EMPLOYEE HANDBOOK

The Workplace Environment

Santa Barbara County Employee's University | Discrimination, Equal Employment Opportunity | Nepotism | Drug-free Workplace/Mandatory Drug Testng | Employee Relations Policy/Payroll Deduction for Dues and Agency Shop Fees | Safety Program (Risk Management Division) | Workers' Compensation Program (Risk Management Division) | Back toWork Program (Risk Management Division) | Transportation Demand Management

Employment with the County of Santa Barbara also offers additional educational, workplace, medical and alternative transportation benefits. This section includes a description of these benefits and programs as well as other programs that protect your rights as employees.

Santa Barbara County Employees’ University

The County offers regular employees training programs at the Employees’ University (EU). The primary emphasis of the EU is to enrich employees’ knowledge and skills and to provide information that is immediately applicable in the workplace. A variety of courses are offered each semester. Topics covered include: employee orientation, communication, supervision, time management, coaching and mentoring, project management, decision making and many others. Each course is offered in north county and in south county. Most course instructors are County employees who have received special training, also offered through the Employees’ University.

Most courses are 8 hours long and are held in locations convenient to county offices. Participation in EU courses is at the discretion of each employee’s department, and attendance costs $50 per class, per participant. EU Catalogs are distributed each semester to all county departments, and can also be found on the County’s Intranet site, under County Administrator.

Discrimination, Equal Employment Opportunity

It is important to the County Board of Supervisors and to County executives that we provide a workplace that is dedicated to promoting quality work. We believe that a workplace free of discrimination is important to improving the quality of service to our County as well as being legally required. To this end the County prohibits discrimination based on sex, race, national origin, citizenship, color, creed, political affiliation, age, irrelevant physical handicap or other non-merit factors.

In 1973, the Board of Supervisors adopted (and, on January 23, 1996, reaffirmed its commitment to) a Non-discrimination and Affirmative Action program. This program is committed to providing equal employment opportunity for all qualified candidates regardless of age, ancestry, color, marital status, cancer-related medical condition, national origin, mental or physical disability, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, Vietnam-era veteran/disabled status, and refusal of family or medical leave.

The purpose of this program is to promote full representation of all groups that may have suffered discrimination by:

* encouraging application for jobs and promotion; as well as
* removing artificial barriers that might have a discriminatory effect on all aspects of employment.

Discrimination-free Workplace

In order to facilitate the County goal of ensuring a workplace atmosphere that is free from unlawful discriminatory behavior, the County has adopted a policy which prohibits on-the-job harassment including verbal, physical, and visual forms of harassment. If you believe you have been harassed, you should report the incident to your department’s Equal Employment Opportunity Counselor, department head or the County Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO)/Affirmative Action Officer within 48 hours.

Sexual Harassment

The County also has a clear interest in maintaining a workplace environment that is conducive to quality work and free from unwarranted personal influence. As such, the County prohibits sexual harassment by any employee, supervisor, manager, contractor, member of the public or volunteer. If you believe you are being sexually harassed, contact your department’s Equal Employment Opportunity Counselor, department head or County EEO/Affirmative Action Officer immediately. Any employee who is found to have sexually harassed another employee will be subject to disciplinary action.

Discrimination Complaints Resolution

In order to provide an effective means of addressing employee problems and issues, the Non-discrimination and Affirmative Action programs also provide for a discrimination complaints resolution procedure. This process is administered by the Board of Supervisors through the EEO/Affirmative Action Officer, who reports to the County Administrator.

Disability and Reasonable Accommodation

In the interest of removing physical and other barriers that limit access to work, the County provides reasonable accommodation for its employees with qualifying disabilities. If you have a protected disability and require a reasonable accommodation to do the essential duties of your job, please contact your immediate supervisor.

Nepotism

It is the policy of Santa Barbara County not to discriminate in its employment and personnel actions with respect to its employees and applicants on the basis of marital or familial status. Notwithstanding this policy, the County of Santa Barbara retains the right to refuse to appoint a person to a position in the same department, division or facility where his/her relationship to another employee has the potential for creating an adverse impact on supervision, safety, security or morale, or involves a potential conflict of interest.

Your departmental head shall have the authority and responsibility for determining whether such a potential for adverse impact exists or does not exist subject to the review of the Personnel Director. This policy applies to individuals who are related by blood, marriage or adoption including the following relationships: spouse, child, step-children, parent, step-parent, grandparent, grandchild, brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, aunt, uncle, niece, nephew, parent-in-law, daughter-in-law, son-in-law, brother-in-law, and sister-in-law.

