General Circular No. 001289

To: Heads of State Agencies and Human Resource

Directors

Subject: Performance Planning & Review News

Issue Date: July 2, 1997

With the implementation of the new Performance Planning and

Review system, a number of questions have been posed by Human

Resource Directors around the state. Listed below are answers

to the questions we have been asked most often. We hope you

will find this information helpful.

Supervisor Training

Performance Planning and Review Training for Supervisors will

be offered in Baton Rouge on the following dates: Thursday,

July 24, 1997 from 8:30 - 3:30 and on Friday, July 25, 1997

from 8:30 - 3:30. To attend one of these sessions, supervisors

should register through their CPTP coordinator as usual. (If

you do not know who your CPTP coordinator is, call the CPTP

Office at 504-342-4739.)

Performance Planning and Review Training for Supervisors will

continue to be offered indefinitely through CPTP. Their next

class schedule will be issued in a few weeks. In the meantime,

supervisors who have been unable to attend training should be

provided an opportunity to watch the training video and given a

copy of the training manual. CIVIL SERVICE RULES REQUIRE

THAT ALL SUPERVISORS BE PROVIDED REASONABLE ACCESS TO THE

TRAINING MANUAL.

Ratings in 1997 for Employees with Anniversary Dates between

July 1 and December 31, 1997

Employees with anniversary dates between July 1, 1997 and

December 31, 1997 will not be officially rated under the new

Performance Planning and Review system until just prior to

their next anniversary date in 1998. From July 1 through the

end of 1997, agencies may choose to use the Performance

Planning and Review system or their previously existing system

to conduct informal reviews with these employees. No

official ratings under a performance appraisal system

previously approved by Civil Service can be given to employees

with these anniversary dates in 1997.

Performance Planning and Review Record Retention

The State Employee Performance Planning and Review form, once

completed for the planning portion or the rating portion or

both, is a private record and therefore, must be maintained in

private files (just as medical records are maintained.)

Although the rules do not specify where the form bearing the

completed planning portion must be maintained, such a form is a

private record. Any completed portion of the State Employee

Performance Planning and Review form must be kept for three

years.

Employees on Extended Leave

If an employee is on extended leave during the planning period,

planning should be done with the employee as soon as possible

upon his return. The reason for the delayed planning should be

noted on the Performance Planning and Review document. A delay

in planning for legitimate, documented reasons will not

invalidate a rating.

If an employee is on extended leave during the rating period,

the rating may be mailed to the employee, or the agency may

choose not to rate the employee, resulting in a "Satisfactory"

rating by default. As always, documentation of the reasons for

the actions taken is advised.

Performance Planning and Review for Employees on Restricted,

Job Appointment, Classified WAE Appointment, Classified Part-time, Provisional Appointment

There are no categories of exceptions for Performance Planning

and Review. Planning should be done with all classified

employees within 30 days of hire, regardless of status.

Ratings should be done in the 45 days prior to the anniversary

(merit eligibility) date, regardless of the actual amount of

time worked and regardless of the giving or withholding of the

merit increase pay.

Probationary Employees

A probationary employee must be rated within the 45 days prior

to his first eligibility for a merit increase six months

following his date of hire. However, the agency may choose not

to grant a merit increase until the employee obtains permanent

status. The rating must be performed regardless of the

granting or not granting of the merit increase. A six-month

rating of "Satisfactory" or better does not in any way obligate

the agency to grant the employee permanent status.

Please note that a probationary employee who receives a "Poor"

or "Needs Improvement" rating at six months must be re-rated

between three and six months later. If that re-rating is also

"Poor" or "Needs Improvement," the employee will be unable to

obtain permanent status, since he or she will not possess a

"Satisfactory" or better rating at the end of the twelve-month

probationary period.

Reviewer's Signature

The Reviewer's signature is not mandatory on the planning

portion of the form. However, the Reviewer's signature is

REQUIRED on the rating portion of the form. The Reviewer's

signature may be obtained before or after the rating portion of

the form has been given to and signed by the employee. The

Reviewer is designated by the appointing authority and will

typically be the rating supervisor's immediate supervisor.

However, the appointing authority may designate someone other

than the rating supervisor's immediate supervisor as the

Reviewer if that person is more familiar with the employee's

performance due to the organization's structure.

Re-Ratings of "Poor" or "Needs Improvement"

Employees who receive an overall rating of "Poor" or "Needs

Improvement" shall be re-rated between three and six months

following that rating. The time period covered by the re-rating shall be from the date of the original rating to the

date of the re-rating. The time period covered by the next

rating which follows the re-rating shall be from the date of

the re-rating to the next rating.

Consideration of Employee Comments on "Satisfactory" or Higher

Ratings

When the employee is given the rating, the rating supervisor

may specify a time period during which the employee may submit

comments for consideration. We advise this time period be

specified by agency policy (our suggestion would be within

thirty calendar days from the day the employee received a copy

of the performance planning and review form) so that all

employees are treated in the same manner.

Grievance of Planning Documents

An appointing authority may establish a policy that the

planning portion of the form is not subject to the agency's

grievance process.

Employee Transfers

If an employee transfers from one agency to another shortly

before his anniversary date, the rating supervisor may choose

to rate the employee as "Satisfactory" by default or to rate

the employee on the available time period; in either case, the

rating supervisor should make a note of the circumstances on

the form.

Employees on Detail

An employee serving on detail to special duty should have his

planning and rating completed for him for the detailed job for

as long as he performs it and for his regular job as long as he

performs it during the applicable period.

Employee under Investigation for Misconduct

If an employee is under an ongoing investigation for misconduct

at the time of rating, the agency may choose how to reflect

this on the rating form based on the completeness of the

investigation process. The misconduct may be reflected in the

rating provided the appointing authority has the facts to

support the conclusion of misconduct. Or the agency may choose

not to include the misconduct in the rating when the

investigation has not yet concluded, making note of this

decision on the rating form. The rating may not be delayed

beyond the employee's anniversary date.

Citing Rating Document in Connection with a Disciplinary Action

When an employee is being disciplined for an aspect of

performance which had been reflected in the Performance

Planning and Review document, the document may be referenced in

the discipline in the same way that any other type of employee

counseling would be referenced.

If you have any questions about the Performance Planning and

Review system, please call Jean Tozer in the Personnel

Management Division at 504-342-8274.

Sincerely,

Allen H. Reynolds

Director