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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPC Minutes 2000Town of Ithaca Personnel Committee Meeting January 19,2000 12:00 noon final At the regular meeting of the Personnel Committee for the Town of Ithaca, Tompkins County,New York held at the Town Hall,126 E.Seneca St.,Ithaca, New York,there were present: Members:Councilman Ed Conley;Dani Holford,Senior Typist;Larry Salmi, Heavy Equipment Operator. Support Staff:Judith Drake,Human Resources Specialist. Others attending:Fred Noteboom,Highway Superintendent. Call to order:12:00 noon Review of minutes of December 8th meeting. Approved as read. Agenda Item #3:Persons to be heard None. Agenda Item #4:Review of Safety Toed Shoes program from Safety Committee. Judy explained that the hand out given today is a write up prepared by the Safety Committee for the Personnel Committee and Public Works Committee.The Personnel Committee should look at it from the policy side. Larry Salmi asked if safety toed shoes should be worn at all times?Wearing them all the time is uncomfortable.There should be exceptions to wearing them. Driving truck is an example of when they should not be worn.Also,the phrase “no sneakers”is too broad.There are sneakers that have metal toes and metal shanks. Fred:“No sneakers”came out of a discussion of soft-soled shoes that was hard to define. Judy:Shoes should be worn that are not easily punctured from beneath or side. Larry stated that he selects the footwear that is appropriate for the job.For instance,he is picking up Christmas trees and is wearing rubber boots because of the snow and water. 1 Councilman Conley made the point that the policy covers others as well as the Highway Department Since the employees do a variety of jobs they cannot be putting shoes off and on all day long.So many jobs requires safety toed shoes that it would be difficult to write them all into the policy. Larry said that you can buy different kinds of steel toed shoes that might be more comfortable i.e.Oxford height. Judy explained the second part of the program details that the Town will provide an annual allowance for the Highway Department of a $100.Building and Zoning and Engineering departments would receive $100 allowance every other year. This allowance is to aid in the cost of the shoes. Dani asked if steel toes shoes are puncture proof?She stated that Chuck White said the only thing about them is they are cold.That’s his only complaint.She said that Larry is conscientious about wearing the appropriate shoes but someone else may not be. Judy said that it is not only puncture wounds but if someone drops something on their toes they will be out a long time and maybe lose their toes. OSHA does not require that safety toed shoes and prescription safety glasses be reimbursed,but they are recommended personal safety equipment.The Town is trying to be proactive by saying “Yes we want them and will help financially with it.”Our insurance goes by what is required by OSHA.They do not set their own requirements.Town’s Workers’Compensation carrier was pleased that we are considering it.One of the things the Safety Committee discussed was how to enforce the policy. Larry said that steel toed shoes can be very expensive.Possibly as much as $300.Alternating shoes makes for more comfort wearing them.I think the policy is too strong. Fred said that this policy came out of discussion about matching SCLIWC’s requirements.They require steel toed shoes.The Town would like to see us wear protective shoes.OSHA does not require them but they strongly recommend them.If the Town is going to take the drastic step of saying everyone will wear them,they are prepared to pay a $100 per person to help relieve the burden. Larry said that if some jobs require them he would be likely to wear safety toed shoes. 2 Judy explained the allowance as a one-time per year in answer to Dani’s question about how employees would be reimbursed. The Committree discussed the various methods of reimbursement i.e.paid receipt,once a year reimbursement or some other verification.It would be made for steel toed shoes only.Should the policy say "highly recommended"or “required to wear."The point of the change in wording of the policy was to bring SCLIWC and the Town of Ithaca to the same plan. Judy asked that the Committee make a recommendation on the Policy. Larry stated that most of the employees would like steel toed shoes but not as a requirement.There are many reasons why they would be uncomfortable in certain circumstances.They would like them and want a program to help getting them. The committee decided to make a decision after the Public Works Committee makes their recommendation and to refer the policy statement back to the Safety Committee. Agenda Item #5:Review corrections from Employee Policy Section of Personnel Manual. Judy explained the reworded sections that had approval from the Personnel Committee.Smoking Policy and Security Policy Procedures were corrected and some sections were rearranged.The Safety Equipment and Training section is different.There will be additional information when a decision is made about the wording for Safety Toed Shoes.Safety Glasses incentive program and Uniforms were added.Security Procedures have been held until SCLIWC says if they want to add any specific procedures to the policy. The Smoking Policy was edited as:.She read the policy.“Smoking is prohibited in all facilities and all vehicles.Smoking is permitted only outside the building and vehicles or in any designated area.Smoking is permitted when others are not present or in ones own vehicle.The right of a non-smoker to smoke free air prevails over the employees desire to smoke.” Judy asked Fred where in the building are employees allowed to smoke? Fred said that we allow smoking in the big garage,since the air quality is bad due to the trucks. Judy questioned smoking in the upstairs locker room. Fred stated that it is considered part of the garage area. 3 Judy explained that her main concern was that the policy stated that smoking would be permitted in the Highway facility except in the office area and break room.But it left the facility open and this statement would eliminate some of that. The policy goes directly to the Board.So would the statement be left as changed. Most people at the Highway do not smoke in the presence of others.Town Hall has only the front porch but it is the only space available.In the new building it will probably be out side in the parking lot or outside lounge area. Judy stated that the two sections would be left as corrected.When the Committee decides about the shoes it will be added.It has to be left as it is now because of the production and distribution employees at SCL1WC. Agenda Item #6:Review edits of General Information Section of the Personnel Manual. Hours of work.Hours will remain the same.SCLIWC hours are 8 to 4 with paid lunch because they cannot leave the facility.Everybody is on a 40 hour week schedule and paid through the lunch break.Everything else in the section is the same except Differential Pay was added.Highway employees working 10 p.m.to 6:30 am get a $.60 differential and production and distribution employees get a differential based on what shift they work.Call back time:ours stays the same,4 hours guarantee plus we pay 14 hour travel time if they actually work the four hours.SCLIWC is guaranteed of 1 hour of work plus 1 hour of call in pay. On call pay:That is strictly for SCLIWC.They have someone on call with a beeper or cell phone on weekends and holidays.They get 2 !4 hours of overtime whether they are called or not for the weekend.Date of Hire:Basically standard practice but I wanted to be sure it made it into this manual that if you are hired temporarily and you stay on,your first initial date of hire becomes your official date of hire.Regular full time employee:I tried to add somethings to make this section cleaner.Gives a definition of permanent employment and provisional employment.Part-time employees:Nothing has changed except that part-time employees can opt for dental insurance if they wish.Discussion followed concerning the definition of part-time and full-time employees.Half time and up, receive prorated benefits.If someone is hired on a temporary basis then hired permanently they will get prorated benefits. Probationary Period:no changes.Employment Physicals:was added for SCLIWC.All employees receive a physical once they have been hired.I do not recommend them for the Town.Performance Reviews:SCLIWC is picking up our policy of mid-year reviews.They are adopting our two-page review.Stipends: that was added for SCLIWC.They have two stipends they pay which Judy explained.Time Sheets:worded the same.Pay Period:worded the same.Meal Period:Is the same.Paid Meal Periods:Same but added that SCLIWC is paid through the meal period.Highway statement should be changed because in practice it works differently than stated.Town Hall is not effected.Only some employees work nights in emergency situations when meals are paid.Several 4 things should be looked at because they look good on paper but in practice it does not work.Weather Related Time Off:same on going policy,with SCLIWC picking up our policy.Attendance at Sponsored Functions:Was as left as is but should be revisited due to SCLIWC.Appearance Policy:no change.Some of the safety requirements will be tied into the appearance policy.Driving record:those who are required to have a NY State driver’s license.Highway has CDL licenses that have different classifications.No changes in Disciplinary Policy pending Paul and Cathy to be here.SCLIWC has passed a different policy than ours. Grievance Procedure:SCLIWCs policy is very close in the steps but have different form than the Town.Termination of Employment,basically the only thing added in here was that you would receive payment of unused vacation if you give two weeks notice and added compensatory time.Sick time is only used for payment of health insurance for retirees.There is no cash payment allowed for unused sick or personal time. The Committee should look them over and let Judy know before the next meeting of any changes. The Committee discussed security IDs.Dani has an example of an ID that is used in Dryden.A keyless system has been wired in the new Town Hall but will not be put in use right away. Larry said he has one concern about the sick time.He suggested the 960 hours be held for retirement health insurance and you are allowed to accrue more sick time without a limit of the extra 15 days as it is now. Judy explained the financial procedure for accounting for the money that is needed if a person retires.We make sure an amount is set aside each year in the budget. Adjourned:1:30 p.m. 5 Town of Ithaca Personnel Committee Meeting February 23,2000,12:00 noon ^z At the regular meeting of the Personnel Committee for the Town of Ithaca, Tompkins County,New York held at the Town Hall,126 E.Seneca St,Ithaca, New York,there were present: Members:Town Supervisor Catherine Valentino;Councilman Ed Conley; Councilman William Lesser;Dani Holford,Senior Typist;Larry Salmi,Heavy Equipment Operator. Support Staff:Judith Drake,Human Resources Specialist. Others attending:Larry Parlett and Paul Tunison from SCLIWC. Call to order:12:05 noon Review of minutes of January 19,2000 meeting. Supervisor Valentino moved that the minutes be approved without correction,Dani Holford,second.Carried. Agenda Item #3:Persons to be heard:None. Agenda Item #4:Review of Safety Toed Shoes program from Safety Committee. Judy explained that at the last meeting the Personnel Committed decided to refer the safety toed shoes section of the Personnel Manual to the Public Works Committee and then back to the Safety Committee.The Public Works Committees’conclusion was that it should be a required program.They wanted to use the receipt method to make sure the $100 was adequate.The Safety Committee wants to try the receipts for only two to three year period.They didn’t want to get into keeping track of receipts.The Safety Committee did not want it to be a reimbursement.They want to give the $100 on the first of February as an allowance check and then the employee would turn in a receipt.This method would make sure the money is going for the shoes and show what is the cost of them.This method would make sure the allowance is adequate.The Public Works Committee wanted to make sure the shoes the employee is buying are safety toed shoes.The Safety Committee felt it would be hard to tell from just the receipt. Paul explained the program used at SCLIWC.They required that they meet a certain standard and level of protection.Usually the receipt does say Safety Shoes.They just attach the receipt with the requisition for reimbursement instead of giving the employee the money up front. 