Personnel Policy

Personnel Policy

I. Employment

A. Authority

  1.  The Board of Trustees in partnership with administrative staff has the responsibility for formulating personnel policy.  The Library Director is responsible for developing procedures in order to implement the policy.
  2.  The information contained in this personnel policy applies to all employees of the Library.  It is presented as a matter of information and should not be interpreted as a contract between the Library and any employee.
  3. Employees of the Library are “employees at will.”  Either the Library or the employee may terminate the employment relationship at any time either with or without cause, and also with or without advance notice.  Professional courtesy would expect the Library Director to give 30 days notice and other staff members give two weeks notice before leaving the their positions.

B. The Library maintains a policy of nondiscrimination with employees and applicants for employment.  No aspect of employment with the library will be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, age, national origin, disability, or any other basis prohibited by applicable law.  Reasonable accommodation will be made for disabled employees.

C. The Library maintains a policy of non-harassment.  The Library will not tolerate any form of harassment based upon race, color, religion, gender, age, national origin, disability.  The Library will not tolerate sexual harassment in any form.  Any employee who violates this policy will be subject to disciplinary action and possible dismissal with cause.

D. The Library is designated as a no-smoking institution in accordance with K.S.A. 1-4009.

E. The use possession, sale, transfer, or purchase, or being under the influence of illegal drugs or illegal intoxicants or controlled substances or any alcoholic beverage by employees at any time on library premises, in vehicles on the library’s business or while on library business is prohibited.  Violation of this policy will result in disciplinary action that will include termination.

F. Library employees must promptly report any injury that occurs on the job as required by Worker’s Compensation regulations.

G. The Library intends to hire only U.S. Citizens or those who have valid permits to work in the U.S.

H. The Library intends to comply with the Child Labor Laws if employing minors between 14 and 16 years of age.

I. The Library intends to utilize volunteers in service to the Library.  Volunteers are defined as persons who volunteer time, energy and talents on behalf of the library and are not paid by library funds.

J. Any two or more immediate family members will not be employed by the Library concurrently unless approved by the Trustees.  Immediate family members of a Trustee will not be hired or appointed without the approval of the remaining board members.

II. Employees

A. Classification of Employees

  1.  Library Director:  A salaried position regularly scheduled on an annual basis for 35-40 hours in a standard workweek of seven days.
  2. Regular part-time employee:  a position regularly scheduled on an annual basis for less than 40 but not less than 15 hours in a standard workweek of seven days.
  3. Part-time employee:  a position in which the employee works less than 15 hours in a standard workweek of seven days.

B.  Full-time and regular part-time employees are eligible for vacation and sick leave.  Part-time employees are not eligible for these benefits.

C. The Library complies with the right to privacy provisions and Kansas open record statutes, which specify that only hire date, term of employment, position and verification of salary with range can be disclosed.  All requests for information about current or former employees should be referred to the Library Director.

D. The image of the Library is conveyed through the attitudes, appearance, personal conduct and working relationships of the staff.  As a service organization, employees of the Library are expected to be courteous, cooperative and communicative when assisting the library users or working with other employees.   It is the responsibility of each individual to make every effort through open and positive communication to solve problems that should arise.  The Library Director is available to assist in finding solutions to problems if necessary.

E. The Library Director has the authority to discipline or dismiss employees for violation of personnel policies.  Use of alcohol or illegal drugs while at work, willful damage of property, continuous poor relations with peers or the public are examples of dismissal with cause.

F. An absence of an employee without authorization and prior notice shall be cause for disciplinary action or dismissal.

G. The Library Director has the responsibility of conducting annual job performance reviews with each employee.  The Board of Trustees have the responsibility of conducting an annual job performance review for the Library Director

H. Grievance Process

  1. Employees may file a written complaint to the Board of Trustees within (5) working days if any complaint is not resolved through ordinary dialog.
  2. A grievance committee of three comprised of the director [unless he/she is filing the complaint], a Trustee and a fellow employee, volunteer or other Trustee selected by the filing party shall meet to consider the situation.  The committee will prepare a written report to the Board of Trustees.  The Board will make the final decision and a written report including the decision will be placed in the personnel file of all involved in the grievance.
  3. The existence of this process does not indicate there is any contractual right to this process

III. Compensation

A.  Compensation for employees will be determined by the existing rate of pay for that position.  Salaries and wages are determined on a year-to-year basis; however, this does not imply that employees have annual contracts of employment.

B. New hires are considered permanent employees after completing a two month probation period followed by a successful job performance review.

