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Greene County Foundation, Inc.

Approved December 13, 2004

Revised and approved January 9, 2011

Revision of Comp time 11/2012

Employee Handbook & Personnel Policies

  1. Mission Statement. The Greene County Community Foundation, Inc.

is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation created for the following purposes:

  • Assist donors to build an enduring source of charitable assets to benefit our community.
  • Provide responsible stewardship of the gifts donated.
  • Promote leadership in addressing community issues.
  • Make grants in the fields of community service, social service, education, health, environment and the arts.

II.Organization.

Our Vision

To become a foundation of the community that collaboratively improves the quality of life for all of GreeneCounty’s citizens.

Our Core Values

  • Stewardship – We believe responsible stewardship builds an effective Foundation.
  • Accountability – We believe it is our obligation to be answerable to our donors and constituents in everything we do.
  • Leadership – We believe that the Foundation will guide the development of philanthropy in GreeneCounty.
  • Credibility – We believe that integrityis imperative in our conduct with other organizations, donors, and constituents, both within our community and elsewhere.
  • Community – We believe the Foundation will unite Greene county in community sharing through philanthropic initiatives.
  • Philanthropy – We believe in promoting philanthropy as a devoted and unselfish concern for the welfare of others through gifts of time, talent, and money.

Our Mission Statement

The Greene County Foundation is a community foundation created for the promotion of philanthropy in GreeneCounty.

III.Personnel Policies.

  1. Purpose: The Employee Handbook & Personnel Policies is not intended to create nor be construed as any type of employee contract, for employment or otherwise, between personnel hired by the GCF and the GCF Board of Directors and the terms of the personnel policies can be changed at any time. They merely provide guidelines to facilitate policies and procedures of the GCF. The Board of Directors reserves the right to administer, change, modify, interpret and even deviate from these policies in its sole discretion at any time.
  2. Description of Responsibilities:

1. Board of Directors

  1. The Board of Directors has final approval on any and all changes in the Personnel Policies.
  2. The Board of Directors reviews and approves the budget which includes all salaries of staff.
  3. The Board of Directors is responsible for employing an Executive Director and establishing a job description for the position.

2. Executive Director

  1. The Executive Director is responsible for administering the personnel policies.
  2. The Executive Director assists the Board of Directors with the performance of their responsibilities.
  1. Classification of Position and Employee Compensation:

1. A full-time employee is one normally scheduled to work at least 32

hours per week on the average.

  1. An employee working less than 1000 hours per year will not receive

any benefits as outlined later in this document.

  1. The positions of Executive Director and Program Director are

considered “exempt”. An “exempt” position meets the criteria

established by the Department of Labor and thus, is not eligible for

overtime.

4. Employees are paid every two weeks.Payroll will be conducted through automated deposit.

5. Mileage driven in a privately owned vehicle for business purposes

will be reimbursed at the current county rate.

6. Other expenses for events approved by the Board of Directors must

be properly documented and include the purpose of the expense,

names of person and purpose, odometer readings, receipts and

signature of the employee.

7. The employee will receive full pay while serving on jury duty.

Documentation of jury duty service will be required.

  1. Recruitment, Introductory Period and Performance Appraisals:

1. Voting members of the Board of Directors and their immediate

family members, are ineligible for employment. Additionally, any

person who, if employed, would be supervised by a member of his

immediate family is ineligible for employment.

Immediate family is defined as parents or guardians, spouse,

brother, sister, son, daughter, father-in-law, mother-in-law, brother-

in-law, sister-in-law, son-in-law and daughter-in-law.

2. New employees shall complete a three (3) month introductory

period. This introductory/evaluation period is intended as time to

closely observe an employee’s work to determine suitability for the

position. Performance appraisals will be given to all introductory

employee’s at the conclusion of the introductory period. The

appraisal performed at the conclusion of the introductory period

will determine the employee’s status of employment with the GCF.

3. Performance appraisals will be executed annually for all

employees, and will serve as the basis for all recommendations

relative to promotions, salary increases, etc. The Executive

Director can execute as many appraisals as considered necessary

at any time. The employee shall be given an opportunity to

comment verbally, as well as add written comments about their

work and progress. The date of completion of all reviews shall be

indicated and the review shall be signed by all parties concerned.

