The Civil Service Commission has established the Civil Service Adviser to enhance delivery of information on important employment issues and policies affecting the merit system of the City and County of San Francisco.
OUT-OF-CLASS ASSIGNMENT
Policy Reminder
Consistent with Civil Service Commission Rules and long standing policy and practice, the Civil Service Commission is again reminding all department heads, personnel officers, managers, supervisors, and employees that out-of-class assignments must be properly documented.
Authority
The Civil Service Commission has Charter authority to establish Rules and policy on the merit system including but not limited to Examination and Classification.
Merit System Principle
Woven through the civil service system is the principle of promotion based on merit. Appropriate documentation of out-of-class assignments demonstrates merit through qualification for examination and consideration for appointment from an eligible list following successful completion of the examination process.
Right of Assignment
Department heads have very broad discretion in the assignment of employees. However, work assignments of employees under the authority of the department head must be consistent with the kind of duties and level of responsibility of the employee’s class. These assignments, although consistent with the class, may not always be listed in the class specification.
Temporary Out-of-Class Assignments
The Civil Service Commission establishes the definition and policy on temporary out-of-class assignments. The Department Head/Designee may make a temporary out-of-class assignment to maintain the provision of any public service. This means the assignment of an employee without change in class to perform the day-to- day duties and responsibilities of another class.
Documentation Required
Civil Service Commission Rules and policy require that out-of-class assignments must be recorded and placed in the personnel file at the same time (contemporaneous) the assignment is made. When the required documentation is not placed in an employee’s file, employees who at the direction of their supervisor or manager “step up to the plate” to perform the duties of another classification are seriously penalized. Assignments that are not recorded in accordance with this policy will NOT be credited as qualifying experience in examinations. Both managers and employees have responsibility to see that the assignments of out-of-class job duties are correctly documented and placed in the personnel file.
Qualifications Determined
The Human Resources Director/Designee is responsible for reviewing the duties performed and appropriate documentation to make a judgment on an individual’s qualifications and any credit that may be applied toward examinations. This decision is subject to appeal to the Civil Service Commission.
Class/Job Code
The Charter/Civil Service Commission term “class” or “classification” is used interchangeably with the Department of Human Resources term “job code” and defined as a position or group of positions for which a common descriptive job title may be used.