Pontiac council establishes full payout policy for unused sick time as it moves to PTO

The Pontiac City Council on Jan. 7 unanimously approved a two‑step action to move the city to a paid‑time‑off policy and to pay out employees for their unused, earned sick time as part of that transition.

Why it matters: The decision affects current employees and retirees who had accumulated sick‑time balances under the previous accrual rules. Council members framed the move as a “clean break” that would stop future accrual mismatches and close an outstanding administrative liability.

Clerk and human resources actions: The meeting first approved a motion authorizing the city clerk to publish notice of a proposed budget amendment — a procedural step required before changes are adopted — with a staff‑calculated cost estimate of $170,000 for an initial payout approach. That procedural notice cleared the council unanimously; Clerk Doyle explained the notice allows the council to consider a budget amendment at a subsequent meeting.

Council discussion then focused on the appropriate payout amount. The HR director presented three options: (1) pay every employee the full value of their accrued sick time (December 13 estimate: roughly $461,000, subject to change with additional pay periods); (2) pay according to existing policy (50% of sick time up to 80 hours — the approach the administration initially proposed, estimated at $170,000); or (3) pay employees their full banked amounts up to a different threshold (estimated about $224,000 for an alternate partial approach).

Council members said a full payout would be fair to employees, retirees and those who have earned the time. Councilwoman Melody Rutherford and others pushed for a complete payout so employees would not lose accumulated benefits during the transition. The council also discussed an alternative the administration had considered: sequestering accrued hours in a restricted bank available only for catastrophic or medically documented leave; Deputy Mayor Stevens presented that as an option but council members favored full payout.

After debate the council approved an amended resolution that the council “establishes that it be the policy of the city of Pontiac that all unused, earned sick time hours be paid out in full to city of Pontiac employees as the city transitions to a new paid time off policy.” That resolution passed on a unanimous roll call (7–0).

Timing and next steps: Clerk Doyle and HR said the clerk must publish a formal budget amendment notice (already authorized) and the council will consider the budget appropriation for the payout at the next regular meeting, allowing the clerk and finance staff to determine exact dollar figures after recent pay periods are included. The clerk noted the mayor has the statutory period to veto resolutions; the council's president asked staff to timestamp filings and to notify council leadership immediately so action can be tracked within the veto window.

Ending: Council members said they want the change implemented quickly to avoid further hardship for employees and retirees. The exact payout total will be finalized in the budget amendment the council will consider at its next meeting.