1 The Committee discussed where to buy Safety Toed shoes and the expense of them.SCLIWC gives their employees a reimbursement of $20.Should they be required or only on certain jobs?The recommendation from the other committees was that the shoes should be required.There are a variety of Safety Toed shoes if the employees shop for the most comfortable shoes.One cannot predict which jobs they will be handling each day so the shoes should be worn all the time and not left up to the individual.Judy said that another suggestion from the Public Works Committee was that the Planning Department not be included.Cathy suggested that we try requiring them for a year to see how the program works. The resolution for the Town Board should state that the requirement will be for one year and reviewed at the end of that time.The resolution will go to the Board at the March meeting. Agenda Item #5:Review corrections from Employee Policy Section of Personnel Manual. Judy said that these were presented to the Personnel Committee at the last meeting.She went over the corrections with the Committee but she wanted to ask Paul Tunison or Larry Parlett if they have anything to be added to the security procedures from the first section?They had none at this time.. Agenda Item #6:Review edits of General Information Section of the Personnel Manual. Judy explained that she went through the sections with changes at the last Personnel Committee meeting.Some of them are reviewed in the minutes of the last meeting. Fred does want to talk about call back time.They are having a hard time making that work on the time card.The night policy in writing does not work easily.Judy explained the policy as it is now,if you are called back to work you get four hours.The way it is written is the only hours you actually work are techinically overtime the rest of the hours are straight time.Discussion followed concerning the circumstances when call back time is used.The employee called back should be guaranteed four hours.If they are called in the early morning it is considered part of the workday.SCLIWC gives employees on duty over a weekend,two and 1/2 hours whether they are called in or not.They are paid the hours at overtime. They pay an employee from the time they leave home to the time they return home and that is paid as overtime.SCLIWC policy is separated in the Personnel Manual.There is no set minimum for SCLIWC employees as there is for Town employees.The Committee discussed the definition of call back time as it applies to SCLIWC and the Town.The conclusion was that SCLIWC would use call back time as it is worded in their manual and not as they do it now.Therefore,the Town and SCLIWC’s policies will be separated in the Manual.Some of the inequities in call back time can be corrected by reviewing the job descriptions of employees who are subject to call back. 2 Judy explained some of the other corrections that were made for SCL1WC and the Town in the General Information Section of the Personnel Manual.The hours for SCLIWC were added.She read the Compensatory Time section.The Committee discussed Compensatory Time differences at Highway,Town Hall and SCLIWC.The manual states that SCLWIC requires a physical examination when employees are hired.The Town does not,so the requirement will be stated for SCLIWC only. Performance Review was changed to bring the Town and SCLIWC to the same form,and time frame. Another difference is that SCLIWC pays through the meal period.Judy and Fred worked on paid meal periods.Employees that are called into work or stay after normal working hours will be paid through the day.Employees called in should come right in and not prepare for a meal.They recommend that if they are called in before six a.m.they will receive an extra %hour of overtime,if they stay beyond 7 p.m.they will receive an extra /2 hour of overtime.There will be a meeting with Highway employees on “How to fill out a Time Sheet".' Weather Related Time Off: Judy said she added SCLIWC to that.Cathy as Town Supervisor makes that determination.Judy asked if SCLIWC wanted their own policy for closing.Paul said he would need to think about it.If the Town closes we could call and let them know and it would be up to the General Manager to make the decision to close. Judy raised the question of Town Sponsored Functions.Employees are expected to participate and if not they should work or use fringe time.If there are religious reasons they cannot attend there should be some accommodation.This policy should not be too rigid. Disciplinary policy is the one the SCLIWC Personnel Committee just passed. Judy suggested the Committee read over the Employee benefit packet she distributed today and make comments.It is important for the Committee to review every policy so that when the Manual comes out it does not still need corrections. Larry Salmi wanted to know that if someone is called in and is hurt,does the Town of Ithaca have insurance that covers that?Worker’s Compensation covers it.Once they are called they are working for the organization. Adjourned:1:15 3 FINAL Town of Ithaca Personnel Committee Meeting March 22,2000 12:00 Noon At the regular meeting of the Personnel Committee for the Town of Ithaca, Tompkins County,New York held at the Town Hall,126 E.Seneca St.,Ithaca, New York,there were present: Members:Supervisor Catherine Valentino;Councilman Ed Conley;Dani Holford, Senior Typist;Larry Salmi,Heavy Equipment Operator. Support Staff:Judith C.Drake,PHR Others:Larry Parlett and Paul Tunison from SCLIWC. Call to order:12:15 p.m. Staff to be heard:none Review of Minutes:Paul Tunison made the correction that in the sentence “SCLIWC would continue using call back time (on Call Time,portal to portal pay) as they do now”should read “SCLIWC would use call back time as it is stated in the old Manual.”Minutes approved with the correction Agenda Item #4:Review corrections of Disciplinary Policy and Grievance Procedures. Mrs.Drake said that the main thing to go through is the Disciplinary Policy and Grievance Procedure.Basically with the Disciplinary Procedure I combined the two,Town of Ithaca and SCLIWC.It states the Disciplinary Policy is used to institute a procedure for discipline.Steps include spoken warning,written warning,suspension,and termination.There isn’t too much of a change. The Committee agreed that the Disciplinary Procedures are acceptable as presented. Mrs.Drake explained that concerning the Grievance Procedure,there are two copies,A and B.A is in the Town of Ithaca Personnel Manual.B was just approved at SCLIWC. Larry Parlett stated that concerning version B Mrs.Drake had said this is the one that SCLIWC has now with a few changes to accommodate the Town of Ithaca. On step two,it says that the General Manager may request a recommendation from Administration.I believe that is the start of my title. Mrs.Drake said she tried to break it down by putting in Human Resources Specialist,Administrative Department Leader,and tried to break it down between Human Resources and Administration.She was making it less of an exact title, Human Resources and Administration. Larry Parlett said that he has always explained to people that their personnel grievance is with the head person.I say “bring it to me and i’ll start ihe documentation.”This policy doesn’t exclude that. Mrs.Drake said that she started to think about it rafter the last Department Heads meeting where Paul Tunison said that you were not particularly happy with Production Department Leader and Administrative Department beaders titles.I was trying to think “what if those titles change?”Would Administration stay in your title at some point or basically your function would be Administration including Human Resources,Personnel,Accounting and all of that,would that still be the main focus.I know my title is going io be Personnel and Human Resources.I was trying to think of the situations.when if you put full titles in the Manual and you have to change the Manual to change the titles.Basically what I am asking you to decide is A or B and pick the one that works the best.A is more wordy.Take one and read through it and then read the second one. Larry Parlett stated,for information,the B version was prepared by Walter Lynn, one of our Commissioners.He is the ombudsman for Cornell and he takes grievances all day long.That is his job.He worked this up as a suggestion for a way to do it.He is on the SCLIWC Personnel Committee. Mrs.Drake said that the A version is the Town’s,B version is SCLIWC.She explained the circumstances when the Grievance Policy might be used.SCLIWC has a broader availability in their policy. Supervisor Valentino said that Walter Lynn worked on the procedure.He does a lot more than just work related concerns and we drafted ours along the line of how union contracts are.We are not equipped to deal with personal problems. That’s why we have CDRC.But we can make sure that people are being treated fairly under the provisions of the Personnel Manual,so it narrows it down under State and Federal Law so that when you are going through the grievance procedure exactly what you are looking at.That’s why we have for other disputes CDRC.The Town Grievance is more structured.That is the difference between the two. Mrs.Drake said that the steps to the procedure are pretty much the same in both versions except one is more informal. o The Committee discussed the two procedures at length,including wording and steps in the Grievance Procedure of both versions.They felt that there were some procedures in each version that should be changed or explained.The discussion resulted in the decision that version B.should be adopted with the addition that there is a need for written documentation during the Grievance Procedure and that CDRC could be suggested as stated in version A. Mrs.Drake said she would redraft this version and give it to Supervisor Valentino for review. Agenda Items #5 and #6 were tabled until the next meeting. Adjourned:1:00 p.m. Final Final Final Town ofIthaca Personnel Committee Meeting April 19,2000 12:00 Noon At the regular meeting of the Personnel ‘Committee for the Town of Ithaca, Tompkins County,New York held at the Town Hall,126 E.Seneca St.,Ithaca, New York,there were present: Members:Supervisor Catherine Valentino;Councilman Ed Conley;Councilman William Lesser;Dani Holford,Senior Typist;Larry “Salmi,Heavy Equipment Operator. Support Staff:Judith C.Drake,PHR, Human Resources Specialist Others:Paul Tunison,General Manager,SCLIWQ. Call to order:12:05 p.m. Staff to be heard:none Review of Minutes:Approved. Agenda Item #3 Approve Grievance Procedure and Form. Mrs.Drake explained that the Grievance Procedure presented is a revision of the one chosen by the Committee at the last meeting.The Committee discussed the length of time in which