PURPOSE
To establish uniform procedures for all agencies implementing weather
emergency procedures for bargaining unit and exempt employees.
GENERAL
Ohio Administrative Code
Rule 123:1-46-01 sets forth procedures for payment of employees during
weather emergencies.
It is the policy of the
state of Ohio to consistently apply this rule to all classified and
unclassified exempt employees and to all collective bargaining unit
members.
PROCEDURE
A. Declaring the Weather
Emergency
Emergency is defined in
section 5502.21(F) of the Ohio Revised Code as any period during which
the Congress of the United States or a chief executive has declared
or proclaimed that an emergency exists. This formal declaration or
proclamation can be made by the chief executive of any political subdivision,
including the Governor, for natural disaster, man-made disaster, hazardous
materials incidents or civil disturbance.
Weather emergency is a
term of art which refers to all formal declarations or proclamations
which may limit a state employee's obligation to travel to and from
work for a specific period of time due to severe weather conditions
not limited to snowstorms. A formal declaration or proclamation can
only be made by the Governor or the Governor's designee. Emergency
declarations made by chief executives, other than the Governor or
the Governor's designee, do not affect a state employee's obligation
to travel to and from work. A weather emergency cannot be declared
by an individual agency, department or director.
The director of the Department
of Public Safety is the Governor's designee to declare a weather emergency,
which affects the obligation of state employees to travel to and from
work. The authority to declare a weather emergency rests solely with
the Governor in consultation with the director of Public Safety.
The director of Public
Safety shall consult with appropriate state agency and local officials
and gather necessary information for use in determining the need for
and parameters of a declared weather emergency. When a weather emergency
is declared, the director of Public Safety shall:
1. Communicate the weather
emergency to the appointing authority, director or head of each state
agency and department by way of facsimile.
2. Communicate the weather
emergency to each appointing authority, director, head or director's
designated representative or alternate by way of voice mail or paper.
3. By county designation,
notify each appointing authority, director or head of each state agency
and department of the exact geographic area of the state under the
declared weather emergency. An emergency may be declared and limited
to a region, county, area or facility where employees live or work.
4. Notify each appointing
authority, director or head of each state agency and department of
the approximate time duration of the weather emergency and establish,
as soon as possible, a specific emergency period with a beginning
and ending time designation.
B. Communicating the Weather
Emergency
The agency head or director
of each appointing authority shall designate a representative and
an alternate to be responsible for receiving notice that a weather
emergency has been declared by the director of Public Safety. All
designated agency representatives should be essential or exempt employees
and have voice mail or pager capabilities. Designated agency representatives
are responsible for advising all appropriate supervisors in their
departments, agencies, boards or commissions of the weather emergency.
C. Designating Essential
Employees
Each year, by the first
day of October, all agencies must create and maintain a list of essential
employees. Essential employees are those employees whose presence
at the work site is critical to maintaining operations during any
weather emergency. Essential employees normally consist of a skeletal
crew of employees necessary to maintain essential office functions,
such as those state employees who are essential to maintaining security,
health and safety, and critical office operations.
Critical office operations
vary from agency to agency depending upon agency type. Agencies with
24 hour operations and agencies with institutional, law enforcement,
residential or custodial functions will typically require more employees
to maintain essential office operations than an administrative or
regulatory type agency. Whether an employee is essential may depend
upon the particular activities that are occurring in the agency. For
example, during certain time periods in a payroll or benefit cycle,
specific payroll officers and payroll/benefits processors, or computer
system operators may be employees essential to processing the payroll
or essential to processing certain benefits or benefits payments.
Similarly, critical dates and deadlines may aid in determining those
employees who are essential in the preparation and filing of certain
legal or fiscal records and reports, or those who are critical in
the issuance of vital licenses and permits, or other matters that
are determined by specific deadlines and filing dates. Essential employees
should be designated based on their PCN numbers and actual job duties.
Employees who are designated
as essential employees should be advised of the designation. Essential
employees should be advised that they should expect to work during
weather emergencies unless otherwise advised. However, they are not
guaranteed work. Nothing in this directive prevents an appointing
authority from using his or her discretion in sending essential employees
home or instructing them not to report for work once a weather emergency
has been declared.
D. Granting Leave to Non-Essential
Employees
During the year, extreme
weather conditions may exist and roadway emergencies may be declared
by local sheriffs in certain counties, yet no formal weather emergency
is declared by the Governor and state public offices remain open.
