7.6 Appeals and Complaints

An employee is encouraged to work within the chain-of-command to resolve any problems and concerns as soon as they occur. If a problem or concern cannot be satisfied within the chain-of-command, a more formal investigation and review may be appropriate.

When a complaint remains unresolved after being escalated to the head of a division, or when a complaint is about the head of a division, said complaint may be presented in writing to the head of Human Resources.

The signed statement of complaint must contain all of the following:

1. The name(s) of the employee(s) complaining

2. A brief description of the problem or concern

3. Relevant dates and/or timeline of when the problem or concern occurred

4. Names of others who may have information about the problem or concern

5. Details about the attempts that were made to resolve the problem or concern using the chain-of-command

6. Evidence supporting any allegations made and responses to attempts at resolution

7. The employee’s desired resolution

When a complaint is about the head of Human Resources, the employee(s) may submit the complaint directly to the District Director of Health and/or her/his designee.

As soon as is practicable after receipt of a written and signed formal complaint, the problem or concern in said complaint will be investigated.

At her/his discretion, the investigator may take any or all of the following actions:

1. Arrange a meeting with any or all interested parties

2. Request additional information or documentation

3. Request clarification of existing information or documentation

4. Examine evidence

5. Interview witnesses

6. Refer the problem or concern to an outside party for discussion or resolution

7. Present pertinent findings to the District Director of Health and/or her/his designee for final resolution

The investigator will keep the complaint and any information contained therein as confidential as possible while performing as thorough an investigation as she/he deems appropriate.

An employee who submits a formal complaint will receive a written response as soon as practicable.

An employee is encouraged to work within the chain-of-command to resolve any problems and concerns as soon as they occur. If a problem or concern about the District Director of Health cannot be resolved internally, a formal Complaint may be filed with the District Board of Health.

The District Board of Health’s review of a Complaint against the District Director of Health is limited to review of allegations of policy violation(s) or criminal activity undertaken by the District Director of Health. Internal, operational decisions of the District Director are final, and will not be reviewed by the District Board of Health, and/or the subject of an appeal or complaint under these policies. The District Board of Health cannot review personnel actions taken by the District Director of Health that are subject to the appeal process to the Personnel Board.

The Complainant shall present a signed, formal, written Complaint to the head of Human Resources within fifteen (15) working days of the occurrence of the incident giving rise to the Complaint. The head of Human Resources shall upon receipt of the Complaint, forward a copy of the Complaint and any attachments simultaneously to the District Director of Health, to the Chairperson of the District Board of Health, and to the attorney for the District Board of Health.

The written Complaint must detail the nature of the Complaint and designate the matter as a formal Complaint.

The signed statement of Complaint must contain all of the following:

1. The name(s) of the employee(s) complaining

2. A brief description of the problem or concern citing the alleged policy violation or the criminal act and the damage that was caused to the Complainant or the agency.

3. Relevant dates and/or timeline of when the problem or concern occurred

4. Names of others who may have information about the problem or concern

5. Details about any attempts that were made to resolve the problem or concern using the chain-of-command, or explanation why this was not followed

6. Evidence supporting any allegations made and responses to attempts at resolution

7. The employee’s suggested resolution

The Chairperson of the District Board of Health or his/her designee shall confirm receipt of the Complaint in writing to the Complainant and the District Director of Health within five (5) working days of receipt of the Complaint. Upon receipt of the Complaint the Chairperson, in consultation with the attorney for the District Board of Health, shall conduct a sufficiency review of the Complaint, and determine if the Complaint states a claim sufficient to warrant review by the District Board of Health. An employee’s disagreement with a management decision is not sufficient to warrant review by the District Board of Health, unless that management decision violates one or more personnel policies, or is in clear violation of state or federal laws. Vague, speculative complaints, or complaints based upon rumor or gossip shall be determined to be insufficient, as well.

If the Chairperson, in consultation with the attorney for the District Board of Health, determines that the Complaint is not sufficient to warrant review by the District Board of Health, then the Complaint shall be dismissed, and the Complainant notified of same. If, on the other hand, the Chairperson, in consultation with the attorney for the District Board of Health, determines that the Complaint is sufficient to warrant review by the District Board of Health, then the Complaint shall be addressed under the provisions of this policy.

The District Director of Health may submit a written response to the Complaint, signed by the District Director of Health or her/his legal representative either prior to the review of the sufficiency of the complaint by the Chairperson and attorney for the District Board of Health, or after the review has been completed, and the Complaint determined to be sufficient. The District Director of Health’s response shall be filed with the head of Human Resources, and the District Director of Health shall simultaneously cause copies of the response to be sent to the Chairperson of the District Board of Health and the Complainant. The District Director of Health’s response shall be filed within fifteen (15) working days from the date that the District Director of Health either: (1) receives the complaint and opts to respond prior to the sufficiency review; or (2) receives notice from the Chairperson or attorney for the District Board of Health that the Complaint was determined to be sufficient to warrant review by the District Board of Health. Upon good cause shown by the District Director of Health, including the need to consult with and secure legal counsel, the Chairperson may extend the time period for the District Director of Health’s written response to the Complaint, in which case either the Chairperson or the attorney for the District Board of Health shall notify both the District Director of Health and the Complainant in writing of the extension of the District Director of Health’s response time.

Upon good cause, the Chairperson, after consultation with the attorney for the District Board of Health, may at her/his discretion, suspend the District Director of Health if the Chairperson has reason to believe there is an immediate and/or ongoing threat to the health, safety, and/or welfare of an employee of NKY Health, but the suspension shall be reviewed by the District Board of Health within five (5) working days after the start of the suspension.