notification must be made"by the employee and agreed to the 3 days as stated in the Grievance Procedure. The Committee also reviewed the Grievance ‘Form.Mrs.’Drake pointed out the differences between the new Form and the previous one.The newer form asks for the employee to state "What is the settlement requested and the measure needed to rectify the situation.”An attachment could be added to the form if there is not adequate space to state the problem.When the Grievance Form is received by the Department Head it should be date stamped.The employee ought to make two copies of the form and the Department Head should sign both copies.One for the employee and one for the file. The Committee accepted the Grievance Procedure and Grievance Form as written. Final Final Final Agenda Item #5:Review and Approval of Violence in the Workplace Policy. The Violence in the Workplace policy states that the Town will not tolerate workplace violence.Employees are prohibited from making threats or -engaging in violent activities which includes physical injury,making threatening remarks . etc.Employees are held responsible for -helping to ensure that viotenceof any  kind does not occur.A potential dangerous situation should-lie reported immediately.Retaliation against somebody is forbidden.Town of fthaca-or Commission will investigate all complaints. Mrs.Drake said the Violence in the Workplace Policy is coming from different angles.It also focuses_on violence in the home and how it reflects on the . workplace.Employees that are being abused at home and how abusers at home react in the workplace with other employees.Thislopic covers abroad range of “violence”and covers the Town if someone does something that is violent in nature.The Town/Commissionbas an established policy to guide them. Councilman Lesser said that he understands the point that people who have physical or emotional problems off the job often bringThem to the workplace,but in terms of an enforcement policy,it is not very clear-on how to handle -that.He referred to the example of listing domestic-violence as a conduct that is prohibited.In the statement,it is not very clear what is intended by the words “domestic violence.”The intention of The policy is To define certain -kinds of actions in the workplace. Mrs.Drake stated that the Town would only get involved when it effects the workplace.She asked Councilman Lesser if he felt the wording “Domestic Violence”should come out of the statement or worded differently. Councilman Lesser said that the wording shouldbe more like a statement That “all employees are specially cautioned not to allow-actions outsidelhe workplace, possibly including sexual harassment or domestic violence,to lead “to violent confrontations at work”. Supervisor Valentino stated that the hard part is that most times it is not clear.A person comes to work acting depressed or being nasty to everybody.It’s an insidious situation that cannot be identified to help them unless they come forward. Possession of a weapon while on company property was discussed.Mrs.Drake pointed out that there might be instances where an employee would have a “weapon”in his/her car for hunting or the need to carry something for protection against animals.The policy should not be so strict that those kinds of instances are not tolerated.The policy should reflect only on those employees carrying weapons into the workplace.It is okay if they leave it in their vehicle. The Committee agreed with the Violence in the Workplace section of the Personnel Manual with the discussed rewording. Final Final Final Agenda Item #6:Review and Approve Computer Usage Policy. Mrs.Drake explained that this Policy will go back "to The Records Management Advisory Committee to approve.The policy is the one approved by the Town Board last year and given to all employees.The intent is to include it in the Personnel Manual instead of having a separate policy.This way it will keep it from being forgotten.Mrs.Drake reviewed the policy with the Network/Records Specialist and Records Management Officer and they felt that there does not need to be changes made to the policy except Tor wording referring to the Personnel Manual. Judy asked Mr.Tunison if he wanted the policy to include SCLIWC.Mr.Tunison said the policy covers computer usage well and couldhe adhered to at SCLIWC. Mrs.Drake stated that this is the type of policy insurance oompanies are suggesting.Supervisor Valentino suggested the policy "be taken to the SCLIWC Personnel Committee and the Commission for approval. Councilman Lesser saidbe had readlhis pretty carefully and in many ways it’s a more complex policy than the other ones.To make-several general points,one is,it seems to me that this computer policy_deals withTour aspects or issues.. Using the computers forharassment;diversion of attention of work/playing^ around wjth computers;copyright violations andprrvacy,matters;_There maybe others but at least there are four of those components inhere.I think that somewhere in here it would be-really helpful tomake a statement and divide- these things up a little bit into which refersto which-Because they are kind of mixed together and it makes it really difficult to say;what are the problems,what am I trying to prevent,who am i trying toprotect grwhat unless ypuwentthrough ', it and identify them.Under #2 of Policy Violations:A lot of thoseThings-carrbe violated using computers but the violations are not-necessarily limited.1 mean, like defrauding or defacing or afteringTown records andl suppose Bolton Point . records,that is a violation.You can do iton-computersbut it is nqtinherently-a computer issue.I don’t know ifthatbelongs in-here-or ifthere's a more-general policy that says you are not supposed to mess around,with lowering your own tax rate or raising other peoples.However,1 think something like that would help clarify a little bit about exactly what this policy was trying to accomplish. Mrs.Drake stated originally it was not just for computer use that it was for Records Management too. Councilman Lesser said it read like that. Mrs.Drake said the original title was “Records Management Electronic Media Systems Use Policy and User Agreement”.I can put the whole title back in. I know the Record Management Committee was supposed to review it but the meeting was canceled.Maybe,this would be a good time to take it back with Bill’s suggestions. Final Final Final Mrs.Drake asked Councilman Lesser if hTts recommendation is to isolate each problem and how it could be dealt with instead of in a general way. Councilman Lesser saidlhat would be his recommendation.Something dealing with privacy issues,this is what our policies are,misusing computers at work, this is what our policies are. Mrs.Drake said she could share the minutes of this Committee with the Records Management Advisory "Committee.This policy is one she will "bo working-with. She said the policy states that violations -should ire reported to toe Town Supervisor,Attorney for "the Town,and added the Human Resources Office.She suggested SCLIWC decide whom the violations should be reported to.The policy will be referred to the Records IVIanagement Advisory "Committee tor editing with a copy of the Personnel Committee Minutes. Mr.Tunison said that thepolicy couldire incorporatedtor SCL1WC as it is. Agenda Item #7:Begin Review of Employee Benefit Section. The Committee discussed the Vacation Policy,scheduling of it and how it is calculated.The maximum accrual was viewed.-Employees can only go beyond their maximum if there are extraordinary-circumstances only.Eor example an employee is taking a special long vacation oris-ill-and can’t use it.This needs to be documented and approvedby the appropriate Department Head. The Committee reviewed the Sick Time Policy.The question of changing the maximum sick days was discussed.There are employees that have reached the maximum and are still accruing sick time.Presently employees can only accrue 15 additional days beyond their T20 day maximum before they stop accruing There was no decision made to change the current 15 days policy. The Committee discussed the definition of “household"in the Bereavement Leave Policy.The decision was to add the below-underlined statement,“Others living in your household also may beconsiderecFimmediate famify-as determined by their Department Head.”It was decided that if there are still questions concerning relationships Department Heads should contact the Human Resources Office for determination or clarification. Dental Insurance.The Town Board approved that part-time employees can participate in the Dental Insurance Plan. Mrs.Drake mentioned the percentage of the Health Insurance premiums that retirees are paying seems too high.The Committee decided that Mrs.Drake is to get in touch with other municipalities and companies concerning their policies regarding the payment of Health Insurance premiums for retirees. Meeting adjourned:1:00 p.m. 1 Final Final Final Town of Ithaca Personnel Committee Meeting May 24,2000 12:00 Noon At the regular meeting of the Personnel Committee for the Town of Ithaca, Tompkins County,New York held at the Town Hall,126 E.Seneca St.,Ithaca, New York,there were present: Members:Supervisor Catherine Valentino;Councilman William Lesser;Dani Holford,Senior Typist;Larry Salmi,Heavy Equipment Operator. Absent:Councilman Ed Conley Support Staff:Judith C.Drake,PHR, Human Resources Specialist Others:Paul Tunison,General Manager,SCLIWC;Larry Parlett,Administrative Manager,SCLIWC. Call to order:12:10 Review Minutes of April 19,2000 Meeting. Approved as read. Persons to be Heard:None. Review of corrections from Employment and Policy Section: Violence in the Workplace:Mrs.Drake said that she added the paragraph that Councilman Lesser suggested at the last meeting,and she added at the end of the paragraph “do not put yourself in more danger by confronting the person.” Review of Corrections from General Information Section: Disciplinary Policy:Mrs.Drake explained that she spoke with Tompkins County Civil Service about this policy.They did not like our using a disciplinary policy as our first step.They wanted something that details what we do prior to that which is the reason for a Coaching Policy and Form.We should not use the word “disciplinary”in Civil Service until such time that we want to discipline the employee,that will open us to section 75 of Civil Service Law.They would prefer we not use the word “discipline”until we get to that aspect. 2 Final Final Final Councilman Lesser asked if there might be any assistance that could be given to the Department Heads when going from Coaching to discipline.It should be systematic procedure. Mrs.Drake explained that there is a meeting scheduled next Wednesday,May 31,2000.John Barney and Mrs.Drake will be chairing the meeting to discuss disciplinary policy.Also we will be starting the Performance Evaluation process in June. Mrs.Holford commented that an employee could be being Coached toward a disciplinary action and not realize it because it is done orally. Supervisor Valentino stated that all the training she had been given was that it should be made very clear to the employee what is happening right from the start.