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6.B. - Page 59 of 366 <br />the presiding officer and, in that case, the City Manager or his/her <br />designee's determination shall be final and binding, <br />The Chief will have five (5) calendar days from receipt of the <br />request to schedule the informal procedure. The informal procedure <br />will take place within thirty (30) calendar days of the date the <br />employee was notified about the punitive action. <br />2. Burden of Proof: The City will bear the burden of proof at the informal <br />procedure. <br />a. If the action beinq appealed does not involve allegations of <br />misconduct Le, allegations that the employee has violated one or <br />more federal state or local laws and/or City or Department <br />re ulationsprocedures, or rules the limited purpose of the <br />procedure will be to provide the employee the oproqunity to <br />establish a record of the circumstances surrounding the action. <br />The Department's burden will be satisfied if the Department <br />establishes that the action was reasonable even though <br />reasonable persons might disagree about whether the action was <br />the best one under the circumstances. <br />b, If the punitive action involves charges of misconduct, (i.e., <br />allegations that the employee has violated one or more laws <br />regulations, procedures, or rules), the Department will have the <br />burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence the facts <br />which form the basis for the charge of misconduct and the burden' <br />of persuasion that the punitive action was reasonable under the <br />circumstances. <br />3. Conduct of Informal Procedure: <br />a. The formal rules of evidence do not apply, although the Chief will <br />have discretion to exclude evidence which is incompetent, not <br />relevant or cumulative or the presentation of which will otherwise <br />consume undue time. <br />b. The parties may resent arguments through documents and <br />statements. <br />c. If the punitive action being appealed is a written reprimand or does <br />not involve a loss of compensation, the parties will not be entitled to <br />confront and cross-examine witnesses. <br />d. Following the presentation of written material and statements, the <br />involved parties may submit closing arguments orally or in writing <br />for consideration by the presiding officer. <br />e. Representation: The employee may be represented by n <br />Association representative or attorney of his or her choice. <br />to <br />78 <br />