5.1.0 Authority

SMC 4.04.040 and subsequent revisions thereto, Administration

SMC 4.04.050 and subsequent revisions thereto, Rule-making Authority

29 CFR 790 General Statement as to the Effect of the Portal to Portal Act of 1947 on the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938

5.1.1 Definitions

1. "Appointing authority" shall mean the head of an employing unit authorized by ordinance or City Charter to employ others on behalf of the City, or a designated management representative. The term includes and can be used interchangeably with department head, department director, superintendent, or chief.
2. "Employing unit" shall mean any department of the City and, within the Executive and Legislative Departments, any office created by ordinance.
3. "Employee-driven training for professional/career development" shall mean programs and classes voluntarily selected by the employee to enhance his or her qualifications relative to career movement, as opposed to skills improvement relative to his or her current job.
4. "High priority business needs training" shall mean training programs specific to the operations of individual employing units.
5. "Hourly employee" shall mean an employee who is compensated on an hourly basis for each hour of work performed, including time worked beyond 40 hours in a workweek.
6. "Legally required training" shall mean training required to comply with federal, state or local regulations or training to maintain a professional license necessary for the performance of assigned job duties.
7. "Mandated training" shall mean programs at which employees' attendance is mandated by the Mayor of the City of Seattle.
8. "Overtime threshold" shall mean 40 straight-time hours of work per workweek. Hours worked beyond the overtime threshold must be compensated at the appropriate overtime rate of pay.
9. "Regularly appointed employee" shall mean an individual who has a probationary, regular or exempt appointment to a position of City employment.
10. "Scholarship" shall mean funds used to assist employees with education expenses paid to colleges, universities, and vocational institutions by issuing advance and/or reimbursement payments to the employee or directly to the educational institution.

5.1.2 Application of this Rule

1. The provisions of this Rule apply to regularly appointed employees.
2. For regularly appointed employees who are represented under the terms of a collective bargaining agreement, this Rule prevails except where it conflicts with the collective bargaining agreement, any memoranda of agreement or understanding signed pursuant to the collective bargaining agreement, or any recognized and established practice relative to the members of the bargaining unit.
3. This Rule does not apply to individuals who are employed under the terms of a grant that includes employment provisions that conflict with this Rule.
4. This Rule does not apply to individuals hired by the City on a temporary, intermittent or seasonal basis, or for a work schedule of fewer than 20 hours per week, nor does it apply to individuals hired under contract to the City.
5. Appointing authorities may establish written policies and procedures for the implementation and administration of this Rule to facilitate the management of the personnel system within their employing units, provided that such policies and procedures do not conflict with the provisions of this Rule.

5.1.3 Request and Approval

1. Employee participation in City-paid or sponsored training is at the discretion of the appointing authority.
2. The appointing authority may require an employee's participation, or may approve an employee's request to participate, in a training program if he or she determines that the program meets one or more of the following criteria:
   1. Supports the employing unit's operations, objectives, and mission;
   2. Is expected to improve performance of the employee's current job; and/or
   3. Supports the employee's clearly identified career path which has been endorsed by the appointing authority.
3. Employee training shall be prioritized as follows:
   1. Legally required training;
   2. Mandated training;
   3. High priority business needs training; and
   4. Employee-driven training for professional/career development.
4. Approval to participate in training opportunities shall include authorization specifying the amount of time the employee may use to complete the program.

5.1.4 Working Hours

1. Authorized training shall be treated as a work assignment. Employees shall be compensated for time spent in authorized training activities during normal work hours. For hourly employees, time spent in authorized training activities, including completion of assignments, studying, and testing, counts toward the overtime threshold.
2. Employees may not use paid time, other than accumulated and unused vacation, compensatory time off or other appropriate paid leave, to participate in personal training activities that have not been designated a work assignment by the appointing authority.
3. An hourly employee must obtain the explicit prior approval of his or her appointing authority to work more than his or her scheduled hours, including work associated with an authorized training opportunity. Hourly employees may be disciplined for working unauthorized overtime.
4. When an hourly employee's workday is begun prior to and completed subsequent to a class or training program, time spent in transit to and from the class or training program shall be included in the computation of the employee's hours worked.
5. The appointing authority shall monitor employee progress in authorized training activities and may withdraw approval for the employee's continued participation if the employee fails to meet established deadlines or to achieve predetermined objectives.

5.1.5 Scholarship Advance or Reimbursement

1. With the advance approval of the appointing authority, and in keeping with the policies and procedures established by the City Finance Director, employees may request designated scholarship funds as cash advances or reimbursements for costs associated with tuition, laboratory fees, textbooks, and other reasonable and usual expenses associated with employee-driven training for professional or career development.
2. An employee who receives financial assistance from other sources may receive a scholarship advance or be reimbursed by the City only for allowable expenses in excess of this assistance.

5.1.6 Use of City Facilities and Equipment for Training Purposes

1. The appointing authority may approve an employee's use of departmental facilities and equipment, including but not limited to computers, video equipment, and software and licensing agreements, for training purposes.
2. The appointing authority may schedule an employee's use of departmental facilities and equipment to minimize disruptions to the employing unit's workload and to co-workers. The appointing authority shall be responsible for the security of equipment and facilities when he or she requires or allows an employee to access needed facilities and equipment after normal work hours.
3. The appointing authority may approve employee access to departmental facilities and equipment for the employee's personal non-job-related training, as long as the employee's use does not interfere with the employing unit's business use of such facilities and equipment.