‘This is a coaching session to help you improve your performance but you need to understand that this could lead to discipline action If the performance isn’t corrected.”We are going to try to do a little more with training the Department Heads this year. Mrs.Drake said that most of the coaching should be verbal.And a lot of it should be on going.If it gets to the point of being written coaching that means that the verbal is not helping and it needs to be written with a plan of action. Agenda Item #4:Review Records Management and Electronic Media Usage Policy. Mrs.Drake stated that she did take Councilman Lesser’s concerns to the Records Management Advisory Committee.Our discussion at that meeting was that the program needs to be looked at.However we did not want to hold up the Personnel Manual due to this policy.What we did discuss was putting in an overview of the Records Management Policy and an overview of the Electronic Media Policy with both policies being an appendix in the back.If the policy should need changes we can make changes without printing the full manual.Mrs.Drake worked with the Town Clerk and they made a pretty good overview for each of the policies. Mrs.Drake asked Mr.Tunison if they had decided to whom the violations should be reported at their facility.Mr.Tunison said they should be reported to the General Manager.The title General Manager will be added to that section. The Committee discussed the separation of the title “Records Management and Electronic Media Usage Policy”in the overview policies and felt the headings should be separate.Records Management Overview and Electronic Media Overview. Agenda Item #5:Review Corrections to Employee Benefit Section. Mrs,Drake pointed out the corrections made to the Employee Benefit Section. 3 Final Final Final Mrs.Holford stated that since everything is left to the Department Heads employees are treated differently by different Department Heads. Supervisor Valentino again referred to the training of Department Heads which would include general policy for the Town.We will work with the Department Heads to make sure everyone is treated fair and equally.She said that some of the inequities are due to the difference in departments.Certain circumstances must be met in different departments that might give the perception of unfairness. The Department Heads are communicating more now through Department Head meetings.Each Department Head makes the determination how his/her department runs efficiently. Disability Insurance and Workers’Compensation Insurance.Mrs.Drake referred to the last page of the handout given to the Committee and pointed out the statement that if an employee goes on Workers’Compensation they are considered on unpaid leave.Their health insurance will be paid at the same rate as before the employee went on Workers’Compensation but their sick time and vacation time accrual stops.Short-term absences are not included because the person is still being paid by the Town.It effects only long-term absences.The same policy applies to disability insurance. Retirees’Percentage of Health Insurance.Mrs.Drake stated that she had not been able to contact other municipalities.She will do so and report to the Committee next month. Agenda Item #6:Review Miscellaneous Section. Travel and Training.The Committee discussed Reporting Hours Worked for Conferences.Mrs.Drake explained that this is covered in the Fair Labor Standards Act.The rules for travel for conferences are pretty detailed.It does say,anytime you are traveling during the workweek you have to report your time as soon as you leave your house.Driving time is considered working time but travel by bus or plane is not.She explained the Town’s ruling that passengers in a vehicle are allowed traveling time as well as the driver,because it is too hard to define to the employees’satisfaction “driver”and “passenger”.The reporting hours worked for conferences might be something to be revisited. Mr.Tunison had a question concerning Meal Allowances.Is the statement “if they leave before 6 a.m.and if they get home after 6 p.m.”a Town Policy or is that from the Fair Labor Standards Act?Mrs.Drake stated that it is a Town policy.Supervisor Valentino explained that the policy has been reworked,and reworked and the policy as stated is the easiest,most efficient and fairest that could be adopted.Mr.Tunison had a question about Mileage Reimbursement for use of the employees’own vehicle to travel back and forth.Is there some liability questions if they use their own vehicles for work purposes?Mrs.Drake explained that the employee should have their own insurance. i 4 Final Final Final Mr.Lesser asked what was meant by Use of Town Equipment.Could he borrow a Town snowplow to plow his driveway?Does it mean the use literally?Mrs. Drake explained that originally,at the Highway,employees wanted to do things such as oil changes,a tune-up on their own vehicle after hours.We also incorporated it to allow employees who wanted to use computers to do letters at work so we would allow them to use the equipment. Mr.Salmi explained that the way that came up,one of the employees at the County had a flat tire.He rolled the tire down to the County and was written up because he used their air.Because they have an absolute policy that employees could not use their equipment or materials.The employee was suspended for two days.Therefore,there needed to be some clarification for the Town use of equipment.Here the employee must get prior approval by the appropriate Department Head.Equipment may be used but not materials.The committee discussed the wording of this section.The word “occasionally”should be added. Mrs.Drake asked if the Committee understood the Personal Use of Town Vehicles.Mr.Tunison stated that what they have done in the past,the Department Heads,Production Manager,Distribution Manager,took vehicles home and they haven’t been paying the tax on it because they are equipped vehicles and have to respond after hours to emergency situations.Mrs.Drake stated the Town has the same policy.Some employees are on call so that is why they have a Town vehicle.Mr.Tunison said that no changes need be made in this section in that case. Mrs.Drake said she would incorporate all the corrections and have one last draft. The Committee discussed if one final meeting is necessary.They felt that one would be necessary to do the "clean-up”and then send the manual to the Town Board in August.The Committee will meet in June to do the “clean-up.”There will be no July meeting due to the move to the new Town Hall.Mrs.Drake stated that she will forward an amended copy of the Manual to Mr.Tunison.He will send the Manual to the SCLIWC Personnel Committee for review before sending it to the SCLIWC Commission. Mrs.Drake stated that she was contacted by a representative of AFLAC.He presented alternative insurance coverage that only covers cancer.It only pays if you are diagnosed with cancer and there is no other coverage.After discussion the Committee directed Mrs.Drake to forward the information to the members for their comments.Committee members suggested looking into increased coverage for short disability or adding long term disability. Meeting adjourned:1:10 p.m. 1 FINAL FINAL FINA Town of Ithaca Personnel Committee Meeting June 21,2000 12:00 Noon At the regular meeting of the Personnel Committee for the Town of Ithaca, Tompkins County,New York held at the Town Hall,126 E.Seneca St.,Ithaca, New York,there were present: Members:Supervisor Catherine Valentino;Councilman William Lesser; Councilman Ed Conley;Dani Holford,Senior Typist;. Absent:Larry Salmi,Heavy Equipment Operator. Support Staff:Judith C.Drake,PHR, Human Resources Specialist Others:Paul Tunison,General Manager,SCLIWC;Larry Parlet,Administrative Manager,SCLIWC;Joan Noteboom,Town Clerk Call to order:12:10 Review Minutes of May 24,2000 Meeting. Approved as read. Persons to be Heard:None. Agenda Item #4:Comments from Members Concerning AFLAC The Committee discussed the AFLAC proposal.The consensus was that the policy does not cover as much as it should.Mrs.Drake suggested that the brochure be given to all employees.The persons interested should contact the Human Resources Office.The employee will pay 100%of the premium.If there is the minimum of three employees enrolled the Town of Ithaca could initiate a group with AFLAC. Agenda Item #5:Discussion of Comparison of Retirees’Insurance Percentage. Mrs.Drake handed out copies of the Comparison of Retirees’Insurance Percentage.She explained that she had compiled some information from other municipalities.Mrs.Valentino asked what Mrs.Drake’s analysis was as to how the Town of Ithaca compared with the information gathered.Mrs.Drake said that some of the municipalities were good,some bad.She said the Town compared good in some instances and bad in others.The Village of Cayuga Heights pays 2 FINAL FINAL FINA 75%for both individual and family,which is a pretty high percentage.The Town of Caroline,the employee has to have 20 years of service.She asked them “what is the percentage if the employee does not have 20 years of service?” They said they have not had the problem.Councilman Lesser asked how long does the sick time cover the health insurance premium.Mrs.Drake said that it depends on the employee.She could not give an answer to that but we do have a retiree who retired in 1992 and according to our calculations,her insurance will be paid through next year.It depends on the circumstances.She had a large number of sick hours accrued.It also depends on the insurance premium.Mrs. Drake said that a lot of the municipalities surveyed use sick time at 100%until it is used up.We don’t do that.If their portion is 50%then we use that 50%out of their sick time balance,and the Town still pays their portion.So it helps stretch the sick time balance.In Dryden the retiree uses their sick time,then the retiree pays100%.Lansing does the same thing but then the Town pays 85%for individual coverage plus 65%for family coverage.Supervisor Valentino asked if we pay anything for family coverage.Mrs.Drake explained that the Town of Ithaca retiree pays 100%of the difference between individual and family coverage.At present the amount is about $250 a month.The City of Ithaca employee pays 100%after the sick time is used up. Councilman Lesser asked if Mrs.Drake had done an analysis of full benefits and pay package with other towns.She stated that it was done in 1998 for 1999.We received other Personnel Manuals or union contracts and looked at things such as vacation,sick,personal time,other major benefits and did a comparison. Supervisor Valentino stated that it is done about every three years to keep the Town of Ithaca competitive.Mrs.Drake offered to give Councilman Lesser a copy of the comparison.Councilman Lesser asked if the comparison was taken into consideration when wage scales,benefit package are established.Mrs. Drake said our wage scale changed for 1999,2000,2001.That was a full comparison with other municipalities.Those numbers were drawn together and were discussed by Mrs.Drake and Supervisor Valentino.Councilman Lesser asked when the Town is considering changes,what emphasis is placed oh salaries,wages compared to benefits,is there a general feeling about what the people would rather have?Mrs.Drake said basically what we are trying to do with our wages is to stay within a certain level with Tompkins County,which is our main competitor especially at a secretarial level where we compete with them the most.We don’t want to fall as low as the City or the surrounding counties which are much less than Tompkins County.We did the comparison more to see where we were lacking.Some of the positions were as low as the City.We brought up the levels,especially the lower levels,up a great deal.We will be starting that process at the end of this year,getting union contracts seeing where they are.We are on the same cycle as the City and County with establishing their union contracts.Supervisor Valentino explained that when we did the Personnel Manual,which took some time,we held meetings with the employees to get their input on the benefits we are providing and the classification system. We had a consensus that employees were satisfied with what we are offering. 