Saline County approves new policies for employee parental leave, volunteer hours
Saline County employees will soon enjoy volunteer days, parental leave and bilingual pay policies as part of their employment with the county.
The Saline County Commission unanimously approved a collection of policy changes and some new policies Tuesday which will allow for bilingual pay (additional $0.75 per hour), 12 hours of volunteer time off and up to four weeks of paid parental leave in addition to existing benefits employees receive.
Human Resources director for Saline County Marilyn Leamer presented the changes to existing policies and addition to new policies Tuesday. She said the new policies came after a 2021 market salary study the county participated in with Wichita State University. This same study led to county employees getting a raise at the beginning of 2023.
County Commissioners unanimously approve collection of policy changes
Leamer briefly discussed each policy change or addition and what it meant for the county. Below is a complete list of policy changes the commission approved:
20.02a - Employee Selection Procedure. Includes small changes for current practices.
20.02b - Employee Selection Procedure for Sheriff's Office. Includes small changes for current practices.
20.09 - Vacancy Postings. Added language for current practices of emailing announcements and updated web address.
20.11 - Transfers and Promotions. Updated the web address.
30.06a - Overtime. Removed a redundant paragraph and revised language for travel time as a passenger.
30.09d - Illness and Disability Pool. Added verbiage about volunteer donations before drawings.
30.30 (New Policy) - Volunteer Time Off. Allows for up to 12 hours per year of volunteer time off.
30.31 (New Policy) - Bilingual Pay. Provides $0.75 per hour increase for bilingual employees who meet the requirements and are serving in a position where needed.
30.32 (New Policy) - Parental Leave. Provides for those eligible under the Family and Medical Leave Act up to four weeks of paid time off for parental leave.
40.57 - Employee Resource Groups. Provides for voluntary groups to provide support for meetings and activities.
Bilingual pay will add an additional budgetary impact of $1,560 base pay per eligible employee. The volunteer time off and parental leave policies would be paid time in lieu of work time and therefore already worked into the budget.
After some brief discussion to clarify the policies, the Commission unanimously approved the 10 changes on April 4. Before the vote, Commissioner Bob Vidricksen asked staff to not propose as many policy changes at one time in the future.
Saline County enhances effort to recruit for unfilled positions
As part of an ongoing attempt to broadcast the availability of jobs in the county, the human resources department is entering an agreement to run advertisements for jobs as part of the previews portion of showings at local movie theaters.
"We are using all the innovative approaches we can think of; we've done billboards, we've done little stands that go in front yards, and this is to run some ads in movie trailers before movies at various theaters in town," said County Administrator Phillip Smith-Hanes.
In addition to Salina theaters, the county is reaching out to some other areas of Kansas in hopes to attract potential employees. Leamer said theaters in Manhattan, Fort Riley, and various rural theaters are on the radar as part of the project as well.
Some positions the county has struggled to hire are in a dire state of need. Saline County Sheriff Roger Soldan has spoken to the commission at length about a shortage of correctional officers at the current jail. As the county prepares to open the new jail, Soldan said he is concerned about the outlook of transitioning buildings while understaffed.
More on the corrections staff shortage: Saline County increases starting wage for corrections officers amid hiring struggle
Other Commission notes
The commission approved the purchase of rescue tools for rural fire district number 5 for a lease amount of $22,315 over five years.
Saline County Public Information Officer Melissa McCoy read a proclamation announcing April as National County Government Month. Saline County will participate through social media campaigns, answering frequently asked questions and featuring county employees.
For several years, the county has utilized the Salina Journal for the use of state-mandated legal notice publications. As part of a discussion agenda Tuesday, Smith Hanes led a conversation with the commission and staff considering utilizing a different publication for its notices. While no official action was taken on the matter, commissioners encouraged staff to look at cost-effective measures and potentially take the issue to bid.
"State law requires that counties designate an official county newspaper and that designation sort of continues until a new newspaper is designated," Smith Hanes said.
Jim Dubois, Saline County treasurer, said exploring new options for the official county newspaper is mostly a cost savings measure.
"I have been working for quite a while to look for different solutions to reduce the cost," Dubois said. "Saline County spent a little over $1 million in 10 years just in publications."
The measure to designate the official county newspaper, either through a bid process or unanimous selection, will appear as an action item at an upcoming Saline County Commission meeting.
Kendrick Calfee has been a reporter with the Salina Journal since 2022, primarily covering county government and education. You can reach him at kcalfee@gannett.com or on Twitter @calfee_kc.
This article originally appeared on Salina Journal: Saline County employees to get parental leave, volunteer hour benefits
