There shall be a Department of Human Resources, headed by a
Commissioner of Human Resources, who shall be appointed by the County
Administrator, subject to confirmation by the Tompkins County Legislature.
The Commissioner of Human Resources shall be appointed to a six-year
term on the basis of administrative experience and other qualifications
appropriate to the responsibilities of the office and shall be directly
responsible to the County Administrator, unless otherwise required
by law, for the implementation of policies established by the Tompkins
County Legislature.
The Commissioner shall have the power to appoint such deputies,
assistants, and employees of the Department of Human Resources as
may be necessary to perform the duties of the office of Commissioner
of Human Resources and as shall be authorized by the Tompkins County
Legislature. All deputies, assistants, and employees of the Department
shall be directly responsible to the Commissioner. Except as otherwise
provided in this Charter, the Commissioner shall have all the powers
and perform all the duties of a Municipal Civil Service Commission
as provided by the Civil Service Law. The powers and duties of the
Commissioner shall be to:
(a) Maintain and administer salary plan(s) for County employees, periodically
re-survey prevailing salaries and recommend amendments to the Tompkins
County Legislature to eliminate inequities, recruiting difficulties,
and employee turnover problems;
(b) Establish, in cooperation with other heads of units of County government,
a program of employee recruitment designed to acquaint interested
persons with the opportunities for employment in County government,
and to provide County government with appropriate candidates to fill
vacancies in established positions;
(c) Maintain, in cooperation with other heads of units of County government,
a central file of job opportunities in County government, and make
provisions for the dissemination of such information to the public;
(d) Establish and maintain a roster of all County officers and employees.
Such roster shall show for each County officer and employee the date
of appointment or election, the title of the position, the rate of
pay and rate changes, promotions, demotions, transfers, the time and
cause of separations from County employment, and any other information
the Commissioner considers necessary for a proper personnel record;
(e) Institute programs to ensure that each incoming County employee is
properly advised of the responsibilities and benefits of County employment
and receives necessary orientation and both pre-work assignment and
continuing training;
(f) Determine those aspects of employment, working conditions, benefit
programs, and employee activities that are necessary to maintain the
County in a competitive position as an employer and recommend actions
to the Tompkins County Legislature to accomplish this;
(g) Administer on behalf of the County agreements with recognized employee
organizations concerning terms and conditions of employment and other
matters that may come before the Commissioner and recommend necessary
action to the Tompkins County Legislature;
(h) Serve as a member of the Special Negotiating Committee appointed
pursuant to § C-2.08(c) of this Charter;
(i) Appoint and oversee the work of the Director of Employment and Training
Division of the Office of Workforce Development;
(j) Perform such other and related duties as may be required by the Tompkins
County Legislature.
No payroll, estimate, or account providing for the payment of
wages or salaries shall be approved by the County Director of Finance
unless it bears the certificate of the Commissioner of Human Resources
that the persons named therein have been, during the period specified,
employed in their respective positions in accordance with law and
rules made pursuant thereto.
It shall be the duty of the head of each administrative unit
of the County government to furnish the Commissioner of Human Resources
with such information and aid as may be necessary to the performance
of the duties of the office of Commissioner of Human Resources.