General Circular No 1298

General Circular No. 001298

To: Heads of State Agencies and Human Resource Directors

Subject: Proposed Civil Service Rule Changes

Issue Date: November 3, 1997

The State Civil Service Commission will hold a public hearing

on Wednesday, December 3, 1997 to consider these proposed

changes to Civil Service Rules. The hearing will begin at 9:00

a.m. in the Commission Hearing Room in the DOTD Annex Building

at 1201 Capitol Access Road, Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Persons

interested in making comments relative to these proposals may

do so at the public hearing or by writing to the Director of

State Civil Service at Post Office Box 94111, Baton Rouge, LA

70804-9111.

Consideration will be given to the following:

ADOPT RULES 1.15.01, 1.40.01 and 1.40.02

1.15.01 'Employee' for the purpose of these rules, does not

include any employee of a temporary services agency

on contract with the State.

1.40.01 'Temp' or 'Temporary Agency Employee' means a

short-term, temporary worker whose employer is a

private sector temporary services agency on

contract with the State.

1.40.02 'Temporary Services Agency' means a private company

on contract with the State whose primary business

is to provide temporary employee staffing to

private business.

EXPLANATION

These proposed rules make it clear that employees hired through

a temporary services agency that has contracted with the state

are not state employees and are not eligible for state

benefits.

AMEND RULE 2.9(k)

2.9 Powers of the Commission

The Commission is empowered:

(a) through (j) ...

(k) To issue orders withholding compensation from any

person or entity, who, after investigation by

public hearing, has been found by the Commission to

be employed or paid by the State contrary to the

provisions of the Constitution or the Rules

adopted thereunder. Such orders may be directed to

the officer having the authority to approve the

payroll or assign the paycheck for such employee or

entity, and the officer to whom it is directed and

any other person to whom such order is directed

shall make no payment of compensation or authorize

the making of any such payment to such person or

entity until authorized by the Commission upon

penalty of personal liability for the sum so paid

contrary to the order of the Commission and such

other penalties as are otherwise provided by the

Constitution and/or the Rules.

(l) ...

EXPLANATION

This proposal empowers the Civil Service Commission to issue

orders to withhold compensation to a temporary services agency

that, after investigation by public hearing, has been found to

be in violation of the Constitution and/or the Civil Service

Rules.

ADOPT RULE 8.10.01

8.10.01 Temporary Agency Employee

(a) When work is required to be performed on a

temporary basis and it is clearly evident that the

work is essential to the efficiency of the agency,

a temporary agency employee may be used, provided:

(1) Approval has been received from the appointing

authority; and

(2) He/she shall be used only for the following: a)

to replace an employee on leave, b) to fill a

vacancy pending filling the position in a

regular manner, or c) to address an emergency

or work overload situation of short duration.

(3) The employment of any one individual in this

category shall not extend beyond 120 calendar

days in a twelve-month period.

(4) The appointing authority shall maintain a

tracking document of usage of individuals in

this category which is certified by the

appointing authority to prevent violation of

Rule 8.10.01 and which is readily available for

Civil Service audit as requested.

(b) Individual temporary agency employees may be used

for any length of time up to 120 days in a twelve-month period; however, the Director or

appointing

authority may limit the duration of or cancel the

usage of a temporary agency employee at any time.

temporary agency

employee shall not be allowed. If the appointing

authority determines that a situation exists which

requires the usage of temporary agency employees

extending beyond the 120 day limit within a twelve-month period, other replacement

individuals may be

solicited from the temporary service agency(s) on

state contract.

(d) A temporary agency employee who has worked for the

State over 90 days in a twelve-month period, shall

not be hired within that twelve-month period on a

temporary classified appointment, other than a

provisional appointment.

(e) The Director may withdraw an agency's authority to

make use of temporary agency employees. Willful

abuse or misuse of temporary agency employees may

subject offenders to financial liabilities as

provided in Rule 2.9.

EXPLANATION

These provisions outline the conditions under which temporary

agency employees may work on contract with the state.

Acceptable justification and time limits for such service are

stated. There are no exceptions to the provision that such an

individual's service shall not last over 120 calendar days in a

12-month period. Subsection (d) provides that no temporary

agency worker may serve on contract over 90 days in a 12-month

period and then move on to a restricted or job appointment.

Such workers, if they wish a classified job, must compete in a

regular manner for a probational or provisional appointment.

AMEND RULE 9.1(e)

9.1 Probationary Period

(a) through (d) ...

(e) A probationary employee may be separated by the

appointing authority at any time.

(f) and (g) ...

EXPLANATION

This proposed amendment deletes the provision that the

appointing authority has to furnish the Director of Civil

Service with written reasons for the separation of a

probational appointee. This provision is not serving any

useful function, as such employees can be separated for any

non-discriminatory reason. Additionally, the prevailing

practice by agencies has been to report only that a separated

probational employee "did not meet the standards of the

agency," regardless of the specific reason.

