Personnel Committee

MINUTES PERSONNEL COMMITTEE AMUNDSON COMMUNITY CENTER 200 SPRING ST., CAMBRIDGE, WI 53523 MONDAY, MARCH 30, 2026, 6:00 PM 1. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL: Trustee Kreklau called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. Members Present – Trustee Blackwood, Trustee Kreklau, and Trustee Trendel Members Absent – None Others Present –Village Administrator Kris Breunig 2. PROOF OF POSTING: Confirmed - Upper and Lower levels of the Amundson Center, Cambridge Post Office, Badger Bank, Bank First, and the Village website. 3. PUBLIC COMMENT: None. 4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Motion by Blackwood to approve the minutes of the February 18, 2026, meeting. Second by Trendel. Motion carried by voice vote. 5. UNFINISHED BUSINESS a. Discussion and Possible Action on Employee Handbook The committee reviewed and finalized multiple sections of the employee handbook with the goal of presenting changes at an upcoming village board meeting: Leave Policies • Sick Leave: This policy was previously finalized and approved. • Funeral Leave: The policy was updated to allow employees to use up to three sick days to extend their funeral leave. • Military Leave: A note was made to update the reference from the 1994 USERRA to a more current version. • Volunteer Emergency Service: It was confirmed that injuries sustained during volunteer service would fall under the respective department's workman's comp, not the Village's. • General Leave of Absence: All instances of "clerk" were changed to "administrator." The term "maternity leave" will be updated to "parental leave." • Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA): As the village has fewer than 50 employees and a legal opinion confirmed it is not required to provide FMLA, the committee recommended striking the entire FMLA section. All other leave requests will be handled on a case-by-case basis under the general "Leave of Absence" policy, submitted to the administrator for committee review. Fringe Benefits: Insurance • Health Insurance: - Policy Language: Specific plan names will be removed. The policy will be simplified to state that the village offers a "plan certified by the State of Wisconsin." Details about premium percentages and qualifying life events will be added.  - Eligibility (Part-Time): The eligibility threshold for regular part-time employees will be raised from 30 to 32 hours per week (0.8 FTE). The policy will state: "Employees who are scheduled to work at least 32 hours per week are eligible for health benefits." - Waiting Period: The committee noted a discrepancy between the handbook's 30-day waiting period and a practice of immediate eligibility, which caused enrollment issues. The section needs to be rewritten to align with state plan rules. • Dental Insurance: - The section will be kept separate from health insurance for modularity. - The language will be standardized to: "Comprehensive dental insurance is provided for eligible employees under terms of a plan certified by the State of Wisconsin." - The village's 88% premium contribution will remain in the policy. Dental benefits will not be offered to part-time employees. • Vision Coverage: A line stating the dental plan includes vision coverage was identified as inaccurate and will be removed. It was later confirmed that the Delta Dental policy does include vision and hearing care. • Flexible Spending Plan (FSA): - Due to high costs and low participation, the FSA benefit will be sunset. New enrollment will end on April 1, 2026, and the benefit will expire for current enrollees on December 31, 2026. - Prior to its removal from future handbooks, the eligibility will be updated to 32 hours per week and specific dollar amounts will be replaced with language referencing "allowable limits per the IRS." • Medicare at Age 65: A policy clause requiring employees or spouses who reach age 65 to enroll in Medicare was noted but not resolved. • Insurance Buyout: It was confirmed that the village does not offer a buyout for employees who opt out of the company's insurance. Fringe Benefits: Retirement and Other • Term Life Insurance & Retirement: Specific state form numbers and an outdated benefits handbook link will be removed from the handbook. Sentences about matching Medicare contributions and other incorrectly grouped benefits (e.g., deferred compensation) will also be removed. • Retiree Medical Benefits: The section will be simplified to keep only the first paragraph, which states that retired employees can retain health insurance at their own expense until they are eligible for Medicare. Redundant paragraphs and language about sick leave payout or allowing former employees to return to the plan will be removed. Professional Development and Training • Policy Name: The policy will be kept under "professional development" and "continuing education credits." • Employee Orientation: The one-sentence orientation section will be removed as it is redundant. • Tuition Reimbursement: The entire tuition and book reimbursement benefit will be removed from the handbook to avoid complexity and IRS compliance issues. Required continuing education for certifications will still be covered. • Training Approval Process: - All staff training requests must be submitted to the Village Administrator for approval, subject to budgetary constraints. - To create a check and balance, the Village Administrator's own training requests must be approved by the Personnel Committee. • Employee Retention: A separate sign-off sheet (not in the handbook) will be created, requiring employees to stay for a set period after receiving costly training or repay the cost. • Travel Policy: The language for training-related travel was deemed too vague and needs to be clarified regarding per diems and specific rates.  Staffing, Comp Time, and Flex Time • Public Works Staffing: A concern was raised about an employee in the Public Works department taking every Friday off through May, causing staffing shortages. The committee affirmed that the department manager, Cody, is responsible for managing schedules and ensuring adequate coverage, regardless of employee seniority. • Comp Time vs. Flex Time Confusion: There is significant confusion among staff about the difference between "comp time" (accrued hours in lieu of overtime, capped at 40 hours) and "flex time" (schedule adjustments within a pay period). Employees are reportedly banking over 100 hours of what they are calling "flex time." The policy states comp time must be used by year-end with no carryover. • Management Responsibility: The committee concluded that the supervisor is responsible for managing his staff's schedules and enforcing the 40-hour comp time cap. He cannot allow unmanaged time off that impacts operations. • Policy Clarification: The distinction between comp time and flex time needs to be clarified for all staff. It was suggested that Cody attend a future personnel meeting for guidance and that clarifying communications be sent to all employees. 6. NEW BUSINESS – None. 7. CORRESPONDENCE – None. 8. REFERRALS TO STAFF: None. 9. ADJOURNMENT: Motion by Trustee Blackwood to adjourn. Second by Trustee Trendel. Motion carried by voice vote. Meeting adjourned at 7:44 p.m. Respectfully submitted by Brian Wilson, Clerk/Treasurer, Village of Cambridge These minutes were approved by the Village Board of Trustees on April 14, 2026.