anniversarypresentation

City and County of San Francisco Department of Human Resources

Department of Human Resources

Civil Service Reform

Preserving the Promise of Government


Civil Service Reform UpdateOverview

1. Mission Statement

2. CSR History: Process and Findings

3. Update on the Challenge/Recommendation/Progress across the 4 Reform Areas

4. Next Steps


Civil Service Reform Update

Mission Statement

The goal of San Francisco’s Civil Service Reform initiative is to assure taxpayers that services are provided effectively and efficiently. This will be accomplished through the development of a modern personnel system, that effectively transitions our civil services from an industrial age to an information-age mindset.


Civil Service Reform UpdateProcess & Findings

1. Process

• Stakeholder meetings & input

• Jurisdictional surveys

• Best practices literature review

2. Findings

• General discontent with the civil service system

• Slow, unresponsive, unfair, under funded

• Fails to effectively support operational needs

• Fails to motivate employees

3. Reform areas

• Hiring

• Employee investment and performance management

• Separation

• Governance

The Report made 45 recommendations in the 4 Reform Areas


Civil Service Reform UpdateRecommendations

Issues were grouped into 4 Reform Areas:

1. Hiring

Hire the most qualified candidates in a timely manner.

2. Employee investment & performance management

Promote high levels of employee performance through career development, performance assessment, effective management, accountability, and flexible compensation.

3. Separation

Treat our employees fairly while minimizing the disruption to employees and departments caused by separations.

4. Governance

Streamline and harmonize the overlapping charter sections, civil service rules, HR policies, and negotiated provisions in our 50 union labor contracts into a single, modern personnel system.



Hiring

ClassificationRecruitment

Assessment & SelectionCertification & Referral

Probation


Civil Service Reform UpdateHiring: Classification

Create fewer, broader classifications

More than 100 classes are slated for abolishment or consolidation.

Hiring has been frozen in certain classes so that they can eventually be phased out.

A classification project will review our class plan and create an innovative database to better manage our class plan

(July 1st start date).

The City’s 1,200 different job classifications are inefficient and difficult to administer.


Civil Service Reform UpdateHiring: Classification

Create flexible, position specific minimum qualifications

The MCCP and PBTP recognize/allow for it.

Classification project will include a review of MQs and may highlight more classifications where MQs could be flexible.

Establish flexible job families and series and expand the use of the Flexible Staffing Program to reduce exam needs and facilitate promotive opportunities to employees.

Agreed with Local 21 and SEIU to expand the use of flex staffing.

The Classification project will provide tools and recommendations for classes, families, and series where this concept can be expanded.

In order to assign and deploy a modern workforce, our current classification plan needs to be more flexible.


Civil Service Reform UpdateHiring: Recruitment

Establish an aggressive recruitment program to meet future needs.

A professional recruiter has joined DHR and has initiated a citywide recruitment campaign.

Develop, fully fund and implement online application, screening and selection and referral processes.

Online applications will go live in November.

By then, there will be multiple access points for the jobs database: paper, online, in person.

The City needs to do all it can to ensure we can efficiently and aggressively attract top talent.


Civil Service Reform UpdateHiring: Assessment & Selection

Shorten and Simplify the Hiring Process.

Position Based Testing establishes a faster, merit-based permanent selection process with simplified appeal rights.

Provisional appointments will be reduced.

We need to ensure the most qualified people move into permanent positions in a timely fashion.


Civil Service Reform UpdateHiring: Next Steps

Create opportunities for on-the-spot hiring.

While this is possible for some programs or positions (like Junior Engineers or Assistant Engineers), it is under

utilized by departments. DHR needs to educate departments on how to better implement this function.

Reduce examination needs by capitalizing on apprenticeships, licensing, certificate and educational programs to fill permanent positions.

City is working with Plumbers Local 38 and Stationary Engineers Local 39 on apprenticeship programs.

Goal for FY07 is to identify classes with state licensing requirements.


Civil Service Reform UpdateHiring: Next Steps

Test core competencies for multiple classes at one time.

The classification database will enable us to identify common competencies among classes.

Request status grants from the Civil Service Commission for provisional employees already selected through a verified, merit-based process.

In progress. Slated for presentation to the Civil Service Commission in 2006-2007.



Employee Investment

& Performance Management

Performance Evaluation

TrainingCompensation

PromotionDiscipline

Leaves of Absence


Create uniform probationary periods.

Negotiated into most MOUS, uniform probationary periods will help ensure city jobs belong to the most qualified.

Require annual performance evaluations for all employees.

Mayor’s directive, issued 8/15/2005, requires annual performance evaluations, for DHR to provide training, and to track progress.

DHR’s Workforce Development Unit initiated the Citywide Mandatory Performance Planning and

Appraisal (PPA) Program; training has increased 300% in the past year.

Civil Service Reform Update Performance Evaluation

Employee performance should be managed through the probation period and through regular, annual performance evaluations.


Civil Service Reform Update Training

Make supervisory and management training mandatory

24 Plus was implemented earlier this year.

PPA program extends managerial training to include performance planning and appraisal training.

Guarantee all employees 40 hours of job-related professional development each year.

City has incorporated “best-efforts” into Local 21 MOU.

Tuition reimbursements have increased.

Contribution to the Education Trust Fund for UHW Local 250 health workers.

Creation of City University.

We need to train and develop our workforce more adequately. .


Civil Service Reform Update Compensation

Make step increases conditional on satisfactory performance.

Most of the recently-negotiated MOUs now state that step increases can be denied if an employee’s performance is deemed unsatisfactory.

Include performance-based pay provisions in all labor contracts.

Incorporated into several labor contracts.

Allow department heads limited discretion to award monetary recognition for individual outstanding performance.

