Editor's Note: Personnel policies stated in this chapter are effective unless otherwise covered by any other law, agreement or contract.
[Ord. No. 76-3; New]
Borough employees shall be classified in the following categories:
a. 
Full-Time Employees. A full-time employee is defined as one who is assigned to a regular position and is paid on the basis of a forty (40) hour workweek.
b. 
Part-Time Employees. A part-time employee is defined as one who is either not assigned to a regular position or one who is paid for less than a forty (40) hour workweek.
c. 
Seasonal Employees. A seasonal employee is one employed during any particular season of the year, as required by the exigencies of the situation.
[Ord. No. 76-3; Ord. No. 79-9 § 1; Ord. No. 87-11 § 1; Ord. No. 2000-08; amended 12-12-2023 by Ord. No. 2023-15]
a. 
The following are the official Holidays recognized by the Borough:
New Years Day - January 1st
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day - Third Monday in January
Abraham Lincolns Birthday - February 12th
George Washingtons Birthday - Third Monday in February
Good Friday - Friday Prior to Easter Sunday
Memorial Day - Last Monday in May
Independence Day - July 4th
Labor Day - First Monday in September
Columbus Day - Second Monday in October
General Election Day - First Tuesday After the First Monday in November
Veterans Day -November 11th
Thanksgiving Day -ourth Thursday in November
Friday Following Thanksgiving day
Christmas Day - December 25th
b. 
If any of the aforementioned Holidays occur on a Sunday, the Holiday shall be observed on the following Monday. If any of the aforementioned Holidays occur on a Saturday, the Holiday shall be observed on the preceding Friday.
[Ord. No. 76-3; Ord. No. 87-11 § 1; amended 12-12-2023 by Ord. No. 2023-15]
a. 
All full-time employees shall be entitled to the annual vacation leave allotments listed below:
1. 
First calendar year of Full Time Employment - Vacation leave with pay shall be earned at the rate of eight working hours for each full calendar month of service.
2. 
Second year of Full Time Employment - 12 days.
3. 
Third year through Tenth year of Full Time Employment - 16 days.
4. 
Eleventh year though Fifteenth year of Full Time Employment - 20 days.
5. 
Sixteen years or more of Full Time Employment - 25 days.
b. 
Vacation leave shall be taken within the calendar year in which it is earned on dates selected by the employee and subject to approval by their Department Head. Vacation leave shall not be carried forward into any successive year without the approval of the Mayor or his/her designee.
[Ord. No. 76-3; Ord. No. 79-9 § 2; Ord. No. 87-11 § 1; amended 12-12-2023 by Ord. No. 2023-15]
a. 
All full-time employees shall receive one day of sick leave for every full month of service during their first calendar year of full time employment.
b. 
Beginning the second year of their full-time employment, said employees shall receive 15 days of sick leave annually.
c. 
Sick leave not used, shall accumulate from year to year up to a maximum of 60 days. At the end of each calendar year, the Borough shall buy back all accumulated sick leave in excess of 60 days at 50% of the full time employee's hourly rate of pay.
d. 
Upon retirement from Borough service, full time employees shall be compensated for any accumulated sick leave at 50% of the full time employee's hourly rate of pay up to the maximum amount allowed by Law.
[Ord. No. 76-3; New]
a. 
Established. The following absences by full-time employees are hereby recognized as authorized:
1. 
Reserve military duty.
2. 
National Guard duty.
3. 
Jury duty.
4. 
Maternity leave.
5. 
Bereavement leave.
b. 
Reserve Military or National Guard Duty. Such duty is defined as one which is required by the military unit to which the employee is assigned. Employees serving such duty shall be entitled to the difference in pay between his or her regular military pay and his or her regular pay received from the Borough. Suitable documentation of the amount of the regular military pay must be presented by the employee to the Borough Clerk.
c. 
Jury Duty. An employee serving on jury duty will be paid the difference between his regular pay received by the Borough and the remuneration for jury duty. Suitable documentation of the remuneration received for jury duty shall be presented to the Borough Clerk.
d. 
Maternity Leave. Maternity leave for full-time or part-time employees, without pay, may be granted upon request of the employee after the end of the sixth month of pregnancy. Maternity leave may continue until the ninetieth day following the end of the pregnancy.
e. 
Bereavement Leave.
1. 
Bereavement leave with pay for full-time employees will be granted for not more than five (5) days because of the death of an employee's husband, wife, child, parent, brother, sister or a relative residing permanently in the employee's household.
2. 
