REQUEST FOR DECISION
DATE: July 10, 2023 Report No. ADM-23-023
TO: Dan Horan, Chief Administrative Officer
FROM: Vicki Gannon, Director of Human Resources and Community Relations
SUBJECT:
Title
Employee Recognition Policy
End
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
That Council approve the revisions to PER-02 Employee Recognition Policy as outlined in Staff Report ADM-23-023.
Body
RELEVANT POLICY:
Recognition of Long Term Service and Retirement Policy
Staff Farewell Functions
STRATEGIC RELEVANCE:
Good Governance and Organizational Excellence
BACKGROUND:
The current recognition policy has been in place since 2015, providing regular full time staff with recognition pins, additional vacation, and a gift at 25 years of service with a value up to $500. Departments who have retiring staff with more than 25 years of regular full-time service can present a gift valued to a maximum of $150. Attached is the current policy, the draft policy showing all the recommended changes in red, and a clean copy of the draft policy.
There have been some concerns regarding this long service recognition policy as it does not recognize auxiliary employees or part-time employees, and further, it only recognizes service as a regular full-time employee. Therefore, in many cases, an employee’s service recognition date did not match their actual years of service. The recommended changes to the policy include adding long service recognition for auxiliary employees and regular part-time employees, and further, changing the date used for regular full-time employees to the “anniversary date”, which includes previous auxiliary time worked, provided it was consecutive.
The recommended changes to the policy include providing for alternate recognition awards other than pins. In addition, it is recommended that the $500 gift awarded at 25 years of service be awarded instead at retirement and that the retirement awards be expanded to include employees with 15 or more years of service, rather than those with 25 years or more.
If the recommended changes to the recognition policy are approved, Management Policy M-ADM-05 which pertains to staff farewell functions will be rescinded at the direction of the CAO as it will be made redundant.
ISSUES:
1. Rationale for Selected Option
The recommended changes to the Employee Recognition Policy outlines that the Township is committed to developing and supporting a culture of recognition, both formally and informally, where teams and individuals are appreciated and acknowledged for their contributions and commitment to the organization.
2. Organizational Implications
All formal recognition events will now be administered by the HR and Community Relations Department, with input from the Department Heads.
3. Financial Implications
The recommended changes to the policy do not result in any substantial financial implications. The current policy provides a $500 gift for employees who have reached 25 years of service plus a retirement gift of $150 for those retiring with 25 years of service or more. The recommended changes do not provide for a substantial gift at 25 years of service, other than four additional days of vacation. The $500 gift is awarded at the time of retirement for those with 20 years or more of service. Those retiring with 15 - 20 years of service will receive a gift valued between $150 - $200.
4. Sustainability & Environmental Implications
There are no sustainability or environmental implications.
5. Communication & Engagement
The updated policy will be communicated to all staff, and the updated policy will be posted on the Township’s intranet, and also posted to staff bulletin boards.
ALTERNATIVES:
1. That Council approve the revisions to PER-02 Employee Recognition Policy as outlined in Staff Report ADM-23-023.
2. That Council amend Per-02 Employee Recognition Policy and approve the policy as amended.
3. That Council request additional information be provided by staff.
4. That Council provide staff with alternative direction.