3 FINAL FINAL FINA Now it is a matter of maintaining it.Mrs.Drake said the one benefit that has changed the most often is the vacation policy.Also the health insurance changed due to budgeting for the most economical system. Supervisor Valentino asked Mrs.Drake if she is recommending any change in the percentage we are paying for retirees.Supervisor Valentino explained that a lot of study went into the present percentages,and was changed gradually so it would not effect retirees suddenly.We did not get complaints from the retirees who were already on the plan or the new retirees.Mrs.Drake said that if a change is made that would be better for the retirees,it would be to make this percentage also based on family coverage.If someone has 25 years of full time service there portion is 50%.The way the policy reads now they pay 50%of the individual policy plus the difference between the individual policy and family policy,if they need a family policy.It could be as much as $400 a month for a retiree to be paying.Where if they take 50%of the family policy,that is only $200 they would have to pay.Mrs.Drake explained that the Town is coming into a period where the retiree has not only a spouse but a dependent child or dependent grandchild.It is not as simple as if the retiree has only a spouse.The retiree and spouse could each have individual policies but if there is a dependent child they have to have Family Coverage.Councilman Lesser asked if a family policy covers anything more than the retiree himself.Mrs.Drake said that we have looked at individual coverage and spousal coverage,it is not feasible because we have so many families.What it would do would make the individual policy less expensive but would make the family policy more expensive. Councilman Lesser commented that we are indirectly providing some family coverage benefits.Mrs.Drake explained that family coverage is any legal dependent.Councilman Lesser asked if Mrs.Drake could do a comparison of what the cost if we paid different percentages,how many employees will be retiring,make a projection of retirees’coverage.Supervisor Valentino said she and Mrs.Drake could discuss different scenarios.Councilman Lesser suggested a ten year period for the projection. Mrs.Noteboom asked if a statement could be put in the Personnel Manual concerning the late payment of health insurance premiums by retirees.Quite often Mrs.Drake has to remind certain retirees,who are several months in arrears,of their obligation to pay the premium.The committee discussed methods of insuring that retirees would pay in a timely fashion.A statement of policy,or in the Personnel Manual,could be made that if the retiree does not pay in 60 days the insurance could be cancelled without further notice.“The Town reserves the right to cancel any person’s insurance for accounts 60 days past due”could be inserted in the Personnel Manual.This will also be added to the COBRA section. Supervisor Valentino asked if there were other items that should be brought before the Committee. 4 FINAL FINAL FINA Mrs.Holford stated that she had gotten complaints about the vacation accrual. Some employees complained because at the beginning of the year they use their vacation and now they have to accrue more so that they can take vacation.It is a hardship to plan a vacation like this.Mrs.Drake explained that if the employee needs extra time for an anticipated circumstance,they can get approval to use the extra time from their Department Head.The Department Head gives Mrs. Drake a letter stating approval of the extra time.The Town is flexible in their enforcement of policies regarding vacation time. Mrs.Noteboom mentioned some propositions for the future consideration by the Personnel Committee.We are getting more young people with children.Could we institute an option where the employee could “bank”money if they knew what child care would cost them for the year and get a tax advantage.Possibly a flex benefit program.Mrs.Drake stated that the City has a child care policy that pays the employee for child care in pre-tax dollars.We have looked into a flex plan policy but the administrative costs are high.At the time,there were not enough people interested to make the costs feasible.She said that she would be more than happy to research those again if the Committee wanted her to look into it. Mrs.Noteboom said there was a second item she would like to mention for the Committees’consideration.Is there a disability group plan,supplemental insurance,or some other plan that the employee could pay for that would cover disabilities.Mrs.Drake said that she was going to check with our insurance carrier to see if we could get something with a little higher standard.The employees cannot pay more than 60 cents.It would be a Town cost.Mrs. Noteboom said that she meant a supplemental insurance that could be paid for by the employee.For a group,the rates would be less.The State policy does not pay more than $170 per week.A higher paid employee,on an extended disability period with little sick time,would find it inadequate.Supervisor Valentino asked how sick time effects disability.Mrs.Drake stated it would be separate from a supplemental policy.Now,if a person has sick time it is used to get a full paycheck.Mrs.Noteboom stated that she was referring to a policy that could be purchased through the Town as a group at no expense to the Town. The payment would come to the employee directly and not involve the Town. This type of plan would be less expensive if purchased through a group.It could be offered as an option to employees the way Deferred Compensation is offered. Meeting adjourned at 12:55 p.m. FINAL FINAL FINAL Town of Ithaca Personnel Committee Meeting August 30,2000 12:00 noon At the regular meeting of the Personnel Committee for the Town of Ithaca,Tompkins County,New York held at the Town Hall,215 N.Tioga St.,Ithaca,New York,there were present: Members:Supervisor Catherine Valentino;Councilman William Lesser:Councilman Ed Conley;Dani Holford,Senior Typist;Larry Salmi,Heavy Equipment Operator. Support Staff:Judith Drake,Human Resources Specialist. Others:Paul Tunison,General Manager,SCLIWC;Larry Parlett,Administrative Manager,SCLIWC. Call to order:12:05. Agenda Item #2:Minutes approved. Agenda Item #3:Staff to be Heard:None Agenda Item #4:Update on AFLAC. Mrs.Drake reported that there was no reply,by the staff,to the survey sent to them. Agenda Item #5:Update on Supplemental Insurance and Other Insurance. Mrs.Drake stated that our insurance company sent out a quote that is not going to come back until this Friday,September 1,2000.At the next meeting she will have more information concerning supplemental insurance available and the cost.She explained it would be an extension of our present short-term disability.We will look at some type of long-term disability.It will come here for discussion by the Personnel Committee and not to the employees directly.Mrs.Drake said she has mentioned to the employees that the Town is looking at long-term insurance.If the Committee decides,as the information comes in,to recommend that the insurance start in January,2001,we will have to move quickly to include the cost in the budget. Agenda Item #6:Discussion of Projections of Retirees’Insurance Percentage. Mrs.Drake said she was asked to put together a projection of how much it would cost if we changed the percentages that the retirees are paying.In the draft Personnel Manual,the percentages have not been changed.She tried to take currently what would happen this year and possibly next year.It is too hard to project further because 1 FINAL FINAL FINAL of premium rises.We have retirees living out of state and they would have to be .considered.They have a lower premium because they are buying at a lower rate Blue Cross/Blue Shield.They also have Medicare.Of the other seven retirees,two have spouses and the others have individual policies.Right now the retiree has to purchase an individual policy and then pay the difference between the Family and Individual policy.Of course,it is going to cost the Town money if we change the policy.The easiest way to make a difference for the retiree and save the Town money would be if the retiree could take out two individual policies.Mrs.Drake stated that she had talked to our agent and they take a blind eye to that.If we are saying that these two people are employees they will accept that.We do have the option to offer the two retirees the opportunity to purchase individual policies.It would be cheaper for the retiree who has a spouse.If it were a family that would not be helpful,or if it were a retiree and child, there would be no savings to the retiree.It is up to us to tell Univera who is an employee and who is not an employee.Supervisor Valentino stated that basically it makes us say something that is not true.She wondered why Univera does not have a policy concerning this situation.Mr.Salmi asked about a challenge to a claim on the policy.It maybe declared invalid if Univera looks into the claim and realized the individual was not an employee.The members felt that it would not be a good situation for the Town to say something that might be challenged later or jeopardize our insurance.Mrs.Drake said that we do have a policy in the Personnel Manual that if an employee passes on,the spouse can remain in the group if the employee had sick-time accrued.The person has had insurance the full time of employment.The health insurance Company’s position is that the Town is not adding someone who has not had insurance with them.The person has always had insurance,now there is different circumstances.You are just splitting it up into two policies instead of one.They are still covering the same person.That is an option for the Town to look at,two individual policies.Councilman Conley asked if the policy came from the insurance company. Mrs.Drake said that it did but they will not put it in writing.Mrs.Drake said that who we sign up under our insurance is our responsibility.Supervisor Valentino made the comment that if Univera says they are not going to cover this person because of a legality,we are stuck with that.Mr.Parlett made the point that what they may be trying to clarify,if the person had insurance through another employer,then it gets complicated.Mr.Tunison said that the individual would not be selecting family coverage and paying for it if the spouse had a separate policy.In that case neither of the policies wants to pay it would be in the best interest of the insurance company to clarify the situation.Mrs.Drake remarked that we do have employees that have family coverage their spouse has other coverage and Univera is secondary insurance.You are seeing a lot more employers saying that if some people have spouses who can obtain insurance through his employer,he has to get that and they would be secondary through our insurance.This would cost our insurance less,because they would only be paying what little was left of the claim.Borg Warner was a big one that just switched to that and NYSEG is another one.If the spouse can pick up other insurance then they have to pick up other insurance.I have had to write a couple letters saying “yes we do cover people.