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Tumwater council adopts employee benefits update adding Christmas Eve, extra floating holiday and a community service day
Summary
Council approved a benefits package for non‑represented staff that adds Christmas Eve as a fixed holiday, increases floating holidays from one to two, creates an 8‑hour community service day usable in increments, and raises starting annual‑leave accruals to 12 hours per month.
The Tumwater City Council on May 5 voted to adopt staff‑recommended updates to the city’s employee benefits policy for non‑represented employees.
Staff presented the changes as an effort to make the city more competitive for municipal talent. Proposed changes that the council approved include adding Christmas Eve as a fixed holiday, increasing floating holidays from one to two eight‑hour days, adding an 8‑hour community service day that employees may use in partial increments, and increasing starting annual‑leave accrual to 12 hours per month for new hires in non‑represented classifications.
Michelle (HR director) told council these changes "align Tumwater with the market" and are intended to improve recruitment and retention without adding an immediate appropriation; departments will manage the operational impacts internally. Council members asked about comparables and application to bargaining units: staff clarified the update applies to non‑represented staff and that bargaining‑unit terms remain subject to negotiation.
Why it matters: Personnel benefits shape the city’s ability to recruit and retain employees and can affect service delivery if turnover declines.
What’s next: Departments will implement the new leave schedule operationally; staff will coordinate with directors to ensure coverage and manage indirect costs within existing budgets.
