(a) Application. This section shall apply and be in force only with respect to employees within the Division of Fire who have been appointed and who otherwise qualify for the employee classification of full-time Fire Medics.
(b) Standard Work Requirements.
(1) The standard work period shall consist of nineteen days for full-time Fire Medics.
A. Regular Fire Medics shall work 144 hours in 19 days (52.85 hours average per week and 2,756 hours annually).
(2) The Fire Chief shall be responsible for all scheduling.
(3) Any day off with pay shall be considered a work day.
(4) The standard work period shall consist of a seven-day work week for the Assistant Chief.
A. Assistant Chief shall work 40 hours in a seven-day work week (2,080 hours annually).
(c) Employment Policy.
(1) Beginning July 11, 1983, to qualify for all compensation and benefits hereinafter provided, each employee shall have completed and submitted an employment application form before the commencement of employment. The Fire Chief shall review the employment application forms of all qualified applicants and make recommendations to the Mayor before employment. The Mayor may give credit for previous experience toward starting salary schedules. The employment application form of each person employed, bearing the approval of the Mayor, shall be kept in the personnel file of such employee.
(2) Appointments, promotions and transfers shall be made in accordance with the Village Charter.
(d) Annual Leave.
(1) The following schedule shall apply for annual leave.
Years of Service | Annual Leave In 24 Hour Shifts |
Less than 1 | None |
1 but less than 6 | 5 |
6 but less than 11 | 7.5 |
11 but less than 20 | 10 |
20 or more | 12.5 |
(Ord. 17-1995. Passed 4-4-95.)
(2) Annual leave shall be taken at such time as the Fire Chief directs subject to his administrative discretion.
(3) Annual leaves are not cumulative and shall not be postponed until the following anniversary year.
(4) Upon separation from employment, an employee shall be entitled to compensation for any unused annual leave to his credit at the time of separation. An employee who has less than one year of service shall not be entitled to compensation.
(5) In case of the death of an employee the value of unused annual leave shall be paid to the spouse of the deceased, and if there is no surviving spouse, then to the estate.
(6) A record shall be maintained for each employee showing days earned, days used and the balance available for annual leave.
(e) Paid Holidays.
(1) Each Fire Medic shall be entitled to 120 hours of paid holiday leave each year.
(2) The leave shall be based on the following designation of holidays:
New Year’s Day and one day prior
Martin Luther King Day
Memorial Day
Independence Day
Labor Day
Thanksgiving Day and the Friday after
Christmas Day and the day prior.
(3) The Mayor shall, with the assistance of the Fire Chief, fix the policy for the use of holiday leave.
(4) Any time not used by the end of the calendar year shall be converted to additional pay to be paid to the employee at his regular rate of pay at that time.
(5) Each employee who actively works on one of the holidays set forth in paragraph (e)(2) hereof shall be entitled to pay at one and one-half times the hourly rate.
(6) In addition to the foregoing hours of paid holiday leave, each Fire Medic shall be entitled to one twenty-four hour personal day as scheduled by the Fire Chief during the calendar year. Such personal day shall be requested by the employee but shall be scheduled by the Fire Chief. Such personal day shall be taken by the employee during the calendar year of entitlement and shall not accrue from year to year.
(f) Sick Leave.
(1) Each employee is entitled to paid sick leave for each month of service completed which shall be credited at the rate of six and forty-seven hundredths (6.47) hours per pay period, sick leave shall be applied, upon approval of the responsible department head, against absence due to illness, to personal injury, to exposure to a contagious disease and to illness or injury in the employee’s immediate family, as defined in subsection (g) hereof. Unused sick leave shall be cumulative.
(Ord. 5-1990. Passed 2-20-90.)
(2) Effective January 1, 1981, each full-time employee with ten or more years of service shall receive payment based on the employee’s rate of pay at retirement for unused accumulated sick leave up to a maximum accumulation of 672 hours at the time of retirement or death. Such retirement shall be in accordance with the Firemen’s Disability Pension Fund.
(3) The Fire Chief shall require an employee to furnish a satisfactory written, signed statement to justify the use of sick leave. If sick leave is taken so that an employee might receive medical attention, a certification from a licensed practitioner, stating the nature of the illness or injury, may be required. Falsification of either the written signed statement or the practitioner’s statement, and using sick leave for purposes other than illness, injury or exposure to a contagious disease, shall be grounds for disciplinary action, including dismissal.
(g) Bereavement Leave. There shall be allowed a leave of the equivalent of one twenty-four hour day for the death of an employee’s spouse, mother, father, mother-in-law, father- in-law, brother, sister, children, grandchildren or grandparents. Additional time necessitated by unusual circumstances may be granted by the Mayor. This subsection shall not apply when the employee is not otherwise scheduled for work.
(h) Special Leave of Absence.
