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The legal department, the city manager’s office, the city auditor’s office, the city secretary’s office, the library department, the park and recreation department, the radio department, municipal court judges, and the city council office staff are exempted from the provisions applicable to the civil service. (Amend. of 5-3-97, Prop. No. 8; Amend. of 11-8-05, Prop. Nos. 3 and 5)
(a) Appointments or promotions of city officers and employees in the classified and unclassified service shall not be deemed complete until a period of six months shall have elapsed. A probationer may be discharged, suspended or reduced within said period by the city manager, or the head of the department in which said probationer is employed without right of appeal. A probationary period served as a civilian employee will not satisfy the probationary period for a position in the sworn service with the police department or the fire-rescue department.
(b) Probationary periods may be extended under civil service rules or personnel rules to allow six months on-the-job work performance or completion of any written prerequisites to employment. (Amend. of 4-2-83, Prop. No. 7; Amend. of 11-5-24)
(a) Any classified or unclassified officer or employee may be removed, laid off, or reduced in grade by the city manager, or the head of the department in which the officer or employee is employed, after the six months’ probationary period has expired. The officer taking the action shall, upon request, furnish the discharged or reduced officer or employee with a written statement of the reasons for the action. The discharged or reduced officer or employee shall have the right to demand a public hearing upon the charges, within a reasonable time after notice of the action, before the trial board as provided by this Charter. This right of appeal does not apply to department directors, assistant department directors, and other managerial personnel designated by the city council, or to employees in departments exempted from the provisions applicable to the civil service.
(b) An officer or employee who has been disciplined by the head of any department under the city manager shall have 10 days from receipt of notice of such action within which to demand, in writing, a hearing before the city manager. At the hearing, the city manager shall inquire into the cause of the disciplinary action and render a decision either affirming the action of the department head, setting aside the action of the department head, or directing the department head to enter a new order that the city manager determines is just and equitable. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Charter, the city manager is not limited in determining the extent of any discipline ordered. The decision of the city manager is final unless the disciplined officer or employee exercises any right to a public hearing before the trial board as provided by this Charter. This right of appeal does not apply to department directors, assistant department directors, and other managerial personnel designated by the city council, or to employees in departments exempted from the provisions applicable to the civil service. (Amend. of 4-2-83, Prop. No. 7; Amend. of 5-1-93, Prop. No. 8; Amend. of 11-8-05, Prop. No. 5; Amend. of 11-5-24)
(a) There is hereby created for the purpose of hearing and determining charges made against any officer or employee of the city, classified or unclassified, who has been discharged or reduced in grade, a board to be known as the trial board, which shall be composed of one member of the civil service board as designated by the chair and two adjunct members of the civil service board as designated by the chair. The civil service board shall designate a secretary to the trial board.
(b) The trial board has final jurisdiction to hear and decide all appeals made to it by any discharged or reduced officer or employee. The judgment or decision of a majority of the trial board is final, unless the decision is appealed by either party within one year to the district court of the State of Texas, in which hearing the matter must be decided based upon the review of the record of the trial board hearing. An appeal by the city of a trial board decision to district court must be approved by the city manager and city attorney. An appeal by either party to district court does not suspend the execution of the trial board order being appealed. The prevailing party in an appeal to district court is entitled to reasonable attorney’s fees incurred from the date the trial board order is issued.
(c) Any aggrieved officer or employee who desires to appeal to the trial board must do so in writing within 10 working days from the date of notification of dismissal or reduction. The aggrieved officer or employee has the right to be represented by counsel, to have an open hearing, and to compel the attendance of witnesses to testify for the aggrieved officer or employee. The appeal to the trial board does not suspend the execution of the order being appealed. The trial board, by majority vote, or the administrative law judge may either sustain, reverse, modify, or amend the disciplinary action as is determined just and equitable, provided that the disciplinary action must be sustained if a reasonable person could have taken the same disciplinary action against the employee. (Amend. of 6-12-73, Prop. No. 31; Amend. of 4-2-83, Prop. No. 7; Amend. of 4-6-85, Prop. No. 4; Amend. of 5-1-93, Prop. No. 8; Amend. of 11-8-05, Prop. No. 5; Amend. of 11-4-14, Prop. No. 9)
Instead of appealing to a trial board as provided in Section 12 of this chapter, an officer or employee of the city, classified or unclassified, who has been discharged or reduced in grade may appeal to an administrative law judge in accordance with procedures established by ordinance. (Amend. of 8-12-89, Prop. No. 10; Amend. of 11-5-24)
The city council shall provide a system of personnel rules and regulations for all employees which shall include:
(1) a description of employment positions;
(2) methods of determining merit and fitness;
(3) hours of work, attendance regulations, provisions for sick leave and provisions for vacation leave;
(4) a plan of equitable pay scales;
(5) policies regarding in-service training programs;
(6) grievance procedures; and
(7) other conditions of employment.
(a) No person shall be appointed, reduced, removed, or in any way favored or discriminated against because of race, color, age, religion, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, genetic characteristics, national origin, disability, military or veteran status, sex, political opinions or affiliations. No officer or employee of the city shall directly or indirectly, in any way be required to contribute to any political campaign, political party, organization which supports candidates for public office, or for any partisan political purpose whatsoever.
(b) To avoid undue influence of city employees on the outcome of city council elections and to avoid undue influence of city council members or candidates for city council on city employees, the following restrictions are imposed:
(1) No employee of the city or association of such employees may publicly endorse or actively support candidates for the city council or any political organization or association organized to support candidates for the city council.
(2) No employee of the city may circulate petitions for city council candidates, although an employee may sign such a petition.
(3) No employee of the city may contribute, directly or indirectly or through an organization or association to such a campaign nor solicit or receive contributions for a city council candidate.
(4) No employee of the city may wear city council campaign buttons nor distribute campaign literature at work or in a city uniform or in the offices or buildings of the City of Dallas.
(c) In elections other than for city council of the City of Dallas, an employee of the city may not:
(1) use the prestige of the employee’s position with the city for any partisan candidate;
(2) manage a partisan political campaign;
(3) solicit or receive contributions for such a campaign; or
(4) actively support a candidate except on the employee’s own time while not in a city uniform nor in an office or building of the City of Dallas.
(d) Notwithstanding any conflict with Subsections (b) and (c) of this section, a sworn employee of the fire-rescue department or the police department may engage in political activities to the extent permitted by law. (Amend. of 6-12-73, Prop. No. 32; Amend. of 8-12-89, Prop. No. 11; Amend. of 11-8-05, Prop. No. 10; Amend. of 11-4-14, Prop. No. 9)
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