Gainesboro has adopted a new personnel policy handbook that will make it easier to change personnel policies in the future.
Gainesboro Alderman Tom Goetz said the town created a new personnel policy handbook while it was making changes to its municipal code last year. Goetz said an MTAS representative suggested that the city remove personnel policies from the municipal code.
“It’s the same policy, except for maybe some verbiage change, is now a resolution,” Goetz said. “Should we need to change it, we don’t have to change the municipal code; it’s just strictly a policy like most businesses have.”
Goetz said if personnel policies remained in the municipal code, it would take multiple months to have future changes approved. Goetz said having a standalone personnel policy handbook was a much-needed change.
“Going forward, we can alter it with a resolution,” Goetz said. “Like I said, much quicker and easier to do. We can’t just arbitrarily change things, but it doesn’t take putting the municipal code up.”
Goetz said the verbiage changes were made to clarify existing policies regarding dismissal, job abandonment, and reporting for duty. Goetz said the town will make changes where they see fit.
“We are always reviewing our documents to make sure that they are up to date and clear, precise language, and things like that,” Goetz said.
Goetz said the town has not had any known issues with the town’s personnel policies in the past. Goetz added that it took some time to square away the town’s code and personnel policy.
“It took several workshops last year for the code, and we purposely pulled the personnel policy out of it, and then we reviewed it by itself at a later date, but we got the bulk of the rest of the municipal code intact.”
The town’s alderman unanimously approved the new handbook during February’s monthly meeting.