Photo by Kirsten Zoellner
The City of Rushford Village has worked to hammer out a functional and comparable-benefit employee guide for the last year. After multiple discussions and revisions, the update is nearly complete.
The final review by Public Sector Human Resources Consultant Paul Ness, with whom the city contracted, was done last month. Now, City Attorney Joe O’Koren is reviewing the draft document. Then the Personnel Committee will recommend it to the council for final approval.
One of the approved updates relates to personal time accrual for city employees. Full-time employees will now accrue up to eight hours of sick time per month, with part-time employees receiving five hours per month. City Clerk Mary Miner stated there wouldn’t be a limit on carryover, but a maximum of the life of their employment with the village: 400 hours maximum for full-time and 200 hours for part-time.
In April, Miner suggested the city move from providing separate sick and holiday pay to incorporating Personal Time Off (PTO). Ness indicated he wasn’t in favor of this switch. Thorough council discussions eventually led them to conclude that it would be more straightforward and make employees accountable for managing their PTO benefits wisely. Council approved the switch unanimously.
“Originally, I was not in favor of PTO,” said Councilor Bob Hart, who also sits on the Personnel Committee. “I thought the other system was cleaner and more structured.” He noted that combining sick and vacation benefits is fair to all. “I don’t care what program we choose, just so we have a program in place. It’ll be nice to have it done and in place for the employees.”
The council approved a third motion related to employees volunteering in the fire department or ambulance crews. They’ll now receive their regular income while on the calls so long as any city emergency supersedes the employee attending a call elsewhere. Employees will receive regular income on these calls until their typical eight-hour work day.
The last change approved relates to holiday pay. Besides adding a 10th paid federal holiday, Juneteenth, the council sought to clarify employee pay for time worked on holidays.
“If it’s a holiday, we’re not supposed to be here, but things happen,” said Miner.
The council decided that employees called in would earn their regular wage and up to eight hours of holiday pay, which is comparable to double-time pay, but only for emergency situations.
In all, the changes bring the city up to the same levels as comparable cities, and they will positively impact employees.
“It makes the most sense. It’s a good thing for us and the community,” said Councilor Travis Link. “It will make it a great benefit here for people to stay here.”
The changes will also have a significant financial impact on the Rushford Village community.
“I talked to other cities, and this is in line, but it’s a lot,” noted Miner. “You need to budget for it; keep money set aside.”
The council is also watching a change in the state regarding a newly signed bill related to Family Medical Leave. There is a Family Medical Leave Act in place, which allows employees to have up to 12 weeks off, unpaid, after personal time is used, for significant medical needs within the employee’s or their immediate family’s life.
According to O’Koren, the new bill is a program aiming to provide paid time off, for up to 12 weeks for one instance and up to 20 for multiple cases in a year, to allow an employee to care medically for an immediate family member.
The state will fund this new paid time off in approved situations. This recent change doesn’t go into effect until 2025, but the state will begin applying a payroll tax to build the fund. O’Koren indicated direction would be coming to municipalities from the League of Minnesota Cities.
In other news, the council also approved removing some equipment at the hall playground due to wear and safety concerns. The city will seek possible grant funding to replace it in the future.
The council partially approved a request from Featherstone Farms for event parking on city streets. The city will allow the farm to utilize one side of City Park Road but not the shoulders of Cooperative Way to keep the roadway clear. Parking at the hall by farm event attendees will also not be allowed due to the rental of the hall that day. There was a request to park on the shoulder of Highway 30, but the city directed farm management to contact MnDOT on that matter.
The next regularly scheduled council meeting is Tuesday, June 20, at 7 p.m. at the village hall. The public is encouraged to attend.
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