Board, but no
compromise on the principles of Pay-for-Performance, in that the objectives and
concepts of Pay-for-Performance remain unchanged.
The attached final rules and policies are presented for the Board of County
Commissioners' consideration for approval and reiterization of the Board's
adopted policy of September 22, 1982, approving the Pay-for-Performance Plan
directed to be implemented January 1, 1983.
The final Pay-for-Performance Program continues to fulfill the Board's Charter
requirement of maintaining "a system of employment policies, rules, job
classification and compensation plan in accordance with generally accepted
personnel principles" (Section 4-2B), and "provide for the most efficient and
effective county government possible" (Preamble of Home Rule Charter).
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