[Adopted 8-13-1974 by Ord. No. 108]
A. 
This article shall be known as the "Personnel Ordinance."
B. 
It is hereby declared personnel policy of the Town that:
(1) 
Employment in the Town government shall be based on merit and fitness, free of personal and political considerations.
(2) 
Just and equitable incentives and conditions of employment shall be established and maintained to promote efficiency and economy in the operation of Town government.
(3) 
Positions having similar duties and responsibilities shall be classified and compensated on a uniform basis.
(4) 
Appointments, promotions and other actions requiring the application of the merit principle shall be based on systematic tests and evaluations.
(5) 
High morale shall be maintained by fair administration of this article and by every consideration of the rights and interests of the public and the Town.
(6) 
Tenure of employees covered by this article shall be subject to good behavior, the satisfactory performance of work, necessity for the performance of work, and the availability of funds.
A. 
All offices and positions of the Town are divided into the classified service and the exempt service.
B. 
There shall be exempted from the classified service of the Town:
(1) 
All officials elected by the voters of the Town, and all persons appointed to fill vacancies in such elective positions.
(2) 
The Town Administrator, heads of departments and offices and agencies appointed by the Town Administrator with the approval of the Town Council, and those who are appointed by the Town Council.
(3) 
Employees of the School Department.
(4) 
Persons temporarily appointed, designated or by contract to make or conduct a special inquiry, investigation or examination or to perform a special service where such appointment or designation is certified by the Personnel Board to be for employment which, because of its expert nature or character, could not or should not be performed by persons in the classified service.
(5) 
Such temporary seasonal workers paid on an hourly basis as the Personnel Board may determine.
(6) 
Persons who, in times of public emergency, may be appointed special employees.
(7) 
All members of boards, commissions and committees.
C. 
The classified service shall include all other positions in the Town service that are not specifically placed in the exempt service by this article.
D. 
When this article becomes effective, all persons then holding positions included in the classified service:
(1) 
Shall have permanent status if they have held their present positions for at least six months immediately preceding the effective date of this article; or
(2) 
Shall serve a probationary period of six months before acquiring permanent status if they have held their positions for less than six months immediately preceding the effective date of this article.
E. 
The class in which each employee shall have status shall be determined in the manner provided in § 45-5A.
F. 
The following sections of this article apply only to the classified service unless otherwise specifically provided.
A. 
The personnel program established by this article shall be administered by the Town Administrator or his designee. The Administrator shall:
(1) 
Attend all meetings of the Personnel Board.
(2) 
Administer all the provisions of this article and of the personnel rules.
(3) 
Prepare and recommend to the Personnel Board revisions and amendments to the personnel rules.
B. 
The Town Council, upon recommendation of the Town Administrator, may contract with any qualified person or agency for the performance of such technical services as may be desired in the establishment and operations of the personnel program.
C. 
The Town Council shall serve as the Personnel Board.
The Town Administrator shall draft such rules as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this article. These rules shall be submitted for adoption by resolution of the Town Council. The rules shall have the force and effect of law. Amendments to the rules shall be made in accordance with the above procedure.
A. 
The Town Administrator shall make or have made an analysis of the duties and responsibilities of all positions in the classified service, and he shall recommend a job classification plan to the Personnel Board. Each position in the classified service shall be assigned to a job class on the basis of the kind and level of its duties and responsibilities, to the end that all positions in the same class shall be sufficiently alike to permit the use of a single descriptive title, the same qualification requirements, the same test of competence, and the same pay scale. A job class may contain one position or more than one position.
(1) 
Within 60 days after submission of the classification plan, the Personnel Board shall approve a classification plan, and the Town Administrator shall thereafter allocate each position to its appropriate class.
(2) 
The class to which each position is initially allocated following adoption of this article shall be the class in which the employee shall have status conferred on him by § 45-2D.
B. 
The initial classification plan shall be revised from time to time as changing conditions require, upon recommendation of the Town Administrator and with the approval of the Personnel Board. Such revisions may consist of the addition, abolishment, consolidation, division or amendment of existing classes.
A. 
The Town Administrator in consultation with the Finance Director shall prepare a pay plan and rules for its administration. The rate or range for each class shall be such as to reflect the differences in duties and responsibilities and shall be related to compensation for comparable positions in other places of public and private employment.
B. 
The Town Administrator shall submit the pay plan and the rules for its administration to the Personnel Board. The Board may adopt the plan and the rules, with or without amendment. All amendments shall apply uniformly to all positions within the same class.
C. 
After the pay plan and the rules for its administration have been adopted by the Personnel Board, the Town Administrator shall assign each job class to one of the pay ranges provided in the pay plan.
D. 
The pay plan may be amended from time to time as circumstances require, either through adjustment of rates or by reassignment of job classes to different pay ranges.
A. 
Original appointment to vacancies occurring after this article becomes effective shall be based on merit as determined by competitive examination.
B. 
Examinations shall be in such form as will fairly test the abilities and aptitudes of the candidates for the duties to be performed.
C. 
Candidates who qualify for employment shall be placed on an eligible list for the appropriate job class in the rank order of the grades they obtained on the examination.
D. 
Vacancies in positions above the entrance level shall be filled by promotion whenever in the judgment of the Town Administrator it is in the best interests of the Town to do so, and promotions shall be on a competitive basis, except where the Town Administrator finds that the number of persons qualified for promotion is insufficient to justify competition. Promotions shall give appropriate consideration to the applicant's qualifications, record of performance, and seniority.