Bereavement leave, for employees, must have approval of Department Head and will be granted for not more than one (1) day per year because of the death of a full-time employee's grandparent, grandchild, uncle, aunt, niece, nephew, mother-in-law or father-in-law.
f. 
Notice of Absence. It shall be the employee's responsibility to furnish the Borough Clerk with a notice of intention to take such authorized absence heretofore enumerated within a reasonable time prior to the initial date of such authorized absence.
g. 
Personal Business. Employees are entitled to three (3) days leave with pay for personal business.
h. 
Time Limited to Use Sick Days. Leave days must be used within the one (1) year period and shall not be cumulative from year to year.
[Ord. No. 76-3; New]
Any absence not heretofore defined will be considered to be an unauthorized absence. Any unauthorized absence for more than three (3) days shall require a doctor's certificate. Any unauthorized absence having a duration of five (5) consecutive days or more will be considered as a voluntary resignation. Habitual absenteeism having a duration of less than five (5) consecutive days or habitual tardiness shall be cause for dismissal.
[Ord. No. 83-7 § 1]
Employees of the Borough shall severally hold their respective offices and continue in their respective employment during good behavior and efficiency, and no person shall be removed from office or employment while an employee of the Borough for political reasons or for any other cause other than incapacity, misconduct or disobedience of just rules, regulations, orders and resolutions established or which may be established for Borough employees by the Mayor and Council.
[Ord. No. 83-7 § 2]
Borough employees shall be entitled to file a grievance with their respective department head/liaison. A Grievance Committee consisting of three (3) members of Council not directly involved with the grievance shall be appointed by the Mayor to determine if the grievance has any merit and look for a possible solution of the grievance.
[Ord. No. 83-7 § 3]
Any employee against whom charges are brought in violation of any regulations or valid reasons stated in subsection 3-7.1 of this section or any applicable rules and regulations governing the operation of the Borough, said charges shall be thoroughly examined by the Mayor and Council and if the charges are found to be valid a hearing will be scheduled within but not later than thirty (30) days from the date of the alleged offense.
[Ord. No. 81-5 § 1]
a. 
Appointment and Term. Whenever the Mayor and Governing Body deem it necessary to appoint an independent Hearing Officer to hear and determine any charges brought against a Borough employee, the Hearing Officer shall be appointed by the Mayor with the consent of the Borough Council. The Hearing Officer shall serve in his or her capacity for the time necessary to hear and determine the charges against the employee.
b. 
Qualifications and Compensation. The Hearing Officer shall be a minimum of twenty-one (21) years of age and shall possess a high school diploma or its equivalent. The Hearing Officer shall be appointed by resolution, which resolution shall state the consideration the Hearing Officer is to receive in discharging his duties.
[Ord. No. 81-5 § 1]
Once appointed, the Hearing Officer shall proceed to hear and determine the charges against the employee. The Hearing Officer shall allow the employee and the complainant to present their respective cases concerning the matter before the Hearing Officer. Both the employee and the complainant shall have the right to be represented by counsel at the hearing. The actual hearing itself shall be recorded so that a record will be available in case of any appeal to the Superior Court of the State of New Jersey.
[Ord. No. 97-06 § 1]
The purpose of the within section is to officially set forth the position of the Governing Body concerning its policies of indemnifying and defending its officials and employees.
[Ord. No. 97-06 § 2]
Pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 59:10-4, the Borough of Island Heights hereby authorizes the indemnification of each Borough official, employee or appointee who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, administrative or investigative, by reason of the fact that he or she is or was an officer, appointee or employee of the Borough of Island Heights, against any claims, losses, expenses (including attorney's fees), judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by him or her in connection with such action, suit or proceeding to the full extent permitted under the laws of the State of New Jersey. In the event of criminal charges against an officer, appointee or employee, the individual shall only be reimbursed for the above-referenced expenses upon a determination of innocence or the dropping of the charges. Expenses incurred in defending a civil action, suit or proceeding shall be paid by the Borough in advance of the final disposition of such action, suit or proceeding to the extent authorized by the Borough in accordance with the laws of the State of New Jersey. Nothing herein shall authorize the Borough to pay for punitive or exemplary damages or damages resulting from the commission of a crime. In such case, the officer, appointee or employee of the Borough shall be required to establish that the act or omission upon which the claim or judgment is based occurred within the scope of his or her official action or employment as an official or employee of the Borough of Island Heights and that it was not the result of an act or a failure to act because of actual fraud, actual malice or willful misconduct. Nothing herein shall effect or limit the rights of certain Police Department employees under N.J.S.A. 40A:14-155.