Buncombe County to update severance policy in case of layoffs; What is Asheville's policy?

ASHEVILLE – Organizations often give former employees compensation following layoffs, known as severance. This disbursement gives newly unemployed workers some financial cushion while they look for a new job and builds goodwill for the company after a mass-firing. For private organizations, these policies are not public information.

Buncombe County, which currently employs 1,610 people, making it one of the county’s largest employers, is reviewing its personnel policy, which includes its severance calculation amid downsizing, known as a “reduction in force” in government language. This is part of the county's regular procedure to update its policies on a regular basis, County Manager Avril Pinder said in an Oct. 18 statement to the Citizen Times. The Buncombe County Board of Commissioners will ultimately vote to approve the updated policy.

Currently, the policy requires that the county give former workers one week of pay for every year worked at the county, capped at 12 weeks. Pinder said in the statement that there is no documentation of this policy being activated.

Pinder initially proposed removing the calculation in favor of a policy that would give commissioners discretion to determine severance amounts. She said in most scenarios, the policy would come into play amid a large-scale layoff, and commissioners would make decisions about groups of people. Pinder discussed the proposed change during an Oct. 17 board of commissioners briefing.

“I am definitely the outlier on this one,” Pinder said during the meeting.

She explained that she wanted to change the policy so the county could protect its finances amid an economic downturn.

Buncombe County budgets for 1,809 full-time positions, according to Pinder — $108 million is allocated for salaries. It is the sixth largest employer in the county, according to the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce.

Commissioner Amanda Edwards initially agreed with Pinder, saying that following a calculation could pose a challenge depending on the county’s financial health. She also said she would vote with the majority.

Standard severance packages for businesses are one week for every year of service, without a cap, according to Nathan Ramsey, a director with Land of Sky Regional Council, and former chair of the County Commission, who spoke to the Citizen Times Oct. 18. He noted that businesses are not obligated to provide severance but said that scraping by on the state’s unemployment benefits alone would be difficult.

Individuals can collect up to $350 per week in unemployment benefits for up to 12 weeks in North Carolina, based on past earnings and reason for losing employment, according to the state’s department of commerce. That comes to up to $18,200 per year.

Other commissioners were not as enthusiastic about the potential change.

Commissioner Al Whitesides said that following an unstandardized practice could lead to legal challenges. Board chair Brownie Newman said that giving employees smaller severance packages during challenging financial times would lead to additional hardship.

The board preliminarily settled on a middle ground.

Commissioner Martin Moore proposed creating a standard calculation, but also giving the board discretion to deviate from the standard during an economic downturn. Pinder liked Moore’s proposal.

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She recommended that commissioners implement a minimum amount of severance. Commissioner Parker Sloan agreed, proposing a 30-day floor.

Pinder is reworking the proposed policy based on the discussion, according to an Oct. 18 statement. The policy will be voted on in an upcoming board meeting.

The seven-member board is contemplating the policy tweak amid change to its composition. Newman, who served on the commission since 2012, and Jasmine Beach-Ferrara, who has served on the board since 2016, both recently announced that they will not run for reelection in 2024.

What is the city of Asheville’s policy?

The city of Asheville, which is the eighth largest employer in the county with 1,215 workers, does not follow a calculation to determine its severance policy during a downsize. In fact, it does not have a policy at all, according to an Oct. 18 statement from Asheville City Human Resources Director Shannon Barrett.

"The County has a policy specific to severance pay for reduction in force. The City does not have a policy for severance pay so we don't have one we can provide," Barrett said.

According to the city’s personnel policy, Asheville’s city manager submits a report to the City Council about the number of employees and job classifications that will be laid off.

“Prior to implementing a reduction in force, the city manager will submit a report to City Council which may include a request for severance pay,” the personnel policy reads.

Mayor Esther Manheimer told the Citizen Times Oct. 18 that she does not know where she stands on the laissez-faire policy.

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“Where there is discretion is typically where we see institutional bias, which is unintended in its nature but happens in many cases. I could see both sides of that argument,” Manheimer, who is also a local attorney, said, adding that she has not thoroughly analyzed the policy and was speaking hypothetically, considering the job market is strong.

Mitchell Black covers Buncombe County and health care for the Citizen Times. Email him at mblack@citizentimes.com or follow him on Twitter @MitchABlack. Please help support local journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Buncombe County to update severance policy in case of layoffs