Agenda - 09-13-2005-3 - Laserfiche WebLink

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PrHcchmen4- 3c Q Long Term Temporary Employees During the June budget work sessions, the Board of Commissioners asked that staff provide a report on Orange County's use of long -term temporary employees. The Board defined "long term" as employees who had served for one year or longer. This report provides the requested information. To compile the report, Personnel provided a list of temporary employees appointed over one year to the operating department for the department's review and updating. Also with that list Personnel estimated the actual work hours for each such temporary over the past two to three months and included this in the report for the department's review. Orange County Policy The County provides for two types of employment — Temporary and Permanent. A temporary employee is paid on an hourly basis and does not receive employee benefits. The temporary employee must be paid at least the County's living wage of $9.34 an hour except for high school students or certain others working for educational purposes. Under the County's policy, an employee can be appointed temporary up to one year. A temporary appointment may extend beyond one year if the employee is regularly scheduled to work 15 hours or less each workweek or if the Manager approves an extension with additional hours to continue critical services. Attachment 1 is the Personnel Ordinance section covering temporary employment. The County's reason for providing that temporary appointment could continue beyond one year on the basis of 15 hours or less per week is that a permanent employee must be appointed for at least 20 hours per week — so such hours do not meet the prerequisite for permanent employment. The 20 -hour per week requirement also arises from the North Carolina Local Government Retirement System definition of what constitutes permanent employment. All of the County's benefits contracts (as is the norm for employee benefits) provide that the employee must be permanent part time 20 hours or more. Such 15 -hour a week employment provides for secondary, substitute, and relief employment. Temporary Employees Appointed Over One Year Attachment 2 provides the requested information on temporary employees working over one year. In total there were 136 temporary employees appointed over one year as of July 1, 2005. Based on payroll records, 93 of the 136 employees average 15 hours or less per workweek and 43 average more than 15 hours, although 10 of the 43 were relatively close to the 15 hour amount by working 16 or 17 hours per week. Of the 136 employees, 16 are retirees from Orange County who do receive the health insurance benefit the County provides for its retirees.