  1. Benefits:

1. Holidays - GCF schedule shall coincide with the holiday schedule for the county by observing the following holidays:

New Year’s Eve afternoon, New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, President’s Day, Good Friday, Primary Election Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, General Election Day, Veteran’s Day, Thanksgiving Day, Day after Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve afternoon, and Christmas Day. All employees will receive their regular pay for each holiday.

2. Paid Time Off (PTO) – PTO is to be used for sick time off, personal

needs for time off, or bereavement time. Twenty-four hours of PTO are available for use within one year for part-time employees and forty-eight hours of PTO are available for use within one year for full time employees. Leave or time off beyond the PTO allocated will be without pay and must be approved by the Board. The board will consider extended leave after one year of employment. No hours can be carried forward and no pay will be given for hours not taken.

Compensatory Time (Comp time) – Comp time is earned one hour for each hour worked beyond the hours determined for the position and can be taken as needed, with board approval. It is understood comp time will be taken when the work flow of the office has been adequately covered. Employees may receive up to one month paid compensation for comp time, if not used by the end of the year in which it was earned. Comp time will not be carried forward and will be calculated on an hourly rate to be determined by calculating the annual numbers of hours scheduled to be worked, divided by the annual salary for salaried employees. For hourly employees it will be calculated on their hourly rate. Revision 11/2012

3. Vacation – A two week paid vacation will be available after

completion of one year of employment. The hours paid are based on an average of hours worked (8 hours per day, 40 hours per week). Vacation accrues at the beginning of the calendar year. After five years of employment, three weeks of paid vacation will be available to employees. After ten years of employment, four weeks of paid vacation will be available to employees. Employees are not entitled to take their vacation as extra pay and vacation can not be carried forward.

Non-Paid Time Off – A full-time employee who has completed at least one year of service with the GCF may request an unpaid personal leave of absence for a period of up to 30 days. A personal leave must be requested in writing at least two weeks in advance, unless necessitated by an emergency, in which case oral notification should be followed by written application for the leave.

Personal leave may be granted for any justifiable reason at the GCF’s discretion, provided the leave does not seriously disrupt the GCF’s operations. All unused, accrued vacation and personal days must be used before a personal leave will be granted.

The GCF cannot guarantee reinstatement to employees returning from personal leave (unless such leave is covered by the Family and Medical Leave Act), but will make every effort to reinstate employees to their former positions if business requirements permit.

  1. Equal Employment Opportunity: The GCF is an equal opportunity employer. All applicants and employees will be treated equally, according to their individual qualifications, ability, experience and other employment standards. There is to be no discrimination because of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, age disability or veteran status. It is equally the practice and policy of the GCF to comply with all applicable federal, state, and local labor laws. All employees must comply with the Equal Employment Opportunity policy and their level of compliance will be considered as part of performance appraisals.
  1. Harassment Policy: The GCF is committed to providing its employees with a work environment that is free from discrimination and harassment of any kind, including harassment based on an individual’s race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or other protected basis. The GCF strictly prohibits, and will not tolerate in any fashion, harassment of any GCF employee by another GCF employee (regardless of position or authority). Similarly, the GCF will not tolerate harassment of its employees by any volunteer or other third party.

Prohibited harassment occurs when an individual is subjected to verbal or physical conduct that defames or shows hostility toward the individual because of his or her race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or other protected basis, including the fact that such individual has made a complaint of discrimination or harassment, has participated in the investigation of any such complaint, or due to such individual’s association, friendship or relationship with any person protected by applicable law. Prohibited harassment also includes conduct that (i) creates or is intended to create an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment, (ii) interferes or is intended to interfere with the individual’s work environment or performance, or (iii) otherwise adversely affects the individual’s employment.

Examples of such harassment include, but are not limited to:

  • Using or making reference to epithets, slurs, negative stereotyping, or threatening, intimidating or hostile acts, which relate to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or some other protected status.
  • Publication or circulation of any written or graphic material that defames or shows hostility or aversion toward an individual or group because of their race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability or other protected status.

This policy’s prohibition against harassment specifically includes sex-

based and sexual harassment. Sexual harassment occurs when unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature becomes a condition of an employee’s continued employment or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment.

Examples of sexual and sex-based harassment include but are not limited to the following:

  • Requests for sexual favors (whether explicitly or implicitly);
  • Unwanted physical contact of any nature, including touching, rubbing, pinching, or brushing the body;
  • Verbal harassment, such as sexual innuendoes, suggestive comments, jokes of a sexual nature, sexual propositions, and threats;
  • Non-verbal conduct, such as display of sexually suggestive objects or pictures, leering, whistling, or obscene gestures; and
  • Acts of physical aggression, intimidation, hostility, threats, or unequal treatment based on sex (even if not sexual in nature).