“It is another trend coming out. 2 FINAL FINAL FINAL Mr.Lesser said it certainly helps to look at the costs of these things but he is new to this process and not entirely sure how we look at this.It is clearly a benefit to the retirees;it is also a cost to the Town.Is this something when we are talking about annual employment packages we factor this in or we thinking about just adding it?How does this fit into the whole process?How does fringe benefits fit into the whole employment agreement.Benefits are transparent to all of us,the part we don’t pay and it is real money.How do you incorporate these considerations?Mrs.Valentino said that the only time we really look at our fringe benefits in relationship to our hourly wages other than every three years when Judy and I go through an evaluation.We look at other benefit packages.Then we look at all the benefit and wages we are giving our employees then we try to balance the two to see if we are staying competitive with other places.But on an every year basis,like right now we are going through looking at what wages increases we are going to be giving employees,we don’t really take their benefit package in consideration in that because we evaluated that last year.We only do that every three years.Mr.Lesser said he knows of some employers that say would you rather take your money in your check or some other flex schedule of benefits.It gets more complicated and more expensive.It's something we might think about in the future.Mr.Conley asked if employees came in to negotiate.Mrs.Valentino explained that we do not have unions.We have meetings with the employees from time to time. At one time we had fairly regular meeting with the employees saying this is what we are going to propose,what do you think about this,what kind of benefits that are out there that people are getting nowadays and can we afford to do this.That is how the wellness program came about.We try to keep informed.Mrs.Drake talks to the Department Heads about new things that are out there that come to her through her office.We evaluate the cost and then decide if it might be something we might want to offer our employees.For instance the Wellness program.It costs the Town money but in the long run it benefits the Town.You look at what the trade off is in those kinds of things. Mrs.Valentino explained that when I was first Supervisor,what retirees were getting was a benefit that was all over the map.Everybody negotiated there own deal with whoever was Supervisor at the time and this doesn’t make sense.The Town Board wanted to get a handle on some kind of reasonable way of saying this is what the Town will offer people who are going to retire.At the time we did this,we looked at health insurance packages with other employers.This one was very competitive.We have not looked at it in awhile.Mrs.Drake reminded the Committee that we have talked to other municipalities.The members were given copies of the comparison at the previous meeting.. Mr.Conley asked as our employees retire with years of service and so forth,they tend to stay in the Retirement System do they not?Mrs.Valentino explained that is for their retirement not health insurance.The Retirement System is not in our area of responsibility.We can say what we do with sick time,what percentage and how we do it is totally our responsibility.Mr.Conley asked about the State Retirement and the things they give away are their costs?Mrs.Drake said that we pay for it.Mr.Salmi commented about the early retirement incentives.We fund it.Essentially,it is a 3 FINAL FINAL FINAL retirement bonus.Mrs.Drake stated that is why the Town has to decide to participate because it is a financial burden on the Town if they decide to offer it.Plus we have to show that we can reduce salary limit for two years in a row.It definitely comes out of the Town budget even though the State offers it.Mr.Salmi asked those who have retired,do they need to be not replaced or can they be replaced if they retire with a package like that offered by the State.Mrs.Drake stated that we have the option to replace them or not replace them.If we replace them,we have to show the State that we have saved 50%in salary over a two year period.Mrs.Valentino said that you are hiring someone at an entry level in place of the higher paid employee who retired.Mrs. Drake said that in some aspects we have had to not hire somebody for length of time and then hire them late in the season as part of the next year to prove that we saved that much money.It is not easy to save the 50%.It used to be that you were going to eliminate the position.You used to have to show that you were eliminating at least one position.It makes it nicer that you just have to show a 50%savings.That is on the early retirement.If somebody retires on their own,we do not have to pay the incentive portion but there is still a portion that the Town has to pay for somebody retiring.Mr. Salmi asked if someone retires early on a package like the State offers,how does that effect the years of service regarding the health insurance Say it breaks out at 24 or 25 years,if somebody retired at say 23 years and they would have a couple years to go. Mrs.Drake explained that we look at the actual years of service that the employee puts in with the Town of Ithaca.What the Retirement System is looking at is the years they put in to the NYS Retirement,any years they brought in prior to coming to the Town of Ithaca then they give the employee an incentive of three years.We look at the number of years of employment with the Town of Ithaca. Mrs.Drake said that brings up her second recommendation;that is looking at the years of service and what their percentage would be.That is another thing that I thought could be improved upon if the Town opted for it.Now we leave part-time and elected officials get a certain percentage.Right now any kind of part-time employee or elected official pays 50%.After retirement the Town would say they would pay 80%.It would not matter how many years they were part-time or how many years they were an elected official.My recommendation is that elected officials and part-time employees pay 80%so they would pay more than when they were working.It would be based on years of service.It would simplify the percentages.Currently we do not have any elected or part-time employees on our insurance.We have only full-time employees. Now if they have less than eight years they pay 100%,eight to fourteen they pay 95% and it goes down from there.Mrs.Holford asked if it would be years of service for full- time employees and not years of service for part-time employees?Mrs.Drake said that they would have to pay 80%.Mrs.Valentino remarked that others would pay a lower percent for years of service.You are offering an incentive for the employee to pay a small amount and would keep retirees insured rather than not insured.The amount of incentive would be small.Mrs.Valentino asked if once employees retire and go on Medicare doesn’t our insurance become secondary?At Cornell,when we go on Medicare we have to switch from our preferred plan to the 80 1 20 plan.In our insurance plan our retirees are still able to stay on the preferred plan?Mrs.Drake said that what Univera used to have was a secondary coverage,that if they had Medicare,based on 4 FINAL FINAL FINAL one on Medicare or both spouses on Medicare.Univera has dropped that for 2001.We are going to have a straight fee whatever individual premium is or whatever Family premium is,it is not going to take into consideration anymore whether they have Medicare of not.Univera is getting rid of that whole other tier.It is good for the retiree because it costs them more money to have that second coverage.If an employee retires they would not go on another plan they would stay on the same plan,at the same benefits.Everything stays the same,you just have to work out the Medicare part of it when the employee reaches 65 or pick up Medicare.The Committee discussed the relationship of Medicare and Univera as it pertains to retirees. Mr.Lesser asked if it would be possible to get an assessment from the Town attorney whether following Mrs.Drake’s recommendation would bring some uncertainty when putting two spouses on the policy individually.It seems there are legal questions concerning the proposed change in retirees’status.Is it an ethical or moral question or legal question?Would there be a problem legally if it should become evident that the spouse of the employee did not actually work for the Town?Mrs.Valentino summarized the recommendation made by Mrs.Drake regarding part-time and elected officials.Mrs.Drake explained the relationship to Retirement System and our health insurance regarding elected officials.Mrs.Valentino asked what the advantage to the retiree to stay on the health insurance if they are paying 80%?Mrs.Drake asked if the Committee felt that the option for health insurance should be offered to elected officials. Mrs.Valentino explained that originally it was offered to part-time and elected officials as an incentive to have them covered by health insurance.Mrs.Drake mentioned that if they are on our health insurance and retire we are obligated to offer them COBRA. Mr.Salmi commented that if the employee or elected official was employed else where and did not have health insurance,this program would allow them to have insurance at a group rate.Mrs.Valentino asked if the Town has a cut-off of hours for part-time employees or do we pay 50%for every part-time employee?Mrs.Drake said the employee must work more than one-half time,18.75 hours or more.Mrs.Valentino asked if an employee works less than that can they be in the group if they pay 100%. Mrs.Drake said that situation applies only to dental.One of the reasons health insurance is not offered to part-time employees is because some health insurance companies are group rated so the more employees you add it is more expensive. However,Univera is community rated so the everybody in the Cayuga area plan,all of the premiums versus what is paid out goes together and that is how they come up with a rate for us.The Committee discussed the advantages and disadvantages of offering health insurance to part-time employees.Mrs.Valentino suggested that health insurance be offered to part-time employees for anyone working less than 18.75 hours at 100%of the premium.The Committee concurred.Mrs.Drake asked the Committee if they agreed that the percentage of the premiums be prorated for employees according to the number of hours worked between 18.75 hours and 37.5 hours.Elected officials would remain at 50%.The Committee agreed to the plan. The Committee discussed the length of service scale for the employee.Mrs.Valentino asked about the Town’s experience with number of years of present retirees.She suggested that a category be added:20 to 30 years and then over 30 years the Town 5 FINAL FINAL FINAL percentage be larger.After discussion,the consensus of the Committee was to leave the years and percentages the same as they are in the Personnel Manual now but add “over 30 years the retiree would pay 25%.” Mrs.Drake summarized the scale and percentages for retirees: Less than 5 years the retiree pays 100% 5 to 10 years the retiree pays 80% 11 to 20 years the retiree pays 65% 21 to 29 years the retiree pays 50% 30 and over the retiree pays 25% The Committee decided the years should be less than 5 years,5 to 14 years,15 to 30 years and over 30 years. Mrs.Drake asked the Committee their ruling concerning elected officials.After discussion the Committee decided that the elected officials should be consistent with the other policies. Mr.Lesser made some suggestions for editorial improvements in the draft Personnel Manual.Number the topics and label sections,add the Drug and Alcohol policy as an appendix and have a heading referring the employee to the appendix.Also make changes to table of contents. Announcements:Next meeting,September 27,2000. Meeting adjourned at 1:05 p.m. 6 FINAL FINAL FINAL Town of Ithaca Personnel Committee Meeting September 27,2000 12:00 noon At the regular meeting of the Personnel Committee for the Town of Ithaca, Tompkins County,New York held at the Town Hall,215 N.Tioga St.,Ithaca,New York,there were present: Members:Supervisor Catherine Valentino;Dani Holford,Senior Typist;Larry Salmi,Heavy Equipment Operator. Support Staff:Judith Drake,Human Resources Specialist. Others:Paul Tunison,General Manager,SCLIWC. Call to order:12:05 p.m. Agenda Item #2:Minutes approved. Agenda Item #3:Persons to be Heard:none. Agenda Item #4:Discussion Long Term Disability and Life Insurance Quotes. Mrs.Drake explained the Life Insurance quotes and long-term Disability insurance quotes.