Lifetime Citizen Portal Access — AI Briefings, Alerts & Unlimited Follows
Northborough personnel board approves package of bylaw updates, including new vacation rules and $100 travel per diem
Loading...
Summary
The Town of Northborough Personnel Board approved a set of personnel bylaw updates on April 14, 2025, that add Juneteenth as a paid holiday, modernize vacation accruals (including a special leave account for employees hired before 07/01/2006), decouple personal days from sick leave, set a $100-per-day travel meal cap, and adopt modest pay adjustments including a 2% COLA.
The Town of Northborough Personnel Board approved a package of updates to its personnel bylaws during a remote meeting on April 14, 2025, aimed at modernizing holidays, vacation and sick‑leave rules and updating travel reimbursement and pay schedules.
Diane Wacko, a town staff member who led the review, said the changes include adding Juneteenth to the paid-holiday list, renaming Washington’s Birthday as Presidents’ Day and replacing Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples’ Day. Wacko said the vacation‑accrual language was revised to match recently negotiated union contracts and to address a retirement payout problem for employees hired before 07/01/2006: the town will place those pre‑2006 accrued balances into a special leave account, give affected employees three years to use those balances, and move forward with monthly accruals for all employees.
“Our goal is to modernize the vacation policy and get everybody on the same page,” Wacko said, adding that three recent retirements produced lump‑sum payouts that cost the town about $70,000 in fiscal 2026.
The board also voted to decouple personal days from sick‑leave usage and to clarify that full‑time employees will receive three personal days (24 hours) per fiscal year under the new language. Marsha Hill, a personnel board member, urged clearer wording in the bylaw text and recommended removing explanatory talking points from the codified language. “We are trying to set up and coordinate the payroll in such a way that things are fairly allocated and distributed, and there are no surprises,” Hill said.
Board members debated how to modernize travel reimbursement. Staff proposed replacing decades‑old per‑meal caps with updated per‑meal amounts or a single daily cap. After extended discussion about geographic cost differences, receipts and exclusions, the board adopted a daily meal cap of up to $100 with receipts required; alcohol is excluded. The motion passed 3–2, with Chuck and Marsha dissenting.
On retiree health coverage, Diane Wacko and the board discussed a discrepancy between current bylaw wording and practice. The bylaw language references Chapter 32B of the general laws for retiree benefits; the board contacted the town treasurer/collector for clarification. Members expressed concern about changing a percentage in the bylaw immediately and agreed to review the retiree‑insurance language further rather than amend it during the meeting.
The board approved updated longevity payments (a modest increase to earlier tiers) and accepted a 2% across‑the‑board general compensation increase for fiscal 2027. Several items — including holiday changes, vacation accrual modernization, personal‑day language, longevity increases and the 2% cost‑of‑living adjustment — were approved by roll call vote. The meeting was adjourned at 5:02 p.m.; staff said some changes will be presented at town meeting.
What the board approved: modest updates to holidays, a new special leave account and monthly accrual approach for pre‑2006 employees, personal‑day language separated from sick leave, a $100 daily meal cap for travel (receipts required; alcohol excluded), updated longevity payments and a 2% COLA. The board tabled final language about retiree group‑insurance percentages for later review.