Any employee who believes he or she has been harassed in any way

in violation of this policy should report the conduct immediately to the Executive Director. If that person is unavailable or somehow responsible for the harassment, the employee should report the conduct directly to the President of the Board of the GCF. The employee always has the option of reporting conduct directly to the President of the Board if he or she prefers.

All reports will be treated seriously and confidentially to the extent reasonably possible. The GCF will not itself take or allow any one else to take any adverse action against an employee because he or she has reported, or participated in the investigation, of legitimate concerns of possible discrimination or harassment. The GCF will immediately conduct a thorough and impartial investigation of all complaints received and such investigations will be conducted in a timely and confidential manner. Upon the conclusion of its investigation, the GCF will advise the complaining employee of its findings as well as any steps taken to prevent future violations.

The GCF Executive Director and the Board of Directors are responsible for the administration of this policy and they are expected to take whatever steps are necessary to prevent further harm to the affected employee and immediately report the conduct to the Executive Director or President of the Board for a full and prompt investigation. Failure to report such conduct will be considered a violation of this policy and will subject the Executive Director or Board member to disciplinary action, up to and including discharge.

Any employee suspected of engaging in harassing or retaliatory conduct of any nature in violation of his policy after reasonable investigation will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including immediate termination.

  1. Drug Free Workplace: The GCF is committed to providing and maintaining a workplace that is safe and free of tobacco, drugs and alcohol. The use, possession, transfer or sale of a controlled substance in the workplace is a violation of this policy and a serious offense subject to disciplinary action, which may include termination of employment and legal prosecution.
  1. Confidentiality: A person’s right to privacy is extremely important. No employee is to discuss personal or private information about any client without a signed consent from the client. All client discussion of a personal or private nature should be handled professionally and limited to those who have a need to know in order to provide service to the client. Violation of confidentiality is grounds for immediate dismissal.
  1. Internal Grievance Procedure: Misunderstandings and complaints may occur from time to time and must be given prompt attention. Most misunderstandings and complaints can be resolved through informal discussion with the Executive Director. However, when a complaint or misunderstanding cannot be resolved through informal discussion, the issue is to be presented in written form to the Executive Committee of the Board. In case such a complaint is still not resolved it will be presented to the American Arbitration Association for a final and binding decision.
  1. Termination of Employment:

1. Resignation: A resignation should be submitted in writing to the

Executive Director or Board President 30 working days prior to leaving. When conditions do not allow proper notice, an explanation should be included in the resignation letter.

2. Dismissal with Notice: When being dismissed due to failure to

perform duties in an acceptable manner, two weeks notice shall be

given. Full compensation will be given during the notice time.

3. Dismissal without Notice: An employee may be dismissed without

notice and will be immediately relieved of duties. See Section M.

4. All accrued compensation will be paid for all employment

terminations.

L. Conflict of Interest: The GCF expects employees to observe the

highest standard of conduct and ethics. Business dealings and

lobbying activities that might take advantage of the position that result

in personal gain are subject to disciplinary action.

M. Discipline: An employee whose performance does not meet the

standards as described in the job description or who commits a violation of the GCF rules, regulations, policies or procedures is subject to the disciplinary actions listed below, in order of increasing severity. A record of all actions taken will be made in the employee’s file.

  1. Verbal Warning
  2. Written Warning
  3. Termination

The Executive Director may choose the level of discipline based on

the severity and/or number of infraction(s). Under most circumstances, if there is not a sufficient improvement over a two (2) week period, the Executive Director may apply the next level of discipline.

The employment relationship between the GCF and each employee is “at will.” Under some circumstances, employees may be subject to immediate termination of employment without receiving a verbal warning or a written warning. The following list of examples is not exhaustive; and therefore, not exclusive basis for discipline/ termination: falsifying records, reports, or information; theft or misappropriation of the property of GCF, its clients or employees; intentional bodily injury to another; breach of confidentiality; failing to abide by office policies; unexcused absences and/or excessive absence, tardiness, or requests for time off without pay; engaging in illegal activity or conviction of a felony; and immoral conduct or indecency.

Approved December 13, 2004

Revised and approved January 9, 2011