Committee to ask personnel about countywide leave policy, orientation and remote-work practices

Members of the Otsego County Performance and Goal Setting Committee on March 24 flagged gaps in countywide HR policy and agreed to request details from the personnel director (Penny) about orientation, leave policy and remote-work practices.

The chair told the committee that, beyond federal FMLA rules, it did not appear the county maintains a single consolidated personnel policy covering leave and routine HR procedures. Committee members said HR functions are largely handled at the department level, and they expressed concern about whether employees have consistent recourse when issues arise within a department. The committee requested that Penny present the county’s current orientation process for new department heads and personnel’s role in HR at the next meeting.

The group also discussed remote participation rules for meetings (Zoom) and remote-work policy. Members noted that since the state-level emergency executive orders ended, the county must generally have quorum physically present in the room for voting but can allow some remote participation in extraordinary circumstances if noticed in advance. Separately, remote work for employees has been handled case by case; the committee discussed whether broader remote-work flexibility could support recruitment and retention in a rural county and agreed to ask personnel for an overview of current practices.

The committee set the next meeting for April 28 and asked personnel to provide the requested HR clarifications so the committee can consider practical steps—such as improving visibility of leave, orienting new department heads to the strategic plan and clarifying escalation pathways for employee complaints—before recommending broader policy changes.