1 DRAFT MERIT BAND PROPOSAL - FOR DISCUSSION ONLY

2
3 Article XX: Public Defense Attorney 1 Step Progression. Initial step placement and
4 advancement between salary steps and merit bands shall be as follows:
5 A. Initial Step placement. Employees hired into the Public Defense Attorney 1
6 classification shall be placed between initial steps 1 through 11 of the Public Defense
7 Attorney 1 wage addendum at the exclusive discretion of management and not subject to
8 grievance.
9 B. Wage Progression. Initial step progression, advancement to and between
10 merit bands, and step progression within merit bands for employees classified as a Public
11 Defense Attorney 1 shall be as follows:
12 i. For Initial Steps 1 - 11. Each Public Defense Attorney 1 who is
13 currently at initial steps 1 - 10 of the Public Defense Attorney 1 wage addendum shall advance a
14 single step per year on the anniversary date of their hire to King County or to a public defense
15 agency that contracted for public defense services with King County, whichever occtmed first.
16 Employees who are at step 11 of the Public Defense Attorney 1 wage addendum shall not
17 advance to a higher rate of pay unless placed into merit band 1 pursuant to the rules set forth
18 below.
19 ii. For Merit Band 1. Each Public Defense Attorney 1 who is at step 5 or
20 higher of the initial steps may, when a recruitment is being run, apply for placement into merit
21 band 1. Selection of candidates for placement into merit band 1 shall be made solely by
22 management and is not subject to grievance. An employee who applies for placement into merit
23 band 1 and is not selected may request feedback and/or review of their application for the
24 purposes of tmderstanding the reason for his or her non-selection and to improve any future
25 application for placement into merit band 1. There shall be no limit on the number of times an
26 employee may apply for placement into merit band 1.
27 An employee selected for placement into merit band 1 shall be placed at step 12 of the
28 Public Defense Attorney 1 wage table. Step progression between the salary steps of merit band 1
29 shall occur on the anniversary of the effective date of the employee's placement into merit band
30 1. An employee shall not advance more than one salary step at a time. Employees classified as a
Page 1of3 DRAFT FOR DISCUSSION PURPOSES ONLY 6/19/14
1 Public Defense Attorney 1 who are at step 18 shall not advance to a higher rate of pay unless
2 placed into merit band 2, pursuant to the rules set forth below.
3 ii. For Merit Bands 2 - 4. Each Public Defense Attorney 1 who has been
4 in a his or her merit band for approximately one year and a minimum of one annual perforn1ance
5 appraisal may, when a recruitment is being run, apply for placement into the next higher merit
6 band. Selection of candidates for placement into the next higher-level merit band shall be made
7 solely by management and is not subject to grievance. An employee who applies for placement
8 into a higher merit band and is not selected may request feedback and/or review of their
9 application for the purposes of understanding the reason for his or her non-selection and to
10 improve any future application for placement into a higher merit band. There shall be no limit on
11 the number of times an employee may apply for placement into a higher merit band.
12 An employee selected for placement into a higher merit band shall be placed at the lowest
13 step of the merit band they are moving into. Step progression between the salary steps of a merit
14 band shall occur on the anniversary of the effective date of the employee's placement into said
15 merit band. An employee shall not advance more than one salary step at a time. Employees
16 classified as a Public Defense Attorney 1 who are at the highest available step of a merit band
17 shall not advance to a higher rate of pay unless placed into a higher merit band, if one is
18 available.
19 C. Use of "Senior" Job Title. An employee who is placed in a merit band may
20 use the working job title of"Senior" plus the applicable reference number of the merit band the
21 employee is in. For example, a Public Defense Attorney 1 in merit band 3 may use the working
22 job title of "Senior 3."
23 D. Loss or Reduction of Merit Band Level. The County agrees to meet with the
24 union to explore possible alternatives to loss of merit band placement before implementing a
25 reduction in the number of employees occupying merit bands.
26 In the event that the County decides to reduce the overall number of employees
27 occupying a merit band(s), such reduction shall occur on the basis of merit compared to the other
28 employees classified as a Public Defense Attorney 1 in the same merit band. An employee
29 selected for removal from a merit band shall be placed at the highest salary step of the next lower
30 merit band level, or in the event of removal from merit band 1, placed at step 11. If an
31 employee's placement into a lower merit band causes too many employees to occupy that merit
Page 2 of 3 DRAFT FOR DISCUSSION PURPOSES ONLY 6/19/14
1 band, all employees, including the employee(s) recently added to that merit band, shall be
2 considered on the basis of merit for removal to the next lower band or step 11 in the event of loss
3 of placement in merit band 1.
4 The decision to reduce the number of employees occupying merit band(s) and the
5 selection of individual employees to be removed from a merit band are not subject to grievance.
6 This section shall not apply to employees identified for layoff.
Page 3 of 3 DRAFT FOR DISCUSSION PURPOSES ONLY 6/19/14