MINUTES
PERSONNEL COMMITTEE
MARCH 8, 2006
3:00 P.M.
SCOTT HEYMAN CONFERENCE ROOM
Present: J. Dennis, Chair; F. Proto; D. Kiefer; P. Mackesey (arrived at 3:07 p.m.); L. McBean-Clairborne arrived at 3:39 p.m.)
Staff: D. Squires, Finance Director; P. Meskill, Sheriff; C. Covert, Legislature Clerk; A. Fitzpatrick, Personnel Commissioner; B. Kominos, Benefits Manager; Shawn Martel-Moore, Human Rights Director; A. Valenti, County Clerk
Called to Order
The meeting was called to order at 3:00 p.m.
Changes to Agenda
There were no changes to the agenda.
Report from the Committee Chair
Mr. Dennis updated the Committee on the status of contract negotiations. In April, negotiations with the Corrections unit will begin and Paul Mayo, a negotiator, was hired to assist the County in these negotiations.
The arbitration hearing for the road patrol unit was held. That process is continuing and a report will be given in six to nine months.
Mr. Dennis said he received information today from the Budget and Capital Committee Chair, Mr. Koplinka-Loehr, about making departments whole as a result of labor negotiations. This information will be presented to appropriate committee(s) and to the full Legislature for approval.
Ms. Kiefer spoke about a Human Services Coalition presentation she attended this morning. The presentation was about the survey the Coalition will be doing with the contract review agencies concerning salaries, health benefits, etc. She hopes this Committee will have an opportunity to review and discuss the survey results. Also, it was reported that according to the Department of Labor, low-wage positions where turnover is high actually cost 25 percent more due to the training, replacement, and efficiency costs.
Ms. Mackesey arrived at this time.
Follow-up on Health Insurance Presentation of
February 8, 2006
Health Insurance Census
Mr. Squires briefly reported on an article in the Wall Street Journal concerning an announcement by Fidelity Investments that they are recommending that if an individual does not have the benefit of a health insurance plan for retirement that $200,000 should be set aside for health purposes in addition to any retirement savings.
Ms. Kominos distributed copies of information concerning the total numbers of employees (subscribers) with health insurance plans from Tompkins County, Tompkins Cortland Community College, and Public Library. The numbers do not include the dependents on the policy.
Mr. Proto requested information on the number of active employees not enrolled or not eligible for health insurance plans. Ms. Fitzpatrick agreed to provide this information at the next meeting.
Ms. Mackesey asked if the number of retires with health insurance plans could be provided. Ms. Fitzpatrick said there are approximately 200 retirees enrolled, but she agreed to make that information available at the next meeting as well.
Rebate Calculation
Mr. Squires distributed a copy of the dollar amounts each group received from the 2004 rebate. At this time, he explained the procedures of how the money is distributed and said it is a complex process. The premium is established by Blue Cross Blue Shield and if the County does not expend all of the premium dollars, the County receives a refund. The intent is to distribute the refund based upon employer employee share. Over the last ten years there have been three such rebates: $1 million, $500,000, and $280,000 last year. Different bargaining units have different premium structures. TC3 and Tompkins County Public Library pay the entire premium to Tompkins County for their employees. Mr. Proto noted that rebates only apply to traditional plans, not PPOs or HMOs.
Ms. Mackesey said it is in the best interest of the County to have a healthy workforce and would like to see how the rebate money could be used for that purpose such as a wellness clinic or a dental clinic. Mr. Squires said bargaining units are interested in receiving their share.
Mr. Proto noted that the County will reimburse employees for health club memberships. Mr. Squires said he received notification today from the IRS stating that the reimbursable amount is a taxable fringe benefit unless it is prescribed by a doctor as therapy.
Mr. Proto asked if the County should be doing some forecasting with retirees in the County. Mr. Squires said an analysis will be done later this year on the County’s obligation of the benefits for retirees. He believes that in seven years there will be a turnover of two-thirds of the workforce due to retirement.
Mr. Squires spoke about the County’s VEBA (Voluntary Employee Benefit Association) plan and said the County is depositing annual payments into an account to pay for unreimbursed medical expenses. The employee has a pre-tax option to fund unreimbursed medical expenses.
Salaries of Elected Officials – County Clerk and Sheriff
Mr. Dennis distributed copies of resolutions adopted in previous years establishing the salaries for both the County Clerk and Sheriff. Ms. Fitzpatrick also distributed a copy of the management salary schedule for 2006.
Mr. Dennis began by stating that it would be helpful to see what the other ten counties surrounding Tompkins County are paying for these two positions. He also stated that the Chair of the Legislature has requested that this Committee make the recommendation for salaries to the full Legislature.
Mrs. McBean-Clairborne arrived at this time.
Ms. Valenti said regardless of what other Clerks make in other counties, the demand on Tompkins County is greater than any county comparable in size. She feels the duties of her positions and the number of employees she supervises should be considered when establishing the salary level of her position. She believes her position should be included with the management group when salaries are being set.
Ms. Kiefer asked if a job description could be prepared and a rating of the position done like other department heads and employees are handled. Ms. Fitzpatrick said she did that approximately four years ago and recalls the salaries being significantly higher. She reminded the Committee of the factor rating system and that it was adopted 15 years ago. She also noted that there are positions in both these departments that could have employees being paid more than these two positions because of the rating system. Ms. Fitzpatrick said these two positions also do not receive any of the benefits packages such as accruing vacation; although of course they are in the New York State Retirement System. The three positions in the County that are paid by salary include the District Attorney (salary set by the State), County Clerk, and Sheriff.
