Loading...
Employee Suggestion Program (GA-41 Rev. 3)CITY OF DELRAY BEACH ADMINISTRATIVE POLICIES AND PROCEDURES DEPARTMENT:H u m an R e sources POLICY NUMBER:GA-41 SUBJECT:Em ploye e Sugge stion Pro gram SUPERSEDES:R ev.2 REVISION: APPROVED BY: 3 EFFECTIVE DATE: errence R.M oore,IC M A -C M ,City M anager PURPOSE T he purpose of the Em ployee Suggestion P ro gram is to rew ard City em ployees for their positive eff ort s to reduce C ity expenditures,to increase pro ductivity and efficiency and to im prove de pa rt m e ntal serv ice and operatio n. The objectives of the pro gram are: •To develop a clim ate in City govern m ent that encourages em ployees to subm it ideas for cost reduction,im provem ents in effi ciency,effectiveness,and serv ice to the public. •T o provide an orderly system to review ,evaluate and rew ard good suggestions DEFINITION For the purposes of this pro gram ,a suggestion is a w ritt en pro posal intended to benefit the C ity of D e lray Beach by prese nting an ide a fo r cost cutt ing or eff ective im pro vem ents in any City serv ice or functio n.T he suggestion sho uld explain how the change w ould be accom plished and w hat be nefits w ould result to the C ity part icularly in term s of reduction of costs,increased effi ciency or im p roved serv ice. 1.S ugge stions should be pra ctical,useful,and constructive 2.S o m e exam ples w ould be: •new w ays of reducing costs,elim inating delay,im proving serv ice and effectiveness •im pro vem e nt in procedures,fo rm s or m ethods •im pro vem e nt in safety by elim inating accidents or hazards •elim ination or com binatio n of operations •im pro ved public relations POLICY Eligibility A.T o be eligible fo r conside ration,suggested ideas m ust directly contribute to cost savings Employee Suggestion Program GA 41 Rev.3 Page 2 of 4 or directly im pro ve the perf orm ance of any function of C ity govern m ent.Ideas related to serv ices or benefits to em ployees,or term s of em ploym ent should be handled thro ugh norm al adm inistrative channels instead of through the Suggestion Pro gram . B .S uggestions that require C ity C om m ission action fo r im plem entation are acceptable. Favorable action by the C om m ission,w here necessary ,shall qualify such suggestions fo r an aw ard. C .If a suggestion is not ado pted for reasons other than ineligibility it shall be considered active for one (1)year fro m the date the suggester is notified of the reasons for not adopting it.Should the conditions under w hich it w as originally considered change,the suggester m ay request reconsideration and resubm itthe suggestion w ithin that year. Ineligibili ty D .S uggestions w hich are not eligible fo r aw ard consideration include the fo llow ing: •those w hich call att ention to a problem but off er no pra ctical solution.Sim ilarly those w hich fail to present a positive constructive idea or w ay to m ake the im pro vem ent. •those w hich pertain to salaries,job assignm ents,position classifications,tim e and leave regulations or other term s of em ploym ent or item s subject to the collective bargaining process. •those w hich suggest benefits to em ployees such as vending m achines,lounge serv ices,restro om and parking facilities,hours of w ork,leave tim e and salaries. •those w hich suggest the perf orm ance of routine repair m aintenance or safety functio ns those w hich present an idea w hich is already under consideration by persons responsible fo r the operation affected •those w hich correct a condition that exists only because established pro cedure is not being fo llow ed personal grievances or co m plaints those w hich w ould im pose new or additional taxes or fees fo r revenue purposes PROCEDURE Adm inistration A.A ll em ployees are encouraged to part icipate in the S uggestion A w ards Pro gram .The D irector of H um a n R esources or his/her designee shall adm inister the program and shall •D eterm ine w hether the suggestion is eligible fo r consideration •R efer each eligible suggestion to the appro priate D epartm ent Head fo r investigatio n and evaluation. U pon receipt of the evaluation of the suggestion by the appro priate D epartm ent Head, asse m ble a R eview Com m ittee fo r the purpose of recom m ending to the City M anager an appro priate aw ard based upon the provisions of S ection 9 below . Employee Suggestion Program GA 41 Rev.3 Page 3 of 4 B.N o m onetary aw ard shall be m ade in any case until the R eview C om m ittee has verified actual cost savings or other tangible benefits to the C ity as a result of any suggestion. C .A n em p loyee shall not norm ally be eligible fo r an aw ard fo r a suggestion w hich directly relates to the em ployee's assigned duties and responsibilities.If,how ever,such a suggestion is so superior