(See attached sheet)The life insurance would be above and beyond the life insurance we have with New York State and Local Retirement System as an active employee.She explained that there is a death benefit with the retirement system.The death benefit for tier 1 employees is not paid after the employee retires.This would be life insurance above and beyond anything they would get through the retirement system.Mrs.Drake explained the death benefit is the annual salary at time of death times the number of years of service up to a maximum of three years would be paid out to the beneficiary.Maybe we do not need this other life insurance.$25,000,to be realistic,is going to pay for some other costs that someone is not prepared to take on at the time.Mrs.Holford said she never understood how it worked with New York State Retirement System.Mrs.Drake gave the example:If you were making $20,000.00 basically you would receive $60,000.00.Mrs.Valentino asked everyone understood the death benefit.Mrs.Holford remarked that some employees did not realize that their sick time would go to pay health insurance when they retire,therefore there might be employees who do not understand the New York State Retirement System death benefit.Mrs.Drake commented that once the Personnel Manual is finished then we should have some sessions of running back through some of the different points in the Personnel Manual that deal with the benefits.Mrs. Valentino suggested a summary sheet be made of just the benefits and then have a staff meeting to make them clearer to the employees.Mrs.Drake said FINAL FINAL FINAL that maybe it is something that could be done every year as a refresher of what is in the Personnel Manual.We should be doing that for sexual harassment and anti-harassment and those policies yearly.Mrs.Drake explained that she goes over the Personnel Manual section by section with new hires.However, someone who was hired ten years ago,there have been many changes in the Personnel Manual in that time. Returning to the discussion of life insurance,Mrs.Drake said the proposal for the insurance would be a contributory plan if we want to offer this to the employees, if they want life insurance,they would contribute toward it.There are some specifications;the employer contribution must equal at least 25%of the cost,at the minimum.At least 75%of the eligible employees must enroll,which is a high percentage.These are some of the points the Committee members should consider.The Committee considered the premiums reasonable.Mrs.Valentino said the Committee should look at the policies to see what they cover and if they are good policies.Mrs.Drake said she would have to go over the policies with Mr.Gibson.Mrs.Valentino explained the Cornell University policy for life insurance for their employees.If the employee retired he or she would pay the cost themselves.Mr.Salmi stated that one of the benefits of life insurance is that there would be no health stipulations.Mrs.Drake explained that there is an age reduction.At 65 it would be at one amount and at 70 another reduction in benefit.The premium would remain the same but the amount of coverage would decline.The Committee wanted to explore the possibility of offering life insurance to the employees further.Mrs.Valentino asked Mr.Tunison if he thought SCLIWC would be interested in participating in such a program.He said he thought they might but additional disability insurance would be more important to the employees there.Mrs.Drake said that these are just some of the possibilities she has looked into.It will come back to the point Councilman Lesser made at the last meeting.“Where is the Towns and Bolton Points threshold on what is the percentage they want to pay for benefits vs.salary.” Mrs.Valentino asked what is the ratio of benefits to salaries?Mrs.Drake said she did not know off the top of her head but thought the benefits were around 30%of our salaries.She said that 35%is a general guideline. Mrs.Drake stated that the long term disability for active full time employees,full- time being at least 30 hours,assuming 100%contribution by the employer,would start within 90 days of the employees disability.Short time disability would cover the 90 days.She said that this would depend on the employee staying on long term disability for a period of time.Maximum monthly benefit is $3000.00.The minimum monthly benefit is $100.00.The total for the year for all employees would be $8200.00,which averages out to $133 per employee per year.Mrs. Valentino said this depends on how good a benefit the disability policy would be. Mrs.Drake said these figures depend on 100%employer payment of the premium with minimum participation by employees being 100%.Mr.Salmi asked if we have ever had an employee that if we had had the insurance he would be covered.Mrs.Drake said we have had such an employee.A good example FINAL FINAL FINAL would be,if a young person had a car accident.You never know how that would end up.They could be in the hospital for two years.Mrs.Valentino asked how this effects Worker’s Comp.Mrs.Drake stated that Worker’s Comp covers on the job incidents and the long-term disability would be off the job situations.The same as our short-term disability that we have,that is state required and it pays up to a maximum of $170 a week.Mrs.Valentino said we would need to look at what the different levels are and how much we think our employees would actually collect.Based on our salary ranges to see if it is worth that kind of investment.Mrs.Drake said the rate would only be guaranteed for two years so as our payroll went up every two years the rate would definitely go up.She said that she just wanted to show the Committee where the numbers are coming in. She said she would get more detail from Mr.Gibson.Several companies are already offering long-term disability to their employees. Mrs.Valentino stated that she doubts the Town would want to pick up both life insurance and long-term disability.It comes down to what do the employees feel is more important to them.Or if the Town picks up the long-term disability to meet the 100%requirement,we could offer the life insurance to the employees. They would pay the premiums themselves.Mrs.Drake said one of the things that needs to done is a survey of the employees to find out what they would be interested in at different rates.Mrs.Valentino commented that it would depend on the program.If it means that the Town is paying $133 for each employee and they are only going to realize a small sum per month,then it would not be cost effective.Mrs.Drake stated that Mr.Gibson contacted 11 companies and got seven back.Basically they all use the same forms.She said she would talk to Mr.Gibson and get more details.Mrs.Drake stated that the Committee would have to look at the use of the long-term disability.If the Town paid premiums for ten years and it was not used it is a waste of money.The Committee discussed the Town adopting the program of self-insurance.Cornell University and the City of Ithaca are self-insured.Mr.Salmi said he would like to have Mrs.Drake investigate the self-insurance.In thinking back there were only two employees who have passed away during the period they were employed by the Town.And there was only one employee that he could recall that retired on disability.The $8200 premium would go a long way toward self-insurance.Also,contact Tompkins County and the City of Ithaca concerning pooling insurance.Mr. Tunison commented that once the municipality is in such programs,they are in them forever. Discussion of Retiree’s Health Insurance Percentages. Mrs.Drake said there was one point she would like to report to the Committee. Regarding the retiree’s going to individual plan instead of family plan.Once she talked to our Univera representative again she heard another aspect that made it not a good thing to do.The only benefit we could do would be to have their percentage,based on years of service,is applied to a family plan.It is the only thing that could be done to help the retiree who has to have a family plan.Mrs. FINAL FINAL FINAL Drake explained presently the Town only pays the percentage on the individual plan and the retiree makes up the difference for a family plan.If the percentage were paid for the retiree on a family plan it would help.The Committee discussed the options of having an individual policy,having an employee and spouse or an employee,spouse and one child or having a family policy.Mrs.Drake said that there was no justification to change from offering an individual plan and a family plan.Mrs.Valentino stated that the Committee might look at the cost of paying the percentage based on years of service for the retiree’family plan as well as the individual plan.The Town only has retired couple that has individual plans and they both worked here.The Committee felt that it would be worth investigating. Discussion of Part-time Employees’health Insurance Contribution Percentages. Mrs.Drake said another item to be considered by the Committee is the percentage that part-time employees pay for health insurance.The policy we have in effect now is anybody that works between 18.75 hours and 37.5 pay 50%.What we are looking at is changing that to a prorated amount.Anyone is working less than half time could obtain health insurance by paying the full premium.The City of Ithaca and Tompkins County and some other towns consider 32.5 hours full-time.The Town has only 2 part-time employees now. We are looking at having prorated health insurance premiums for part-time employees.The Committee can think about setting another hourly amount that would be considered full-time.The reason for the Committee considering this change is because there are more people possibly wanting to work half-time positions or being able to stay at home and work split positions.Mrs.Drake said she was thinking how these policies would relate and be fair to all.Mrs. Valentino said that it would be better to propose thresholds rather than a prorated percentage. Mrs.Drake said the draft of the Personnel Manual is going slowly.Maybe she could give Bolton Point a draft 2.Mr.Tunison said as long as they do not have to review it twice.He could present the changes from the original.At least the Bolton Point Personnel Committee could make proposals that they might like to see included in the new Personnel Manual. Mrs.Drake suggested Committee members Mrs.Holford and Mr.Salmi contact employees to find out which programs they prefer between the long-term disability and life insurance. Meeting adjourned at 1:05pm. FINAL FINAL FINAL Town of Ithaca Personnel Committee Meeting October 18,2000 12:00 noon At the regular meeting of the Personnel Committee for the Town of Ithaca, Tompkins County,New York held at the Town Hall,215 N.Tioga St.,Ithaca,New York,there were present: Members:Councilman William Lesser;Dani Holford,Senior Typist;Larry Salmi, Heavy Equipment Operator. Absent:Supervisor Catherine Valentino;Councilman Ed Conley. Support Staff:Judith Drake,Human Resources Specialist. Others:Mary Russell,Deputy Town Supervisor;Paul Tunison,General Manager, SCLIWC;Larry Parlett,Administrative Manager,SCLIWC. Call to order:12:05 p.m. Agenda Item #2:Minutes approved with one correction.Last paragraph should read “Personnel Manual is going slowly”instead of “Personnel Manual is going slowing”. Agenda Item #3:Persons to be Heard:none. Agenda Item #4:Report by Committee members Larry Salmi and Dani Holford. Mrs.Holford reported that in surveying Town Hall employees she found 8 employees said yes they would be interested in life insurance,6 employees said no they are not interested.Concerning Long-term