Marion County’s personnel committee reviewed proposed changes to sick-leave accrual and payout in a policy update during its Aug. 28 meeting, agreeing to language that sick leave will accrue from an employee’s first day of full-time service while prohibiting use until the start of the fourth month of continuous employment. Committee members said the county’s HR and payroll system currently complicates implementation and can create appearances that employees have available leave before they become eligible to use it.

The committee discussed how the county’s new payroll platform automatically posts accrued time to pay stubs, which has led to confusion when employees see accrued balances they cannot legally use. Committee members said the earlier handbook required a 90-day probationary period before accrual; under the proposed policy accrual begins immediately but use remains restricted for the first roughly three months. Staff told the committee they must manually exclude new hires in the payroll system today, which risks human error; the proposed policy change aims to remove that manual step while preserving a waiting period before use.

Members also debated sick- and vacation-pay payout rules for employees who leave county service. The draft ties payouts to “good standing” and suggests elected-official sign-off before paying out balances; members recommended clarifying that employees terminated for cause should not receive payout. A committee member said other counties follow similar payout schedules and the draft mirrors that practice.

An employee who addressed the committee described a personal grievance under the county’s previous policy: she said her hire date left her three weeks short of a vacation-tier threshold and that she was denied a roughly $3,000 payout after leaving employment. She asked the committee to review the case before the county pursues Department of Labor proceedings. Committee members said that a legal review by county counsel (referred to in the meeting as "Russo") may be required and recommended the judge review the draft policy before legal review.

The committee asked staff to (1) add precise language that sick leave “accrues from the first day of full-time employment but may not be used until the beginning of the fourth month of continuous full-time service,” (2) document the payout approval process and the definition of “good standing,” and (3) route the employee’s grievance to legal review if needed. No formal motion or vote on the policy language was recorded during the meeting minutes in the transcript.

Why it matters: accrual, use and payout rules affect payroll, employee expectations and potential legal exposure. The committee indicated it will resolve implementation language with the judge and county legal staff and will adjust HR procedures so accrual and use align with the payroll system.

The committee scheduled further review; additional revisions will be sent to county legal counsel before the court considers final adoption.