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04/16/2014 12:00 AMOLD SAYBROOK - No large- or medium-sized corporation would consider operating today without an employee handbook. But until last week, the Town of Old Saybrook didn't have one.
Adopted at last week's Board of Selectmen (BOS) meeting was the Town of Old Saybrook's first-ever employee handbook. The new guidance document codifies town practices with respect to hiring, job postings, and promotions as well as listing town expectations for employee behavior. The handbook does not apply to Police Department employees.
Before the vote, Selectman Steve Gernhardt said, "I worked in a large corporation and I couldn't imagine not having an employee handbook. It's not to be feared. It's there to protect you."
The BOS also approved at last week's meeting a set of policies and procedures to implement the general guidance in the handbook. Among the policies adopted is one on employee use of information technology and the Internet and another setting forth conditions of outside employment by town employees.
A key provision of the new Town Employee Handbook describes town policy on the hiring and employment of the relatives of town employees. The new policy does not prohibit the practice, but describes under what conditions a town employee's relative might be hired or employed.
It reads, "Any candidate for hire must disclose the existence of any such relations. Employees may not supervise or report to any family member. This policy will not be applied retroactively to current employees reporting relationships as of adoption of this handbook."
Another policy section lists the conditions under which a town employee's outside employment would be acceptable:
"Employees may perform work for another organization (or be self-employed) so long as the following conditions are met: the employee notifies his or her supervisor of the nature of the outside employment; the outside employment does not interfere or conflict with the employee's job duties or work schedule, including any required overtime work; and the employment does not create a conflict of interest with town business."
Both the issue of town employment of employee relatives and the potential for conflict of interest arising for town employees' outside employment are issues that have been raised in the past year in public comments offered at BOS meetings and those of other town bodies. The new town policies describe how these circumstances will be addressed by the town when they arise.
Where a collective bargaining agreement conflicts with a handbook provision, the BOS made clear that the union contract prevails. Similarly if a section of an individual employment contract conflicts with one found in the handbook, the employment contract provision is the one that applies.
Now that the handbook is adopted, First Selectman Carl Fortuna, Jr., explained that each town employee will be asked soon to sign a page indicating they have read the new document.