STATE OF LOUISIANA
DEPARTMENT OF STATE CIVIL SERVICE
BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA
General Circular No. 001626
To: Heads of State Agencies and Human Resource Directors
Subject: Displaced Employees Referral List
Issue Date: September 29, 2005
Special
Note: Please see below instructions for
creating the Displaced Employees Referral List.
In compliance with Executive Order Number
KBB 2005-38, “heads of state agencies and human resource directors shall, to
the maximum degree possible, follow DSCS General Circular Number 1620,
Katrina—Assigning employees where most needed, with particular attention to the
section titled ‘Referral of Displaced Employees,’ in order to make the best use
of our state workforce by redeploying displaced state employees.”
To assist agencies in
hiring state employees who have been displaced by the hurricanes and to assist state
employees who have been displaced by the hurricanes, DSCS is creating a
Displaced Employee Referral List. The
list will contain the names of those displaced classified state employees with permanent
status who have contacted their agencies but for whom their agencies currently
have no work. The list is intended to
provide agencies that need employees with the names of employees who need
work. The list may be used in several
ways.
· First, during the state of emergency (currently through October 20 for Rita and October 25 for Katrina) if an agency needs some help for a very short time in any position, the HR director may find people on the displaced list and ask the loaning agency to assign them. An appointing authority may assign an employee of their agency to perform services in another agency in any location during the state of emergency. During this period, the employee would remain in their original job title and be paid by their original agency. The employee would be expected to perform any tasks requested by the new agency except hazardous or dangerous tasks for which the employee is not qualified and which could cause injury or harm if performed improperly. These assignments would not require an exception to Executive Order KBB 2005-38 and approval by the Commissioner of Administration because they would not “increase the aggregate number of filled positions.”
· Second, if an agency would like to fill a position for a period that is longer than the state of emergency but does not exceed one year, the HR director may find people on the displaced list and ask the loaning agency to effect a Temporary Inter-Departmental Assignment in accordance with Civil Service Rules 8.15.1 (a), (b), (c), (d), and (e) (TIDA). Upon agreement between departments, a TIDA allows a permanent employee to be assigned to a classified position in another department for a period not to exceed one year provided that the employee meets the qualification requirements of the job to which he is being assigned and has met Civil Service requirements for testing. Either the loaning or receiving agency may pay the displaced employee, based upon the type of agreement reached between the two agencies. This appointment would require an exception to Executive Order KBB 2005-38 and approval by the Commissioner of Administration because it would “increase the aggregate number of filled positions.” However, the Commissioner has assured us that he will make every effort to expedite the approval of appointments of employees displaced by the hurricanes.
Proper documentation will be required for this personnel action as listed in Documentation and Reporting Requirements of the HR Handbook.
· Finally, if an agency wishes to fill a vacancy probationally or permanently, the HR director may find people on the displaced list and contact the employees directly to see if they are interested in a transfer or a probational appointment provided that the employee meets the qualification requirements of the job to which he is being appointed and has met Civil Service requirements for testing. This appointment would require an exception to Executive Order KBB 2005-38 and approval by the Commissioner of Administration because it would “increase the aggregate number of filled positions.” However, the Commissioner has assured us that he will make every effort to expedite the approval of appointments of employees displaced by the hurricanes.
Proper documentation will be required for this personnel action as listed in Documentation and Reporting Requirements of the HR Handbook.
Access to the Displaced Employee Referral List will be available to Human Resource personnel through the HR Info link on the DSCS website at www.civilservice.louisiana.gov.
Human Resource personnel with access to this portion of our site should look for the link “Displaced Employee Referral List.” Human Resource personnel who wish to access the website and are not authorized to do so may contact Shannon Duplessis at 342-8296 or Shannon.Duplessis@la.gov.
Agencies can access the Displaced Employee Referral List,
select a job title from among those included in the Referral List, and view a
list of available displaced employees from the selected job title. You may search as many job titles as you
like to find employees who may meet your needs. Agencies must then contact the displaced employee’s loaning
agency in order to discuss the placement of the displaced employee within the
receiving agency unless you wish to
hire the employee probationally or permanently in which case you would directly
contact the employee.
The Displaced Employee Referral List will be available for agencies to use on October 10, 2005.
To create the
Displaced Employee Referral List,
1. Please submit to us by close of business October 6, 2005, the name, job title, social security number (or ISIS HR personnel number), and current contact information (i.e. a phone number, e-mail address, current location, etc.) of all the displaced classified employees with permanent status who are available to be assigned to another agency. (We realize that many of your displaced employees may not have definite or permanent contact addresses. Therefore we are requiring a phone number or e-mail address where they may be reached along with their current location so that the displaced employee may be contacted for possible assignment to another agency.)
While an
employee is on leave status, you shall have the option of placing your
displaced employees on the List. One of
the goals of the maintenance of the List is to help return to work those
displaced employees who are not reasonably expected to be returned from leave
to employed status by the appointing authority. Accordingly, each appointing authority should make a critical
assessment of their future needs when deciding whether to put an employee on
the List.
When an
employee who has contacted the appointing authority is moved from paid status
to unpaid status via furlough and/or layoff, the employee's name will be placed
on the List by the DSCS when the Acting Director of the DSCS approves the
furlough or layoff plan. In addition,
the Department Preferred Reemployment List shall be established and maintained
in accordance with Civil Service Rules as specified in each layoff plan.
Employees must contact their agency before being placed on the Displaced Employee Referral List. DSCS will continue to refer all calls from displaced employees to their hiring authority/agency. No employee who has not contacted his or her agency may be placed on the Displaced Employee Referral List.
A sample form for agencies to use when submitting the required information to DSCS is attached.
Every Friday, beginning with October 14, please submit to us the names of employees you wish to add or delete from the Displaced Employee Referral List. An agency may request that an employee’s name be placed back on the Referral List after a deletion request has been made.
The Displaced Employee Referral List will be updated every Monday with the information we receive on the previous Friday.
During this time of
emergency, state agencies are encouraged to assist one another in any way
possible. In particular, agencies with
displaced employees who have not been recalled to work are encouraged to assign
those employees to work at other agencies when and where possible. Please continue to be sensitive to the
concerns of displaced employees.
Contact Information
For questions regarding this General Circular,
please contact your Staffing Team Member at (225) 342-8536 or Jamie Lewis at jamie.lewis@la.gov.
Please do not hesitate to contact us if there is any way we may help you.
Sincerely,
s/Anne S. Soileau
Acting Director
Displaced State Employee Referral List Information
Displaced
Employee Information
SSN or ISIS HR Personnel # ____________________________________
Job
Title______________________________________________________
Current Contact Information
Street________________________________________________________
City__________________________________________________________
State____________________________ Zip Code_________________
Phone # ( )________________________________________________
Agency HR Contact Information
Name
______________________________________________________
Agency
_____________________________________________________
Job
Title ____________________________________________________
Phone # _____________________________________________________
Email
_______________________________________________________