C. Employees are required to keep accurate time records noting hours worked, vacation and sick leave taken.  Employees are required to turn in their signed time record  on the last working day of the pay period.  Paychecks are issued within the first five days of month following the pay period.

D. Deductions will be made and financial records kept for all mandatory Federal and State payroll taxes.

E. Vacation Leave

  1.  Full-time and regular part-time employees:  1 week vacation after first year of employment; 2 weeks after two years of employment; 3 weeks after eight years of employment. 
  2. Actual vacation time will correspond to the hours normally worked during the regular work week.
  3. Vacation will be calculated from the anniversary date for the first year; vacation time will be figured on a calendar basis for following years.
  4. Request for vacation time must be filed with Library Director in advance to facilitate scheduling. 
  5. Vacation time must be used within the calendar year and does not accumulate.
  6. Paid holidays falling in a vacation period will not be counted as vacation.
  7. An employee shall not be compensated for unused vacation pay upon leaving employment of the Library

F. Sick Leave

  1.  Full-time and regular part-time employees are entitled to sick leave pay at the rate of one day per month, pro-rated according to their typical hours per workday – 4, 6, or 8 hours.
  2. Sick leave with pay may be used for absences resulting from illness, injuries, accidents or other incapacities occurring either on or off the job. 
  3. Sick leave may be used for doctor visits.
  4. An employee may accrue no more than 20/30/40 hours sick leave based on their typical hours per workday.
  5. An employee shall not be compensated for unused sick leave pay upon leaving employment of the Library.
  6. An employee who improperly claims sick leave shall be subject to disciplinary action, including loss of pay or dismissal.

G.  Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 [FMLA]

  1. Full-time and regular part-time employees are entitled up to a total of twelve weeks per twelve months of unpaid, job-protected leave for one or more of the following reasons:
    • Birth of a child
    • Placement of a child for adoption
    • Caring for a spouse, child or parent with a serious health condition
    • A serious health condition of the employee
  2. Any requests for FMLA time should be made to the Library Director with 30 days’ notice if possible.

H. Bereavement Leave

  1.  Employees suffering a death in the family will be granted up to five (5) days leave with pay.
  2. Family is defined as spouse, child or other relative residing in the employee’s household, parents and parents of spouse, grandparents, grandchildren, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, spouses of brothers and sisters of employee and spouse

I. Holidays

  1. The Holiday schedule shall be set by the Trustees at the December meeting for the following year.
  2. When a holiday falls on Saturday or Sunday, the Friday before or the following Monday may be designated as the work holiday.
  3. The Library Board may designate other days as special holidays on a one-time basis.
  4. Possible holidays are:

New Year’s Day – January 1

Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday – Third Monday in January

Presidents Day – Third Monday in February

Memorial Day – Last Monday in May

Independence Day – July 4

Labor Day – First Monday in September

Veteran’s Day – November 11

Thanksgiving Day – Fourth Thursday in November

Friday after Thanksgiving

Christmas Eve Day – December 24

Christmas Day – December 25

New Year’s Eve Day – December 31

[Bold indicates set Holidays; others are at the discretion of the Board on an annual basis]

J. Civil Leave

  1. An employee will be given necessary time off with pay for jury duty.  The employee will assign the juror’s fee to the library.
  2. An employee will be given necessary time off with pay for court appearances as a witness in answer to a subpoena or as an expert witness when acting in an official capacity in connection with the library.
  3. A military leave of absence will be granted when an employee serves in the uniformed services of the United States of the State Kansas in accordance with the federal and state military leave laws.

K. Continuing Education

  1.  The Board of Trustees encourages library staff to participate in CE activities within the limits of the annual budget.
  2. Participation in CE events must have advance approval by the Library Director.
  3. Library staff will be paid regular salary/wages while participating in CE activity.
  4. Library staff will be reimbursed for CE expenses as outlined: Registration, mileage, meals, overnight accomodation
  5. When Trustees, Friends or volunteers are requested to participate in CE activity, they shall be reimbursed at the same rate as library staff.

L. Overtime/Compensatory Time

  1. In lieu of paying an eligible employee at the time-and-a-half rate for overtime worked, the employee will be granted compensatory time off at the rate of one and a half hours off for each hour of overtime worked.
  2. The maximum amount of accumulated compensatory time allowed is 24 hours.  The time must be noted on the time sheet when earned and when used.
  3. The Library Director is responsible for scheduling compensatory time.

M. Inclement Weather

  1. The Library Director has the discretion of determining when to close the library in the event of severe weather conditions.
  2. Staff will be paid for their scheduled hours that the library closed due to severe weather conditions.