Incorporated into Local 21 and MEA MOUs.

The City’s compensation strategy must provide adequate flexibility to recruit, retain, and motivate the highest quality workforce.


Civil Service Reform Update Promotion

Establish flexible job families and series and expand the use of the Flexible Staffing Program to reduce exam needs and facilitate promotive opportunities to employees.

Local 21 classes will have expanded use of flexible staffing programs.

Classification project (FY 07) will create appropriate career paths, facilitating easier movement between classes and/or preventing employees from topping out in their class.

Existing classification and hiring practices make the promotion of deserving employees difficult.


Civil Service Reform Update Discipline

Expedite the disciplinary process by eliminating intermediate grievance steps, creating a city-wide panel of standing arbitrators and imposing arbitration time limits.

Negotiated into most MOUs.

Standardize timelines and conditions under which disciplinary actions are taken out of the personnel file.

Conditions have been substantially standardized.

Introduce the use of paper suspensions for attendance problems.

Incorporated into MOUs (except Local 21 & SEIU).

We need fair and appropriate ways to expedite the City’s disciplinary processes.


Civil Service Reform Update Leaves of Absence

Develop a City-wide return-to-work program to return injured employees to work more quickly.

DHR’s Worker’s Compensation team has hired a return-to-work coordinator tasked with developing this program. Pilot project will begin 7/1/06.

Employees who are on leave should be reincorporated into the workforce as expeditiously as possible.


Civil Service Reform Update Employee Investment & Performance Management

Next Steps

Create a stronger link between promotive points and performance.

Slated for FY07.

Authorize limited paid leaves of absence to investigate serious allegations of misconduct.

Slated for FY07.

Use work plans, not discipline to correct poor performance.

Client service representatives have incorporated this into their work plans for FY07.


Civil Service Reform Update Employee Investment & Performance Management

Next Steps

Set and enforce attendance standards.

Client services and ERD will develop a training program for the HR Group.

Consolidate paid leave types into general paid time off.

Requires a Charter amendment.



Separation

Succession PlanningSeniority

Layoffs & BumpingTermination


Civil Service Reform Update Succession Planning

Provide an incentive to employees to remain with the City longer by offering an improved retirement benefit at a later age.

City and labor will work on possible charter amendment for 2008..

SEIU MOU has created a committee to discuss ideas.

We need to do better at retaining our valuable employees.


Civil Service Reform Update Layoffs & Bumping

Eliminate interdepartmental bumping for managers.

New Civil Service Rule to be considered at a July 3, 2006 Civil Service meeting.

Audit and verify special conditions.

Special conditions for all IT positions at DPH have been reviewed and revised. Agreed with Local 21 that City would provide information on special conditions.

Negotiate severance packages.

MEA, Local 21, SEIU and MAA contracts now all have updated severance provisions.

The City’s layoff and bumping procedures do not adequately balance employee rights and protections with departments’ obligations to deliver effective and efficient services.


Civil Service Reform Update Termination

Expedite the termination process by eliminating intermediate grievance steps, creating a citywide panel of standing arbitrators and imposing arbitration time limits.

Incorporated into most of the recently-negotiated MOUs.

Expedited appeal process for terminations and suspensions in the Local 21 and SEIU MOUs.

Online processing of separations in HRIS will improve the administration of terminations.

Today, the termination process can take up to two years.


Civil Service Reform Update Separation: Next Steps

Establish a citywide task force to aid in succession planning and make recommendations to the Mayor and Board of Supervisors.

DHR’s Workforce Development Unit will publish a Succession Planning Report during FY07.

Base seniority on Citywide time worked in class for employees hired on or after July 1, 2006 and utilize citywide seniority to determine the layoff order within a classification.

Planned for FY07 or beyond.


Civil Service Reform Update Separation: Next Steps

Protect employees with more than five years citywide seniority in a classification from displacement.


Limit holdover rosters to two years




Governance

Authority & JurisdictionLabor NegotiationsBudget Processes


Civil Service Reform Update Authority & Jurisdiction

The Civil Service Commission serves as both the rule- making authority and the appellate body responsible for resolving employee appeals.

Realign roles and responsibilities of the Civil Service Commission and the Department of Human Resources.

Commission will handle appeals regarding merit principles.

DHR will handle procedural appeals.

Simplify and consolidate Civil Service Rules.

Rule Revision Task Force will be led by Commissioner Casper. Planned for FY07 and FY08.


Civil Service Reform Update Labor Negotiations

The City needs to streamline collective bargaining processes and the types of issues which are collectively bargained.

Reduce the number of individual labor contracts with a master agreement format.

The Craft unions have agreed to consolidate their 14 MOUs into one master contract.

Standardize language in City-wide pay provisions.

Worked into the MOUs.


Civil Service Reform Update Budget Processes

Simplify the requisition appeal process.

The streamlined requisition approval process has resulted in 35% fewer approvals needed, and a 40% faster approval rate.

Consider adding position control to the City’s suite of personnel management applications.

Incorporated into the upcoming proposed HRIS upgrade.

The budget approval process is bureaucratic and inefficient.


Civil Service Reform Update Governance: Next Steps

Place all centralized HR functions in one physical location.

In discussion with GSA for 2008.

Grant personnel budget authority by program area rather than by position.

Under discussion.


Civil Service Reform Update Next Steps: The Big Picture

Our goal is to enact as many of the recommendations as possible. In the coming year, the following will be top priority:

Succession planning.

Continued implementation of modern technological systems that will facilitate all aspects of reform.

Creating even more training and career development opportunities for our employees.

Streamlining Civil Service Rules to make them more efficient and applicable to our modern workforce.

Recruitment and Retention.