(A) The town may provide a mobile device allowance for some employees, as approved by the Town Council, where the urgency of communication requires the use of such device as a business tool. The allowance is provided to assist employees in communicating with management and other employees, residents, customers of town services, vendors, and others with whom they may conduct business. Departments may establish policies restricting the possession and/or use of mobile devices in the workplace.
(B) Employees may have access to a mobile device while in automobiles and should remember that their primary responsibility is driving safely and obeying the rules of the road. Employees are prohibited from using mobile devices to conduct the town’s business or personal matters while driving a town-owned vehicle and should safely pull off the road and come to a complete stop before emailing, texting, accessing data, dialing, or talking on the mobile device.
(C) As a representative of the town, mobile device users are reminded that the regular business etiquette employed when speaking from office phones or in meetings applies to conversations conducted over a mobile device.
(D) Employees are required, as a respect to others in the workplace to keep the ringers on their personal devices in a silent mode. During working hours, employees are urged to keep their personal conversations, emailing, texting, or data access activities brief and kept to only urgent matters when approved by a department head. Employees are required to conduct lengthy conversations, emailing, texting and data access activities on their lunch breaks or during non-working hours. If mobile device usage, to include personal conversations, emailing, texting, or data access usage is abused, the first infraction may result in a verbal warning. A second infraction may result in a written warning and a third or subsequent violation and continued abuse may result in continued disciplinary action, up to and including termination of employment. The town reserves the right to ban all mobile device usage during working hours, if usage becomes problematic.
(E) Text messaging with a town-issued device.
(1) The term TEXT MESSAGING includes all electronic messages, or graphics; whether sent by email, instant messaging, mobile device texting, or other similar technology utilizing a town-issued mobile device.
(2) The town recognizes the benefits of text messaging for convenient, and expedient real-time business communications. These modes of communication have the potential to be abused, however, resulting in such problems as lost productivity, harassment, security concerns, and even possible legal liability. Town employees are strictly prohibited from transmitting messages with obscene, profane, lewd, derogatory, or potentially harassing/discriminatory content. Employees may not send messages that they know, or have reason to believe, may be false or misleading.
(3) Furthermore, any text messages sent using a town-issued device should not be considered private. The town reserves the right to monitor all such messages. Employees should be aware that these messages are subject to disclosure to outside third parties. These parties include the court system and law enforcement agencies. Employees should report any known or suspected violations of this policy to management for investigation. Violations may result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination of employment.
(Ord. 2020-26, passed 1-12-21)