Should this situation occur, agency directors and department heads
are encouraged to exercise their judgment and discretion to permit
non-essential employees to use any accrued vacation, personal or compensatory
leave if such employees choose not to come to work due to extenuating
circumstances caused by extreme weather conditions. Non-essential
employees with no or inadequate accrued leave may be granted leave
without pay. Nothing in this directive prevents an appointing authority
from using its discretion to temporarily reassign non-essential employees
to indoor job duties, consistent with their job classification, so
that such employees are not performing unnecessary road- or travel-related
duties during days or shifts of especially inclement weather.
E. Bargaining Unit Exempt
Compensation During Weather Emergencies
o Exempt Non-Essential
Employees
Non-essential employees
who do not report for work or who are sent home as a result of a declared
weather emergency shall be paid for their full scheduled shift(s)
at their regular rate of pay.
Non-essential employees
who volunteer to stay during a weather emergency and work their regularly
scheduled hours are not entitled to overtime compensation or compensatory
time and shall be paid at their regular rate of pay.
Non-essential employees
should not normally be required to remain at work during a declared
weather emergency. On the rare occasion when non-essential employees
are required to remain at work due to the absence of essential employees,
such non-essential employees shall be entitled to overtime compensation
or compensatory time, in addition to their regular rate of pay, as
outlined below for exempt essential employees.
o Exempt Essential Employees
Essential employees must
report to work regardless of the weather conditions.
Essential employees who
work during a declared weather emergency shall be given overtime compensation
or one hour of compensatory time for every hour worked during the
emergency. Such compensation or compensatory time is governed by Directive
00-06 for overtime exempt employees and by section 124.18 of the Revised
Code, and Directive 00-07 for overtime eligible employees.
Essential employees who
are instructed not to report to work or are released from work during
an emergency shall be paid at their regular rate of pay. No compensatory
time will be granted to essential employees who volunteer to work
after being advised to leave or not to report for work.
Any employee who is on
a scheduled leave during a declared weather emergency shall be charged
leave, regardless of the declared weather emergency.
F. Bargaining Unit Compensation
During Weather Emergencies
o Non-Essential Employees
Non-essential bargaining
unit employees who are sent home or do not report to work, as a result
of a declared weather emergency, shall be paid their full scheduled
shift(s) at their regular rate of pay.
Non-essential employees
who are required to remain at work during a declared weather emergency
due to the absence of essential employees shall be paid at the premium
rate, if any, provided under contract. (As there are slight distinctions
in the state's labor agreements for premium pay during a weather emergency,
please refer to the appropriate contract for premium rates.)
Non-essential employees
should not be permitted to volunteer to remain at work during a declared
weather emergency.
o Essential Employees
Essential bargaining unit
employees must report to work as scheduled regardless of the weather
conditions. Essential employees shall be paid at the premium rate,
if any, provided under contract.
Any employee who is on
scheduled leave during a declared weather emergency shall be charged
leave regardless for the declared weather emergency.
TRAINING
Designated Agency Representatives
and their alternates will be notified of a training course which will
be held during the last week of October, by the departments of Public
Safety and Administrative Services.
NOTIFICATION AND ENFORCEMENT
Each agency is responsible
for designating an agency representative and maintaining a list of
essential employees. Each year, by the first day of October, a copy
of the list of essential employees should be posted and forwarded
to the director of Public Safety and the labor union, as appropriate
per labor agreement, so that such employees can be issued essential
employee cards to facilitate their travel to and from work on state
roadways and highways during a declared weather emergency. Each agency
must, by letter, notify its essential employees of that status. Agency
employees previously issued agency identification cards may use those
cards or other picture identification and their agency letter designating
them as an essential employee. Members of the Ohio National Guard
will carry their agency letter of designation and their DD Forms 2A
or 2A (Res), U.S. Armed Forces Identification Card, as identification
of their essential employee status during a declared weather emergency.
Agencies are responsible for properly reporting any increased payments
for employees to Payroll Processing, where applicable. Agencies must
follow Directives 00-06 and 00-07 for the accrual and use of any compensatory
time or overtime compensation, and the individual labor agreement
to determine appropriate premium rates for the duration of the weather
emergency.
This directive supersedes
any previously issued directive or policy and will remain effective
until canceled or superseded.
AUTHORITY & REFERENCE
ORC 124.18
OAC 123:1-45-01
OAC 123:1-46-01