Ms.
Mackesey feels the subject of salaries for the two positions needs to be looked
at and the Committee agreed.
Mr.
Meskill feels the salary should be at the same level or higher than other
department heads because of the benefits not collected by the Sheriff or County
Clerk. He also does not feel
surveying other counties will provide reasonable comparisons. However, if a comparison of other
counties is done, he recommended using the same list as the County
Administrator uses. At the request
of the Committee Ms. Fitzpatrick said she would do a survey, but also suggested
the Committee consider setting criteria.
Mr.
Proto believes comparing counties is not useful as they are not comparable to
Tompkins County, i.e., three colleges, number of miles, etc. Ms. Valenti said Broome County is the
most comparable County to Tompkins County as far as the County Clerk’s position.
As
the benefits area is unlikely to change for these two positions, Ms. Kiefer
said she is interested in focusing on the salary.
A
brief discussion followed concerning direction and the Committee agreed with
Mrs. McBean-Clairborne’s recommendation to review the rating review done four
years ago by Ms. Fitzpatrick and surveying the other counties as she feels that
question will be raised during future discussions. Mrs. McBean-Clairborne said she, too, is interested in
focusing on the salaries.
Ms.
Fitzpatrick provided background information on the use of the emergency pool
and spoke of some of the issues with it. It was created in the 1980s, when the
lack of a safety net for employees who experience a catastrophic event led to
informal, ad hoc donations of hours.
Now there is a good disability plan in place, with six months off at
full pay if you have five years of service, and use of the Emergency Pool now
comes into play after six months.
Mr. Squires noted Blue Collar employees do not get full disability,
although others do. Most people who donate time are those who have maximized
their benefits and often are management employees. A majority of the users of this pool are white-collar
employees. If an employee donates
15 hours of time and has a salary of $80,000, the hourly rate is converted into
a dollar value. The problem with
the system is that on paper it accounts for the hours, but the dollar amounts
are not reflected in the impacted department’s budget. Because of the anomalies in the system,
the emergency pool was suspended a few months ago until a recommendation by
this committee could be made. Ms.
Fitzpatrick recommends abolishing this and, for Blue Collar, negotiating a
safety net and have a Memorandum of Understanding.
Mr.
Squires spoke about the policy and the problems that exist. The last time this pool was used was
approximately two years ago.
Mrs.
McBean-Clairborne feels that only the contributors to the pool should be able
to use it and until some of the concerns can be resolved, she agreed with
continuing with the suspension.
Discussion followed and Committee members expressed interest in
continuing with the policy but with parameters. The Committee agreed to revisit this policy at the next
meeting.
Ms.
Martel Moore distributed copies of the draft Diversity Policy and a memorandum
with comments submitted by some County employees. She requested Committee members review the policy and
forward any comments to the Workforce Diversity and Inclusion Committee
(WDIC). The Diversity policy
subcommittee will be discussing this and making a recommendation to the WDIC at
their meeting on March 22. Ms.
Martel Moore said she will be sending this policy back to Department Heads as
well for their feedback.
Ms.
Martel Moore also provided an update on the progress of the subcommittee of
WDIC that is meeting and working on the Shell plan for the County and commented
that an intern was recently hired and will be assisting the subcommittee.
Ms.
Kiefer raised a question concerning the format of the draft Diversity policy
and asked if procedures were going to be included. Discussion followed and Mrs. McBean-Clairborne said that
some of the same questions were raised at the last WDIC meeting and the
subcommittee was directed to look at the policy again and come back with a
recommendation. Following a
brief discussion about the County’s initiative and adoption of the Diversity
Statement, Mr. Proto requested Committee members receive a copy of the two
resolutions adopted by the Legislature last year.
Ms. Martel Moore reviewed the timetable and said the hope is to have this policy approved in April by all appropriate committees and the Legislature in May.
Budget Adjustment – Personnel Department
It was MOVED by Mr. Proto, seconded by Mrs. McBean-Clairborne, and unanimously adopted by voice vote, to approve and submit the following budget adjustment to the full Legislature for approval:
From: 1460.51000519 Senior Typist $1,500
To: 1460.54400 Program Expense $1,500
Explanation: Due to hiring new employee at a lower labor grade there will be an estimated $1,500 surplus. We are out of shelf space and need to purchase more shelves for records storage.
Performance Reviews
Training Schedule
Ms. Fitzpatrick distributed copies of training classes being offered in the Spring for Department Heads and Supervisors. She commented on the limited training funds in her budget, but said these trainings are a starting point and hopes to build on them. Bob Blenn from TC3 will be the instructor for these trainings. Mrs. McBean-Clairborne hoped that these trainings or trainings scheduled at later dates will be mandatory. Ms. Fitzpatrick said she would also appreciate any feedback on these training topics or other suggestions Committee members may have.
Committee Goals
Mr. Dennis spoke about the proposed goals and recognized the suggestions by Ms. Kiefer.
Ms. Kiefer recommended that a special meeting be held for committee members to have a presentation and learn how the factor rating system is used in case an appeal is filed for a reclassification.
Mr. Dennis asked Committee members to review the goals and get back to him.
Approval of Minutes
It was MOVED by Ms. Mackesey, seconded by Ms. Kiefer, and unanimously adopted by voice vote, to approve the minutes of the February 8th meeting as corrected. MINUTES APPROVED.
Adjournment
The meeting adjourned at 5:03 p.m.
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