Chapter 3.20
DEFINITION OF TERMS
Sections:
3.20.010 Definitions.
In order to provide a mutual understanding and agreement in terminology, the following terms are defined as follows:
“Allocate” means the assignment of a single position to its proper grade in accordance with the duties performed and the authority and responsibilities exercised.
“Anniversary date” means the anniversary of the hire date.
“Applicant” means any person who has made a written application for employment with the Hi-Desert Water District.
“Board of directors” means publicly elected officials of the district. Elections are held in November of even years.
“Candidate” means an applicant who has been included on a list to participate in any interviews and testing necessary for a position.
“Closed examination” means a competitive examination for a particular grade in which only those persons presently employed full-time by the district, who meet the minimum qualifications for the grade, may participate.
“Compensation” means the salary, wages, allowances, fringe benefits, and other forms of valuable compensation earned by or paid to any employee by reason of employment with the district.
“Demotion” means the movement of an employee from one grade to another grade having a lower maximum base rate of pay; or the movement of the pay of an employee from one rate to a lower rate within the established salary schedule for that employee’s classification.
“Department” means an organization unit with responsibility for carrying out a function or variety of functions under the supervision of a manager.
“Disciplinary action” means the dismissal, demotion, reduction in pay, suspension, or letter of reprimand of an employee, for punitive reasons only.
“Dismissal” means the termination of an employee from district service by his/her manager under the authority of the general manager.
“District” means the Hi-Desert Water District.
“District medical insurance plan” and “district medical program” both mean the medical benefits plan that the district currently offers.
“Eligibility list” means a list of candidates competing for a position.
“Eligible” means a candidate whose name is on an eligibility list.
“Evaluation” means an evaluation conducted by the supervisor of an employee’s job performance within the assigned position and classification.
“Evaluation date” means the annual date when an employee is provided with a performance evaluation. This due date is July 1st of each year, and also within two weeks after completion of six months at a new position.
“Exempt employee” means position classifications not entitled to overtime. The positions are delineated in the board-approved salary grade classification chart.
“General manager” means the chief executive officer of the Hi-Desert Water District.
“Grade” means all positions sufficiently similar in duties, authority and responsibility to permit grouping under a common title in the application of equity of common standards for selection, transfer, demotion, and salary.
“Grievance” means a dispute over the interpretation or application of the district’s rules and regulations.
“Hire date” means the date an employee is last hired.
“Layoff” means the separation of one or more employees from the active workforce due to lack of funds, organizational change, or lack of work.
Management Rights. These rights include, but are not limited to: determining the mission of departments; setting standards of service; determining the procedures and standards of selection for employment; directing employees; taking disciplinary action; relieving employees from duty due to lack of work or for other lawful reasons; maintaining the efficiency of district operations; determining the methods, means and personnel by which district operations are to be conducted; taking all necessary actions to carry out its mission in emergencies; and exercising complete control and discretion over its operations; all subject to board policy and general supervision of the general manager.
“Managers” means director of operations, chief financial officer, district engineer, human resources manager, and public information officer.
“Merit pay increase” means a salary increase awarded based on performance.
“Nonexempt employee” means position classification entitled to overtime compensation. These positions are all positions not delineated as “exempt employee” in the board-approved salary grade classification chart.
“Overtime” means time worked in excess of the normally scheduled workday and/or 40 hours worked per workweek by a nonexempt employee.
“Overtime compensation” means payment for overtime earned in the current pay period. Said payment shall be for all hours in excess of the normally scheduled workday and/or 40 hours worked per workweek at a rate of one and one-half times the employee’s regular hourly wage. Exempt employees are not entitled to overtime compensation.
“Paid Time Off” (“PTO”) is earned time that includes both sick leave and vacation. Administrative leave, floating holiday, jury duty, and other types of leave are not included in PTO.
“Part-time employee” means an at-will employee who fills an authorized district position and who is regularly scheduled to work fewer than 999 hours per fiscal year. A part-time employee is not eligible for benefits offered by the district, unless legally required.
“Position” means a group of duties and responsibilities requiring the full-time employment of one person.
“Promotion” means the movement of an employee from one grade to another grade having a higher range and base rate of pay.
“Reclassification” means a change in allocation for a position from an existing grade to another existing grade, or to a new grade.
“Regular full-time employee” means a regular employee who fills an authorized district position and works a regularly scheduled 40-hour week.
“Reinstatement” means the reemployment of a former employee within one year following his/her resignation from the district if that person resigned in good standing. Such action must have approval of the general manager.
“Resignation” means the termination of employment made at the employee’s request.
“Supervisor” means an individual in charge of one or more departments that is responsible for directing employees’ activities within those departments.
“Suspension” means the temporary separation of an employee from district service with or without pay for disciplinary purposes or pending investigation of charges.
“Temporary employee” means an employee who is hired as an interim replacement to temporarily supplement the workforce or to assist in the completion of a specific project. Employment assignments in this category are of a limited duration and are at-will. Employment beyond any initially stated period does not in any way imply a change in at-will employment status. Temporary employees retain that status unless and until notification in writing of a change. Temporary employees are not eligible for any of Hi-Desert Water District’s benefit programs, except as required by law.
“Transfer” means the change of an employee from one position to another position in the same grade and salary range, involving the performance of similar duties and requiring the same basic qualifications.
“Workweek” means the period commencing at 12:00 a.m. on Saturday and ending at 11:59 p.m. on the following Friday. A basic workweek consists of four workdays of 10 hours each from Monday through Thursday, with Fridays off. [Res. 21-18; Res. 12-24 Att. A; amended by district 5/2012; Res. 11-21; Res. 10-13 Art. 3].