or m eritorious as to w arrant special recognition,an aw ard may be granted.In order for such a suggestion to be eligible for an aw ard,the fo llow ing questions need be specifically answ ered in the negative: 1.Is the em ployee expected or required to m ake suggestions of the type under conside ratio n? 2.C an the suggestion be im plem ented by the em ployee w ithout consulting higher authority? D up licate and Jo intS ug gestio ns A.Each suggestion shall be review ed by the Hum an Resources D irector or his/her designee to determ ine if it is a duplicate of or sim ilar to a suggestion w hich has been previously subm itt ed or ado pted.If duplicate suggestions are received,the one bearing the earliest receipt date sha ll be eligible and all others shall be ineligible. B .Joint suggestions -those subm itt ed by gro ups of em ployees -are encouraged.The am ount of the aw ard sha ll be prorated am ong those em ployees m aking the suggestion. In v estig atio n an d Evalu atio n S ug ge stio ns should be subm itted to the H um an R esources Departm ent using the fo rm available from H um a n R esources.T hey w ill be logged in,review ed fo r com pleteness and eligibility ,checked to ensure they do not dup licate previously subm itt ed suggestions,acknow ledged to the suggester(s)and fo rw arded to the appro priate D epart m ent H ead(s)for evaluation. A.T he D epart m e nt H ead's evaluation pro cess,w hich m ust be com pleted within 30 days, sha ll cover all aspects of the suggestio n including o C ost to im plem ent o R esultant savings of labor,m aterials or other reduction of costs and expenses o Total pro jected savings o C o uld part of suggestion be used even though entire suggestion m ay not be adopted? o Is the subject of the suggestion used elsew here in the City? o Is the idea already under consideration by m anagem ent? o A re there reasons the suggestion cannot be im plem ented? B .S uggesters are encouraged to subm it sam ples,photographs,diagra m s or other data and info rm ation w ith their suggestion.S uch m aterial w ill be return ed to the suggester upon com pletion of the evaluation process if requested. R ev iew of S u g g e stio n D ecisio n If a suggestion is not adopted by the C ity,the suggester m ay request reconsideration by the C ity Employee Suggestion Program GA 41 Rev.3 Page 4 of 4 M a nage r w ho shall review and m ake a final decision on the m atter.The Em ployee Suggestion P ro gram shall not be subject to any grievance or appeal procedure. D eterm in atio n of Aw ards A A w ards for suggestions w hich result in direct cost savings to the C ity shall be 20%of the net savings during the first year aft er im plem entation except that an A w ard shall not be less tha n $10 0.C ost savings shall m ean a reduction or elim ination of actual costs or expenses that existed prior to the subm ission of the suggestion. B.A w ards for suggestions which result in tangible benefits other than cost savings to the C ity sha ll be 20%of the determ ined benefit to the C ity during the first year of im plem entation except that such aw ard sha ll not be less than $50 or m ore than $2500.Tangible benefits sha ll be determ ined by im provem ents in depart m ental serv ices and operations.Factors that sha ll be considered in determ ining the aw ard am ount shall include but not be lim ited to the follow ing •nature of the idea •originality •extent of use •effectiveness •ingenuity •effort involved •im port ance of the operation affected and •resultant savings Paym e nt of the A w ards A w ards sha ll no rm ally be paid pro m ptly after im plem entation of the suggestion how ever if the full am o unt of the savings cannot be determ ined until after the com pletion of a trial period or for som e othe r reason,a part ial aw ard m ay be paid to the suggester(s)and the rem ainder shall be paid w hen the first year savings has been determ ined. T he acceptance of a cash aw ard for any suggestion adopted thro ugh the S uggestion A w ards P ro gram shall constitute an agreem ent by the suggester(s)that all claim s im m ediate and future on the C ity of D e lray Beach regardless of the use m ade of the suggestion shall be w aived and the suggester(s)shall have no pro prietary or other interest in the pro posal.• T he H um a n R esources D epart m e nt shall prepare an Em ployee C hange Notice form fo r the paym ent of the suggestion.T he am ount of the aw ard should be entered in the Lum p S um A m ount line.A copy of the aw ard m e m o randum should be att ached to the Em ployee C hange Notice fo rm and then ro uted to the sugge ster's D epart m e nt H ead for appro val.T he executed form should then be forw arded to P ayro ll fo r paym e nt to the em ployee .T he Lum p S um am ount is subject to applicable taxes.