159.09 LONGEVITY.
   As a means of rewarding all permanent, full-time employees not covered by a collective bargaining agreement, except the Law Director and Assistant Law Director, for loyal service and to serve as an incentive for retaining good employees, longevity payments shall be made by the following schedule and guidelines. Annual longevity payments shall be made by two separate checks to each eligible permanent, full-time employee who has completed at least five years of continuous full-time service, and who shall be in the employ of the City, as of November 30th of the calendar year in which the first of such two payments is made. That first such payment shall be made during the first half of the month of December of each year and shall be in the amount set forth in subsections (a) and (b) below (based upon years of continuous full-time service as of November 30th); the second such payment shall be made at the time of the second payroll in the month of February of the next following calendar year and shall be calculated by dividing the amount in the December longevity payment by the total number of hours worked in the calendar year in which that December longevity payment was made and multiplying the result by one-half (½) the number of overtime hours worked in the calendar year in which that December longevity payment was made. The amount of the December longevity shall be as follows hereafter, but permanent, full-time classified employees not covered by a collective bargaining agreement in the employ of the City of Heath as of October 31, 1999, shall be paid longevity at the percentage listed in subsection (a), or the flat rate listed in subsection (b), whichever is greater. All permanent, full-time classified employees not covered by a collective bargaining agreement hired on or after November 1, 1999, shall be paid longevity at the flat rate listed in subsection (b), and the longevity will have a maximum payment of two thousand fifty dollars ($2,050.00) as specified herein.
   (a)   For eligible employees as described herein, the rate of payment may be:
      (1)   2.08% of basic annual salary after five years of service;
      (2)   2.65% of basic annual salary after ten years of service;
      (3)   3.25% of basic annual salary after fifteen years of service;
      (4)   4.43% of basic annual salary after twenty years of service;
      (5)   5.54% of basic annual salary after twenty-five years of service;
   (b)   For eligible employees as described herein, the rate of pay shall be: after five (5) years of service, each employee shall receive eight hundred dollars ($800.00). For each additional year thereafter, each employee shall receive an additional fifty dollars ($50.00) per year, as per the following schedule:   
5 years
$800.00
14 years
$1,250.00
23 years
$1,700.00
6 years
850.00
15 years
1,300.00
24 years
1,750.00
7 years
900.00
16 years
1,350.00
25 years
1,800.00
8 years
950.00
17 years
1,400.00
26 years
1,850.00
9 years
1,000.00
18 years
1,450.00
27 years
1,900.00
10 years
1,050.00
19 years
1,500.00
28 years
1,950.00
11 years
1,100.00
20 years
1,550.00
29 years
2,000.00
12 years
1,150.00
21 years
1,600.00
30 years
2,050.00
13 years
1,200.00
22 years
1,650.00
   (c)   Military leave, authorized absence without pay and maternity leave as defined in Section 159.22, while not considered as a break in service with the City, shall not be included in determining service time for the cash payment computed under this section.
   (d)   Employees who retire under normal or disability retirement programs of the City during any year in which longevity payments shall be made under this plan and who, because of such retirement, shall not be in the employment of the City as of November 30, of that particular year shall, nevertheless, receive a pro rata longevity payment for that year based on the number of full months of employment for the last December 1, to the date of the employee’s retirement.
(Ord. 77-2002. Passed 8-5-02.)