(1) Duration of military leave. Employees who serve in the U.S. military reserve are entitled to a leave of absence from their respective duties without loss of seniority for a period of one year, or, in case of a declaration of war emergency, for the duration.
(2) Compensation for military leave. Employees who serve in the military reserve shall be entitled to receive the difference between the pay received from the Federal Government for on-field training or active duty periods not to exceed twenty-five days in any one calendar year, and the regular pay from the Village. However, if such employees use their vacation time for their reserve training period, they shall receive from the Village their full pay for that period of time, not to exceed twenty-five days per year.
(3) Special leave with pay. Upon approval of the Mayor, an employee may be granted special leave with pay to attend professional and technical conferences, meetings and schools related to employment duties or to visit other municipalities to obtain information and observe practices relating to his duties.
(4) Special leave without pay. Leave without pay may be granted by the Mayor in emergency cases, but only if the employee’s absence does not materially affect the operation of his division and only if the circumstances warrant such leave.
(5) Pregnancy leave. Pregnancy leave, for purposes of this section, shall be treated as sick leave and employees shall be entitled to pay in accordance with subsection (f) hereof. However, in addition to the rights created in subsection (f) hereof, a pregnant employee shall be entitled to receive time off from work, in grade, for a maximum period of thirty days pre-birth and forty-two days post-birth without loss of the appointment, provided, however, that the employee has provided satisfactory medical evidence to the Fire Chief showing a medical need for such time off from work. On return, the employee shall also provide satisfactory medical evidence that such employee is able to perform the duties of the appointment.
(6) Jury leave. An employee who is called for jury duty shall be reimbursed for the difference between his jury pay and his regular wages. Time spent on jury leave shall not be deducted from an employee’s sick leave or annual leave.
(i) Longevity Compensation.
(1) Employees shall receive additional compensation for a continuous period of time in service in accordance with the following schedule:
Years of Service
Compensation Per Month
5 through 9
$3.00
10 through 14
4.00
15 through 19
5.00
20 or more
6.00
(2) The total amount for additional compensation shall be due and payable on the regularly scheduled date of pay immediately after the anniversary date of employment.
(3) Notwithstanding any of the foregoing, the maximum annual additional compensation due and payable to any employee shall be not more than one thousand four hundred and forty dollars ($1,440).
(4) The length of service shall be computed on the basis of the employee’s anniversary date.
(j) Overtime Pay and Policy. Overtime shall be paid on the biweekly pay following the end of the work period. Overtime shall be determined as follows:
(1) Regular Fire Medic hourly rate = Annual salary divided by 2,756 times 1.5. Overtime paid on hours worked beyond 144 hours in 19 days.
(2) Overtime Rate for Assistant Fire Chief shall be determined as follows: Annual salary divided by 2,080 times 1.0. Overtime is paid on hours worked beyond 40 hours in a seven-day week.
The Fire Chief shall approve all overtime hours paid and shall keep all necessary records. The Fire Chief shall make a recommendation to the Mayor as to whether or not the employees shall be paid in cash or in compensatory time off. The Mayor shall determine the time and form of payment, whether in cash or compensatory time off.
(Ord. 17-2001. Passed 2-20-01.)
(k) Uniform and Clothing Allowances.
(1) The Village shall provide allowances for authorized uniforms and/or special clothing for employees who may require special clothing in performance of their municipal duties and the Village shall provide this allowance as determined by Council on an annual basis.
(2) The Fire Chief, after the approval of the Mayor, shall determine uniform and/or special clothing policy required for the duties to be performed by the department’s employees. Uniform and clothing allowance is to be disbursed to the employee by March 1st. Employee is responsible for purchasing the uniform and/or special clothing required by the Fire Chief. The Fire Chief shall be responsible for enforcement of the uniform and/or special clothing policy.
(Ord. 20-2003. Passed 2-18-03.)
(l) Employee Expenses and Mileage Reimbursement.
(1) The following is hereby adopted as the expense reimbursement travel policy for all employees in the Fire Department:
A. Mileage – as permitted by Internal Revenue Service.
B. Hotel - reasonable reimbursement as determined by the Finance Director.
C. Meals - $35.00 per day.
D. Tips - None.
E. Phone - for business purposes only.
F. Parking - reasonable reimbursement as determined by the Finance Director.
(2) Employees shall be reimbursed or advanced for necessary and reasonable expenses incurred in the performance of Municipal duties upon proof thereof and upon the approval of the Mayor.
(m) Employee Insurance. Employees shall receive life, group, dental, hospital and surgical insurance coverage under such amounts and under such terms as Council may authorize and they shall receive supplemental benefits under the Ohio State Firemen’s Association Group Accident Insurance Plan.
(n) Volunteer Fireman. Whenever a volunteer fireman acts as a substitute for a full- time Fire Medic, the volunteer fireman shall be paid in accordance with the pay scale ordinance. (Ord. 17-2001. Passed 2-20-01.)