PURPOSE
To provide policy and direction regarding the hiring, selection of internships and volunteer opportunities, oversight, and supervision of relatives and/or family members. This policy shall also serve as an update to (and a further, succinct clarification of) Personnel Rule 1.10.
SCOPE OF APPLICATION
This policy applies to all City of Manteca officers, elected officials, appointed officials, employees, interns, and volunteers, paid or unpaid.
DEFINITIONS
“Immediate Family Member” includes the following:
By Blood, Marriage, Domestic Partnership, or Law:
• Spouse
• Domestic Partner
• Parent
• Child
• Grandparent
• Grandchild
• Brother
• Sister
• Niece
• Nephew
• Adoptive parent/child relationship
• Uncle
• Aunt
• Great-grandchild
• Great-grandparent
• Father-in-law
• Mother-in-law
• Brother-in-law
• Sister-in-law
• Daughter-in-law
• Son-in-law
• First Cousin
• Guardianship relationship
“In a relationship with” means two (2) or more individuals who are dating, engaged, and/or otherwise involved intimately or romantically in such a manner that there is and/or may be an actual and/or perceived conflict that could influence the decisions and/or actions of an employee(s). “Supervisor” includes: an employee with any of the following responsibilities:
• Responsible for, or effectively contributes to, an employee’s performance, appraisal or evaluation; • Can issue discipline (oral and documented oral counseling); • Recommends a higher level discipline;
• Responds to grievances;
• Oversees, controls, and/or can make recommendations regarding an employee’s scope of work and/or job duties; • Ultimately approves an employee’s performance evaluation and/or merit increases; and/or • Accountable for an employee’s time (e.g., schedule and/or timesheet approval) POLICY
1. No employee, elected official, appointed official, and/or officer shall appoint, employ, influence, and/or participate in a hiring decision involving any person who is an immediate family member or someone they are in a relationship with, nor use their position to influence another City employee(s) to hire an immediate family member or someone they are in a relationship with.
2. Unpaid Volunteer/Internship Opportunities and Supervision. No employee may participate (directly or indirectly) in the selection of an immediate family member or someone they are in a relationship with for internship and/or volunteer opportunities. In addition, an employee shall not supervise an immediate family member or someone they are in a relationship with during an internship or volunteer opportunity. For purposes of internships and/or volunteer opportunities only (i.e., this section), the supervisor-subordinate relationship shall be interpreted to include one (1) level of supervision within the chain of command. The department may request an exception to this section concerning volunteer and/or internship supervision by providing a request in writing to the City Manager and Human Resources Director at least two (2) weeks prior to the start of the supervisory relationship. The denial of a request by the City Manager and Human Resources Director under this exception shall not be grounds for a grievance. If the City Manager and Human Resources Director grant an exception as set out herein, and an incident arises that requires or could require potential discipline, an investigation, and/or counseling, the conflicted employee shall not be a part of the process and/or allowed to recommend and/or issue a final decision regarding the incident.
3. City employees shall not supervise an immediate family member or someone they are in a relationship with.
4. City employees shall not be employed in a supervisory-subordinate relationship with immediate family members or someone they are in a relationship with, even if it results from a marriage/domestic partnership or relationship, after the employment relation was formed. The supervisor-subordinate relationship shall be interpreted to include two (2) levels of supervisors within the chain of command, not just the immediate supervisor.
If employees whose status changes do work in a supervisory relationship with one another (as set out above), the City will attempt to reassign one of the employees to another position for which they are qualified, if such a position is available. If any such transfer results in moving to a classification with a lower salary, the employee’s current salary will be maintained as described in Section 3.03. If no such position is available, the employee may compete for another open position. If the employee cannot transfer or get another open position, one of the employees will be required to leave City employment. If the employees cannot decide who shall leave City employment, the decision as to which employee will leave will be left solely to the City Manager’s discretion; such a decision by the City Manager shall not constitute discipline and shall not be subject to any administrative appeal, unless the decision was made in violation of a protected class. If an opening for another position becomes available within one (1) year after an employee leaves employment with the City as set out under this section, the employee shall be able to apply as if they are an internal candidate. Otherwise, all other City personnel rules and/or regulations shall apply.
5. All employees shall refrain from intervening in any employment, human resource, and/or disciplinary matter involving an immediate family member or someone they are in a relationship with, and shall also refrain from involvement in any employment, human resource, and/or disciplinary matter which may be viewed as a conflict of interest under this policy. This includes the interviewing and selection of immediate family members or someone they are in a relationship with for internships and volunteer opportunities.
6. If an employment, human resource, and/or disciplinary matter is discovered, found, and/or is determined to have violated this policy, the City Manager and Department Director shall take appropriate action after consultation with the Human Resources Director, consistent with City rules and procedures.
7. If a supervisor believes that they do, may, and/or potentially may have a conflict as set out under this policy, they shall report this conflict within a reasonable time frame (but no more than four (4) business days after becoming aware of the conflict) to their immediate supervisor, their Department Director, and the Human Resources Director. If the Department Director or the Human Resources Director believe the employee has a conflict (or potential conflict) under this policy, they shall report the purported conflict to the City Manager. If the purported conflict involves a Department Director, the supervisor shall report the conflict to the Human Resources Director and to the City Manager. If the purported conflict involves the Human Resources Director, it shall be reported directly to the City Manager. If the purported conflict involves the City Manager, it shall be directly reported to the City Attorney’s Office and Human Resources Director.
8. Employees who violate this policy may be subject to disciplinary action up to and including dismissal. To be clear, having such a relationship (as set out herein) alone (and in and of itself), may not constitute a violation of this policy; however, failure to disclose such a relationship (as required herein) could result in a violation of this policy.
9. Nothing herein shall limit any existing citywide conflict of interest policies, personnel rules, and/or any applicable local, state, and/or federal laws related to conflict of interest.
10. To the extent a unique, exigent circumstance and/or a declared emergency arises, and a department is unable to arrange a supervisor to cover a conflicted individual following a good faith effort by the department to do so, and the department is left with no other option, such a single instance shall not be a violation of this policy; provided, however, after such an incident the supervisor must inform the department head, the Director of Human Resources, and the City Manager of the incident within twenty-four (24) hours of the incident, in writing. The City Manager and/or Director of Human Resources may require additional documentation about the incident from the department.
11. If a department seeks to get an exception to this policy based on a temporary assignment and/or other temporary personnel change, it may make such a request to the City Manager for consideration. The denial of a request by the City Manager under this exception shall not be grounds for a grievance.
12. If a department seeks to get an exception to this policy under any section that permits an exception, the department must include in its written request how it anticipates dealing with an incident that requires or could require potential discipline, an investigation, and/or counseling, and what steps it will attempt to take in order to limit those types of situations for a supervisor.
13. This policy shall become effective immediately after approval by the City Council. This policy shall not apply retroactively.
Definitions apply only for purposes of this policy.
Nothing herein shall override any state and/or federal laws, including the Peace Officers’ Bill of Rights and/or the Firefighters’ Bill of Rights.