(1) 
An advancement in rank or grade or an increase in salary beyond the limits defined in the rules for the administration of the pay plan shall constitute a promotion.
E. 
Vacancies may be filled by temporary appointment. Such appointments shall have a maximum duration of six months and may not continue beyond one pay period after the establishment of an appropriate eligible list.
A. 
Eligible lists, in the order of their priority, shall be reemployment lists, promotional eligible lists and original appointment eligible lists.
(1) 
Reemployment lists shall contain the names of permanent employees laid off in good standing for lack of funds or work.
(2) 
Promotional eligible lists and original appointment eligible lists shall be created as provided in § 45-7.
(3) 
Probationary employees laid off for lack of work or lack of funds and probationary employees who resign and whose resignations are withdrawn within one year, with the approval of the appointing authority and the Town Administrator, may have their names restored to the eligible list from which their appointment was originally made.
B. 
When an appointment is to be made to a vacancy, a list shall be prepared consisting of the names of the five persons who achieved the highest scores on the competitive examination and who expressed a willingness to work. When more than one vacancy is to be filled, the number of names on the list shall be equal to the number of vacancies plus four.
[Amended 4-6-1993 by Ord. No. 93-4-6B]
C. 
Policies and procedures for administering eligible lists shall be provided in the personnel rules covering the duration, cancellation, replacement, and consolidation of such lists and the removal or suspension of the names of eligibles therefrom.
A. 
New employees and those receiving a promotion shall be subject to a period of probation which shall range in duration from six months to one year, depending on the department. No probationary period may be extended beyond 12 months. For newly hired police officers, the probationary period commences from the date the officer is sworn in as a Portsmouth police officer. For all others, the probationary period commences with the date of hire.
[Amended 10-29-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-10-29B]
B. 
The work and conduct of probationary employees shall be subject to close scrutiny and evaluation, and if found to be below standards satisfactory to the department head, the department head shall consult with the Town Administrator and Personnel Director in order to reach a decision of whether to remove or demote the probationer. If a unanimous decision is not reached, then the case shall be referred to the Personnel Board.
C. 
An employee shall be retained beyond the end of the probationary period and granted permanent status only if the Town Administrator affirms that the services of the employee have been found to be satisfactory and recommends that the employee be given permanent status.
Rules shall be adopted prescribing hours of work and the conditions and length of time for which leaves of absence with pay and leaves of absence without pay may be granted. These personnel rules shall cover, among others, vacations, sick leaves, and leaves for military service.
A. 
The tenure of every employee shall be conditioned on good behavior and the satisfactory performance of duties. Any employee may be temporarily separated by layoff or suspension or permanently separated by resignation or dismissal.
B. 
Whenever there is lack of work or lack of funds requiring reduction in the number of employees in a department or division of the Town government, the required reduction shall be made in such job classes as the department head may designate. Within each affected job class, all temporary employees shall be laid off before probationary employees, and all probationary employees shall be laid off before any permanent employees.
C. 
When, in the judgement of the department head, an employee's work performance or conduct justifies suspension, the employee may be suspended without pay. Whenever such action occurs, it shall be the sole responsibility of the department head to immediately apprise the Town Administrator of the incident and, within 24 hours thereafter, submit an all-inclusive written report. The Town Administrator, after reviewing the facts, may uphold, lessen, or reverse the suspension. A suspended employee may not request a hearing before the Personnel Board unless the suspension is for more than four working days, or unless the employee has already received a previous suspension within the year immediately prior thereto.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II).
D. 
A permanent employee may be dismissed or demoted whenever, in the judgment of the appointing authority, the employee's work or misconduct so warrants. When the appointing authority decides to take such action, he shall file with the employee and the Town Administrator a written notification containing a statement of the substantial reasons for the action. The employee shall be notified not later than the effective date of the action. The notice shall inform the employee that he shall be allowed 10 days from the effective date of the action to file a reply with the appointing authority and the Personnel Board and to request a hearing before the Personnel Board.
E. 
If the employee files a reply and requests a hearing within the prescribed period, the Personnel Board shall schedule a hearing. At the discretion of the employee, the hearing may be private or open to the public.
F. 
In conducting a hearing, the proceedings shall be informal, and it shall be assumed that the action complained of was taken in good faith unless proved otherwise.
G. 
If the Board finds the action of the appointing authority was unjustified, improper or that the appointing authority failed to follow the proper procedure outlined in Subsection D, the employee shall be reinstated to his former position without loss of pay.
H. 
An employee may resign by filing his reasons with the appointing authority.
The Town Administrator's office shall maintain adequate records of the proceedings of the Personnel Board and of his own official acts on the employment record of every employee.
During the course of any investigation or hearing, the Personnel Board or the Town Administrator may request any employee of the Town to attend and give witness.
A. 
Employees in the classified service shall be selected without regard to political considerations, may not be required to contribute to any political purpose, and may not engage in improper political activity. The personnel rules shall define the scope of improper political activity.
B. 
There shall be no discrimination against any person seeking employment or employed in the classified service because of any considerations of political or religious affiliation or belief, race, sex, marital status, national origin or handicap.
[Amended 12-3-1984 by Ord. No. 84-12-3A]
C. 
There shall be no denial of the right of municipal employees to associate together and to join any lawful organizations of their own choosing for the purpose of collective bargaining.
Should any part of this article be declared illegal, the Personnel Board declares that it would have adopted all the other provisions. Notwithstanding such illegality of a part, all remaining parts shall remain in effect.