The County Commissioners of Charles County, Maryland, expect
every employee to meet the standards set for high-quality work performance.
Whenever employees fail to abide by the County's policies, rules and
procedures, measures must be taken to correct the situation and to
curtail further occurrences. Disciplinary action, therefore, may be
necessary on such occasions to ensure the efficient operation of County
government. Fair discipline for proper cause, which treats all employees
alike, is essential.
The degree of discipline administered will depend on the severity
of the offense and the circumstances under which it occurred. Disciplinary
measures can assume the following forms: oral counseling, written
warnings, suspensions from work and discharge. All actions, except
oral counseling, imposed by a department head or supervisor must be
approved by the County Administrator.
A. Oral counseling.
(1) The department head or supervisor shall impose oral counseling, which
is intended to serve as a warning to an employee to discontinue action
or improve upon those conditions that necessitated the oral counseling.
This warning should include an indication of possible future action
should the condition not improve.
(2) Oral counseling may be imposed by the department head or supervisor
for various actions, the following being some examples:
(a)
Failure or delay in carrying out orders, reasonable work assignments
or instructions of the supervisor.
(c)
Loafing, wasting time or inattention to duty.
(d)
Other acts, activities or omissions which impair the offices's/agency's
performance of its mission.
B. Written warnings.
(1) The department head shall maintain a record of any written warnings
and shall submit copies of such action to the Personnel Officer for
inclusion in the employee's personnel record for a period of time
not to exceed one year. Written warnings, at a minimum, must detail
the offense, list the time and place of the occurrence of the offense
and indicate possible future actions if the discrepancy continues.
(2) Written warnings can be imposed by the department head or supervisor
for the following actions:
(a)
Failure or delay in carrying out orders, reasonable work assignments
or instructions of the supervisor.
(b)
Careless workmanship resulting in spoilage or waste of materials
or delay in production.
(d)
Leaving job premises during work hours without authorization.
(e)
Failure to observe safety precautions.
(f)
Loafing, wasting time or inattention to duty.
(g)
Other acts, activities or omissions which impair the office's/agency's
performance of its mission.
C. Suspension.
(1) An employee may be suspended by the department head for certain serious
offenses. Suspension will be without pay or charged against the employee's
annual leave account. A suspension must be documented, in writing,
noting the nature of the offense, when the offense occurred, the time
for which the employee will be suspended and the date and time he/she
is to report back to work.
(2) Copies of documents detailing the suspension must be submitted to
the Personnel Officer to be placed in the employee's personnel record
for a period not to exceed one year.
(3) Suspension cannot exceed a period of five working days, and a copy
of such notice must be submitted to the Personnel Officer within one
working day.
(4) The department head can suspend an employee for one of the following
actions:
(d)
Being under the influence of illicit drugs or intoxicants or
unauthorized possession of illicit drugs or intoxicants.
(e)
Endangering the safety of personnel or causing injury through
carelessness.
(f)
Unauthorized possession of County property.
(g)
Malicious damage to County property.
(h)
Failure to heed a written warning.
D. Discharge.
(1) A discharge notice must be documented, in writing, noting the nature
of the offense and when the offense occurred. Copies of documents
detailing the discharge must be submitted to the Personnel Officer
to be placed in the employee's personnel record.
(2) An employee can be discharged by the department head as a result
of the following action:
(a)
Willful falsification of employment application information
or County government records or documents.
(b)
Endangering the safety of personnel or causing injury through
carelessness.
(c)
Reporting to duty or being on duty under the influence of illicit
drugs or intoxicants or unauthorized possession of illicit drugs or
intoxicants.
(d)
Failure to heed a suspension.
(e)
Other acts, activities or omissions which impair the office's/agency's
performance of its mission.
The conveyance of any written material from the department head
to the employee, which would constitute disciplinary action; i.e.,
suspension notice, etc., must be acknowledged by the employee. Notification
of receipt does not constitute agreement with the alleged charges
or the action indicated.
The provisions of this article shall cover the following agencies
or offices:
E. County Administrator's office.
F. County Commissioners' office.
O. Sheriff's Department, excluding Deputy Sheriffs.