Nowthen council adopts personnel policy, defers overtime paragraph for further study

The Nowthen City Council voted June 10 to approve a revised personnel policy dated March 2025, adopting most provisions but reverting a single paragraph that would change how overtime is calculated.

During a lengthy review, the council and staff discussed exempt employee PTO rules, the use of unaccrued PTO, sample salary increase language, and a proposed flex‑time practice for pre‑planned after‑hours work. Members asked city staff and the city attorney to clarify whether overtime should be calculated on a 40‑hour work week or on any hours worked in excess of eight in a day; council directed staff to revert the first paragraph on page 175 to the existing policy and to survey other small cities through the Minnesota Association of Small Cities.

Interim city administrator Natalie Johnson told the council she had received 11 applications for the front‑desk position and summarized planned interview dates; several council members volunteered to observe interviews if schedules allow. Councilmember Glazer and others emphasized trust in exempt staff and recommended preserving language that exempts short absences from required use of paid leave for exempt employees.

Councilmembers also discussed options for flex time aimed at reducing overtime costs for events like council meetings and storm responses; they asked staff to draft explicit language that would limit flexible time to pre‑planned or city‑need events and require supervisor approval.

The adopted policy will be codified by resolution (Res. 25‑2025‑XX). The council approved the personnel policy with the single overtime paragraph reverted for further benchmarking and discussion at a future meeting.