Disability,10 employees expressed interest and 7 were not interested.Some employees said they would need more information to make a decision.Mrs.Drake asked if Mrs.Holford had asked employees if they would be interested if the Town of Ithaca paid part of the premiums.Mrs.Holford stated that she explained to employees that the Town would not pay for both therefore,some of the “yes”answers were based on the fact the employee might have to contribute toward the premium.Mrs.Holford said some of the no answers were based on the fact that there was life insurance in the household for the breadwinner.Also,some employees felt that the premium for life insurance is high. Mrs.Drake said that Mr.Salmi called her on Tuesday and stated that a lot of the employees at the Highway were definitely very interested in long-term disability since they have more of a chance of being injured.Also,they are interested in contributing to part of the life insurance premium.Mr.Salmi explained to Highway FINAL FINAL FINAL employees that the Town would pay for long-term disability and that the employee would contribute to the life insurance premiums.Quite a few of the employees at the Highway facility are interested in life insurance because they do not have outside life insurance.However,they would like more information. Mr.Parlett commented that as he looked over the proposal,he thought the rate for life insurance is not bad.The dollar value per employee per month is different than he thought it would be.The other reason that he considered life insurance is because the retirement death benefit that people get takes months before you actually see the money.If it happens to be an accidental death then it has to go before a judge and have a special hearing.In the incidence at Bolton Point,it took at lease eight months for the widow to see the money.I hope people realize they should get other insurance and not depend on the retirement death benefit. Mrs.Drake commented that this is true especially in the case of accidental death because it has to be proven to be an accidental death and the family has to go through that which is not fair to the family. Mrs.Drake said she did talk to the insurance agent to get more information.At the last meeting the Committee members had a lot of questions on how the life insurance policy works.It is a group term life insurance that makes it a little less expensive than if you were to try to buy your own policy.It only pays if the person dies vs.a whole life policy that pays a dividend.Normally the premiums of a whole life policy go up with age.This policy will not go up with the individuals age because it is based on the group and not a specific person.If you bought insurance on your own,the company would ask your age,if you smoke etc.Because it is a group,they will not ask those questions.They will have one rate for the group.That is a benefit,especially if there is someone who has some illnesses.There is also no physical exam.Councilman Lesser commented that it is an incentive to people to put off taking the life insurance since there is not age requirement and it would raise the pool rate,which would be even more of an incentive to delay.On employment status,the employee is covered until they are 65 years old and then when they are retired they can stay in the group but the benefit goes down to 50%.As long as they are active employees they can stay in the plan with a benefit reduction of 35%at age 65, then 50%reduction at age 70.If somebody resigns and wants to do something with the insurance,they can convert it,but only to a whole life policy.When they convert it,the agency will ask how old they are,whether they smoke,what their physical condition is,so when it is converted the rate will be higher than employees are paying for the Town group rate.At the last meeting Supervisor Valentino asked whether if the Town paid for a $25,000 policy and the employee had the option to raise it to a $50,000 policy.Mr.Gibson,our insurance agent, has gone back to ask for a quote with that option which might change the premiums. FINAL FINAL FINAL Mrs.Drake asked if there were other questions to be answered.Mr.Salmi asked what is the minimum number of people.Mrs.Drake said that for the life insurance is it 75%for a contributory plan.She explained that the policy states that the employer must pay at least 25%and least 75%of employees must be enrolled.The long-term disability,the employer must pay the whole thing.The policy is for active employees only,it does not apply when they resign or retire. Mrs.Holford asked about the life insurance.It was presented as $25,000 for the Town. Mrs.Drake said that if the employee paid 100%for the flat $25,000.00,it was a total of $81 per employee per year or $5022 for all the full-time employees for the year.Mrs.Drake said that the long-term disability for the maximum $3000 a month coverage is $8235 for all the employees for a year.The long-term disability starts after three months so the employee would be on short-term disability and then convert to the long-term disability.The short-term disability would apply for the full 26 weeks but it would be reimbursing the long-term disability insurance company.It is better for the employee because they would be getting their full salary instead of $170 per week.The long-term is equal to the employee’s salary the day before the accident so it would be the normal salary up to the per month maximum.The Personnel Committee would have to consider where the employee’s average monthly benefit is and decide if $3000 is too low and $5000 is better.If someone were out for 90 days or longer,it would be a benefit for them. Mr.Salmi said that there was a lot of interest at the Highway Department,mostly in long-term disability.There was some interest in the life insurance.There are employees who cannot buy life insurance so they could buy it under our group. That was an advantage that was discussed at the Highway Department in favor of the group life insurance.Mrs.Russell commented that the problem is the 75% enrollment requirement if the Town selects the contributory method.Mr.Salmi asked if the life insurance premium could be withheld from pay,as is the health insurance.If so,it would be a minimal amount,$3.00.One of the points that was discussed at the Highway Department was the employee buy the life insurance and the Town buy the long-term disability insurance if everyone agreed to the plan.Everyone would be covered fully for each contingency. Mr.Tunison said that we would offer these two packages saying that the employer would pay the long-term disability insurance but in order to do that we need all employees to participate in the life insurance and contribute. Mrs.Drake stated that would be a way to encourage everyone to get life insurance but it would have to be optional. FINAL FINAL FINAL Mrs.Holford asked about the minimum enrollment for the two packages.Mrs. Drake explained that the life insurance is 75%enrollment and long-term disability is 100%,for all active full time employees. Mrs.Russell commented that is the only potential problem.There might not be enough interest in the life insurance. Mrs.Drake said that as we got closer to offering the packages we should have an idea how much interest there is by polling the employees.She said she would like to run some enrollment sessions for the employees so they could ask questions.Some other information on long-term disability:it starts at 90 days and continues up to age 65,at that point if the employee is still disabled,they would go on Social Security disability.Most likely by that time they would retire under disability retirement. Mrs.Russell asked what is the life insurance;do they just pay off and not care if it is an accidental death?Mrs.Drake said that the life insurance has an accident and dismemberment clause.She explained other clauses in the life insurance dealing with exclusions of payment.Mrs.Russell commented that if any of these issues were raised it could delay payment but generally they would pay quickly. Mrs.Drake pointed out other exclusion and positive clauses.She said that it seems that there is definitely interest in both packages.At the last meeting one of the members brought up the self-insurance question.She stated that she has been in contact with a self-insurance company who also does other types of insurance,dental reimbursement etc.which she would look into also.At the Municipal Officers Meetings there was interest in pooling together for health insurance.They might be interested in a self-insurance plan if we did some type of self-insurance plan.The Committee discussed several aspects of the self¬ insurance plans such as setting limits,flexible spending plan.Mrs.Drake explained the importance of setting a dollar limit on the flexible plan.Mrs.Drake asked if the Committee wanted to adopt the packages.The Committee felt that more information is needed before making a decision.Mrs.Drake said that she would look into the plans including the self-insurance plan and report to the Committee. Other Topics: Part-time percentage for health Insurance: At the last meeting,the section of the Personnel Manual concerning employee health insurance percentages for part-time employees was discussed.She presented,to the Committee,a sheet with percentages figured.The Committee discussed the proposal as presented.Mrs.Drake said she would contact the City of Ithaca and Tompkins regarding their percentages for part-time employees. FINAL FINAL FINAL Sick Time Balance for Retirees: Mrs.Drake stated that last year a retiree asked about the present policy of the use of sick time.Our policy,at the present,is that if the retiree does not use the sick time for payment of health insurance it is lost.Mrs.Drake discussed the fact that the NYSLRS offers a benefit that allows the employee’s sick time balance to be calculated toward additional service credit.Their sick time maximum for sick time is 165 days;our maximum is 120 days.Mrs.Drake explained the NYSLRS benefit to the Committee including the cost to the Town.The Committee discussed the use of the sick time for retirees,cash payment,NYSLRS,and use for health insurance.Mrs.Drake said that NYSLRS proposal is ready to go to the Town Board for acceptance or rejection. I Mrs.Drake answered some questions regarding the timing of the implementation of the life insurance,long-term disability and self-insurance plans. Meeting adjourned at 12:55 p.m. Final Final Final Town of Ithaca Personnel Committee Meeting November 8,2000 12:00 noon At the regular meeting of the Personnel Committee for the Town of Ithaca, Tompkins County,New York held at the Town Hall,215 N.Tioga St.,Ithaca,New York,there were present: Members:Catherine Valentino,Town Supervisor;William Lesser,Councilman; Dani Holford,Senior Typist;Larry Salmi,Heavy Equipment Operator. Absent:Councilman Ed Conley. Others:Paul Tunison,General Manager,SCLIWC;Larry Parlett,Administrative Manager,SCLIWC. Call to order:12:00 noon. Agenda Item #2:Approved minutes of the October 18,2000 with the corrections:paragraph 2,page 2 should read “it took at least eight months” instead of “it took at lease eight months”.Paragraph 3,page 2 should read “since there is no age requirement”instead of “since there is not age requirement”. Agenda Item #3:Persons to be heard.None. Agenda Items #4:Tabled until the return of Human Resources Specialist Judith Drake. Agenda Item #5:Review Long-term Disability Maximums. After discussion by the Personnel Committee members,it was decided that Supervisor Catherine Valentino and Councilman William Lesser would present the proposal concerning Long-term Disability to the Town of Ithaca Town Board at the November meeting. Agenda item #6:Tabled until the return of Human Resources Specialist Judith Drake. Meeting adjourned:1:00 p.m.