Drug-Free Workplace/Mandatory Drug Testing

The County considers a drug-free workplace essential to promoting and maintaining an efficient and safe workplace for all employees. The County’s policy complies with the requirements of the federal government’s Drug-Free Workplace Act and makes it unlawful for employees to manufacture, distribute, dispense, process, or use a controlled substance at a County workplace or work site. If you are found to have engaged in any of these activities at work, you may be subject to disciplinary action up to and including dismissal. You may also be required to participate in an approved drug assistance or rehabilitation program.

You must notify your department within five days of any conviction for a violation of a criminal drug statute occurring in the workplace. If you fail to do so within the required time period, you will be subject to disciplinary action.

Some classifications in the County are subject to pre-employment, random and post-accident alcohol and drug testing as mandated by the Department of Transportation. Recruiting brochures will include any relevant information on alcohol and drug testing.

Check with your supervisor for information on drug testing in your department.

Contact the Employee Assistance Program (800-227-3310) if you need information about or assistance with an alcohol or drug-related problem. Requests for information or treatment are strictly confidential.

Employee Relations Policy/Payroll Deduction for Dues and Agency Shop Fees

In California, under the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act, public employees have a right to form, join, and participate in organizations that represent them in all matters of employee relations. Public employees also have the right to represent themselves in employment relations with the County.

All job classifications are assigned to a bargaining unit. Most units have elected an employee organization to represent unit employees in collective bargaining with the County. After meeting, the County and the employee organizations establish a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that lists the benefits, terms and conditions of employment. Your supervisor or department payroll clerk can tell you which employee organization, if any, represents your classification. Employees may join an employee organization at any time.

The County provides payroll deduction services for membership dues to employee organizations. If you wish to sign up for or cancel your dues deduction, you must contact the employee organization’s office. Some unions have specific time periods when membership can be cancelled. If you have any questions about your dues deduction, contact your employee organization office.

Employees in certain units who are hired after the dates below and who do not join the employee organization representing their unit are required to pay an agency shop fee. In addition, all dues payers in these units, regardless of their hire date, who drop membership, must pay this fee to the employee organization.

These units are:

Safety Program (Risk Management Division)

Accident prevention is of primary importance to all County employees. A County Safety Program has been established by County Ordinance to assure compliance with federal and state safety laws. The County Safety Manual, available from your supervisor, provides extensive information and safety guidelines for all aspects of County operations.

Supervisors are required to provide safety training and to rate employees’ knowledge of and adherence to safety procedures as part of employee performance reviews and disciplinary actions. You should:

* learn the proper use of equipment assigned to you, including the appropriate safety precautions;
* use personal protection devices where necessary;
* develop safe working and housekeeping habits; and
* immediately report unsafe equipment and hazardous conditions to your supervisor.

Reporting Accidents

You must promptly report to your supervisor any accident involving injury to:

* yourself;
* a co-worker; or
* a member of the public.

Accidents involving damage to County property, including County vehicles, must also be reported.

Workers’ Compensation Program (Risk Management Division)

If you are injured in the course of County employment or become ill as a result of your job, you may be eligible for benefits through the County’s Workers’ Compensation program. Claim forms are available from your department payroll clerk.

Benefits may include:

* medical treatment and hospitalization;
* temporary disability compensation while you are recovering;
* additional payments if you are permanently disabled; and
* vocational rehabilitation services if you are unable to return to your job.

If you do not report a work-related injury or illness promptly, your right to benefits may be delayed or jeopardized. Employees cannot be discharged or discriminated against for filing a Workers’ Compensation claim.

Back To Work Program (Risk Management Division)

The Board of Supervisors has conceptually approved instituted this program for all full- and part-time regular employees so that in case of injury or illness, they will be provided an opportunity to return to a temporary/modified duty position with medical approval. Under supervision of the Back To Work Manager, these return to work positions will provide for the use of those skills and abilities not limited by an employee’s injury. These temporary assignments cover both work and non-work related injuries and last up to 90 days with possible extensions to six months depending on the treating physician’s recommendations.

Transportation Demand Management

The County of Santa Barbara established a Transportation Demand Management (TDM) Program to help relieve traffic congestion and improve air quality. The program encourages employees to use alternative forms of transportation, flexible schedules, and telecommuting whenever possible, and provides incentives for doing so.

If you walk, bike, take a bus, carpool or vanpool to work, you earn 0.6 hours of vacation every two weeks. Also, if you’re part of a carpool or vanpool, you can use specially designated parking spaces conveniently located near building entrances.

A Final Note

The County of Santa Barbara appreciates your efforts in serving its citizens. We’re proud that you are a member of our public service team.

Please remember that this handbook is only a summary. The specifics regarding benefits and provisions of County employment as well as County rules, administrative procedures and policies are governed by the terms of various legal documents. If there is a discrepancy between the information in this handbook and these legal documents, the legal documents take precedence.

If you have any questions about the information presented here, please ask your supervisor for more details.

Important Phone Numbers