AMEND RULE 13.21(c)

13.21 Subpoena of Witnesses; Production of Documents.

(a) and (b) ...

subpoenas to persons who perform work for the

State, the Commission or any person authorized by

Sub-section (a) of this Rule may request any

appointing authority to order any employee,

temporary worker,or contractor under his

supervision to attend and testify at any hearing,

and upon being so ordered the employee shall appear

at the hearing and furnish testimony.

(d) through (h) ...

EXPLANATION

This proposed amendment would allow the Commission or a Referee

to compel the attendance of employees of temporary employment

agencies and contractors by directing notices to the appointing

authority for whom the temporary worker or contractor works

rather than by issuing a formal subpoena.

AMEND RULE 14.1(c)

14.1 Prohibited Activities.

(a) and (b) ...

render, pay, offer, solicit or accept any money,

service or other valuable consideration for or on

account of any appointment, proposed appointment,

promotion or proposed promotion to, or any

advantage in a position in the classified service,

except as services may be provided pursuant to a

temporary services agency contract with the State

as approved by the Director pursuant to these

rules.

(d) through (p) ...

EXPLANATION

This rule must be amended to allow the state to contract with

temporary employment agencies, a practice which until now has

been prohibited. At this time, this practice will be allowed

only for those state agencies which have been designated by

Civil Service as pilot agencies for such a contract.

AMEND RULE 17.10(a)

17.10 Appointments Under Layoff Avoidance Measures

(a) Whenever an appointing authority uses any layoff

avoidance measures, he must first terminate

restricted and job appointments, as well as

temporary agency employees, in the affected

organizational unit(s). If such appointments must

later be made by the appointing authority, they

must be given interim approval by the Director

within fourteen calendar days of the appointment,

subject to ratification by the Commission within

sixty calendar days of the appointment, or

terminated.

(b) ...

EXPLANATION

This proposal subjects temporary agency employees to the same

restrictions on hiring during layoff avoidance measures as

temporary classified appointees.

AMEND RULE 17.23.1(b)

17.23.1 Layoff-related Appointments

(a) ...

(b) No appointment,including the hiring of temporary

agency employees, shall be made in the affected

organizational unit or department to the job(s)

affected by the layoff or to equivalent or lower

levels of positions in the applicable career fields

beginning on the date the Director approves the

formal layoff plan for the proposed layoff and

ending 30 days after the layoff report as

stipulated by Rule 17.23 is received at the

Department of State Civil Service or upon

establishment of the department preferred

reemployment list, whichever comes first.

Exceptions to this provision include reinstatement,

internal demotion, or restoration of a former

employee entitled to the position who has returned

from military service in accordance with Rule 8.19.

Exceptions also include restricted appointment,

detail to special duty, job appointment and use of

temporary agency employees, none of which shall

exceed three (3) months beyond the effective date

of layoff.

EXPLANATION

This proposal adds temporary agency employees to those workers

whose hiring is restricted due to layoffs.

AMEND RULE 17.25

17.25 Noncompetitive Reemployment from a Department Preferred

Reemployment List

When there is a department preferred reemployment list

for an agency or department affected by a layoff,

containing the name of one or more qualified employees

available for appointment to a vacant position in the

affected agency or department, the vacancy shall be

filled only by one of the following means: 1)

reinstatement, 2) internal demotion, 3) restoration of

a former employee entitled to the position who has

returned from military service in accordance with Rule

8.19; 4) restricted appointment, job appointment,

detail to special duty or use of temporary agency

employees, none of which shall exceed three (3) months

beyond the effective date of layoff, or 5) appointment

of an eligible from such preferred list. Other details

to special duty may be used before appointment from a

preferred list if such details are given prior approval

by the Director. Other later restricted and job

appointments may be used if they are offered first to

the first eligible person on the department preferred

list. The acceptance or declination of such temporary

appointments shall not remove a person from the

department preferred list for permanent appointments.

Except as provided in this rule, appointment from a

department preferred reemployment list shall take

priority over all other methods of filling vacancies.

EXPLANATION

This amendment adds temporary agency employees to those workers

whose hiring is restricted by layoffs and the presence of a

department preferred reemployment list. It also clarifies that

restricted appointments not appointed from the department

preferred list, shall not extend longer than three (3) months

beyond the layoff. For restricted and job appointments made

later than three (3) months after the layoff, offers of such

temporary appointments must first be made from the department

preferred list. The acceptance or declination of such offers

does not remove a person from such list for permanent

appointments.

Persons interested in making comments relative to these

proposals may do so at the public hearing or by writing to the

Director of State Civil Service at Post Office Box 94111, Baton

Rouge, Louisiana 70804-9111.

If any accomodations are needed, please notify the Civil

Service Department prior to this meeting.

Sincerely,

Allen H. Reynolds

Director