Upon receipt of the complaint and response, the District Board of Health shall consider both any suspension and the Complaint at its next regularly scheduled meeting or, if appropriate, a specially called meeting. The District Board of Health shall go into Executive Session and may take action at the meeting, after having given both the Complainant and the District Director of Health the opportunity to present evidence. If the District Board of Health determines that further investigation is needed, it may order investigation, and reconvene at a later time to consider the findings and recommendations of the investigation.

If the District Board of Health finds in favor of the Complainant on all or any part of the Complaint, it shall also discuss, in executive session, the appropriate consequences. Dismissal (see section 8.4), if considered, must be consistent with the provisions of KRS 212.790 and the District Director of Health’s employment contract.

If the District Board of Health is satisfied that no further investigation is needed and that it has sufficient evidence to make a final decision, then after deliberations in executive session, the District Board of Health shall come out of executive session, and render the District Board of Health’s final decision through motion and vote of a simple majority of the District Board of Health.

The District Board of Health shall upon request by the District Director of Health, provide legal counsel for the District Director of Health, and be responsible for payment of the District Director of Health’s legal fees and expenses in defending against the administrative complaint. The District Board of Health may limit the cost of legal representation by providing the District Director of Health with board-approved conflict counsel. The District Director of Health may opt not to retain the board-approved conflict counsel, and at his/her own expense, retain legal counsel other than the board-approved conflict counsel. The District Board of Health may deny payment of all or part of the District Director of Health’s legal fees and expenses if the District Director of Health elects to retain legal counsel, other than the board-approved conflict counsel.

The District Board of Health shall not be required to reimburse the District Director of Health for fees or expenses incurred in defense of criminal charges.

In the event that the District Director of Health is found to have violated a Board policy, or engaged in criminal activity, then the District Board of Health may require the District Director of Health to reimburse NKY Health any and all expenditures made by the District Board of Health for his/her defense of the Complaint.

A regular merit system employee may appeal a disciplinary action (see section 7.4) taken against or administrative suspension (see section 7.5) issued to her/him.

Any employee or applicant may appeal a management decision concerning her/his request for reasonable accommodation for her/his disability under the ADAAA or a complaint of employment-related harassment.

An individual must first exhaust the internal appeal process before using any external appeal process.

The internal appeals process works within the individual’s chain-of-command beginning with the supervisor of the person who issued the decision and ending with the District Director of Health and/or her/his designee.

1. The individual initiates the process by submitting an appeal (see section 7.6.3.5) to the next level in the chain-of-command of the individual who signed the notification of the original decision within fifteen (15) working days of receipt of said notification

2. The reviewer submits a written decision to the individual within (15) working days of receipt of the written appeal

3. If the individual is not satisfied with the reviewer’s decision or if the reviewer fails to respond within the specified time, the individual may escalate the appeal to the next level in the chain-of-command. The escalation must occur within five (5) working days of receipt of the decision or after the fifteen (15) working days specified for response

4. The next level in the chain-of-command submits a written decision to the individual within (15) working days of receipt of the written appeal

The internal appeals process may continue until the appeal has reached the District Director of Health and/or her/his designee and she/he has responded in writing.

Any of the time requirements described herein may be extended provided that both the individual and reviewing supervisor agree to the extension in writing.

When an individual has exhausted the internal appeals process and is dissatisfied with the District Director of Health’s decision or does not receive a response from the District Director of Health within the specified time, she/he may escalate the matter to the Personnel Board for due process.

The procedure is as follows:

1. The individual initiates the process by submitting an appeal (see section 7.6.3.6) addressed to the Personnel Board and tendered to the head of Human Resources within fifteen (15) working days of receipt of the District Director of Health’s decision

2. The head of Human Resources determines whether the individual has exhausted the internal appeals process. If the head of Human Resources determines that the individual has not exhausted the internal appeal process, she/he notifies the individual in writing of which step she/he needs to exhaust. If the head of Human Resources determines that the individual has exhausted the internal appeals process, she/he refers the appeal to the chairperson of the Personnel Board

3. The Chairperson of the Personnel Board or her/his designee notifies the individual in writing within fifteen (15) working days that that she/he has received the notification of appeal

4. The Personnel Board meets within forty (40) working days of receipt of the appeal to hear the appeal. The Chairperson of the Personnel Board or her/his designee notifies the individual in writing of the date, time and location of the hearing at least five (5) working days before the hearing

5. Within fifteen (15) working days after the hearing, the Chairperson of the Personnel Board or her/his designee notifies the individual, in writing, of the Personnel Board’s decision

Any of the time requirements described herein may be extended as long as both the individual and the chairperson of the Personnel Board or her/his designee agrees in writing to said extension.

The Personnel Board may act at its discretion when hearing and reviewing an appeal. This includes but is not limited to the following:

1. Obtain transcripts

2. Call witnesses

3. Cross-examine

4. Review evidence

5. Be represented by legal counsel

6. Provide counsel

7. Uphold or reverse a decision

The Personnel Board’s decision is final and binding on the employee and on NKY Health.

Within the context of the appeals process NKY Health and the appellant are each afforded the following rights:

1. To present their version of the facts

2. To be represented by legal counsel at their own expense

3. To produce evidence and/or call witnesses

4. To be informed of dates of the hearing(s)

5. To be informed of the Personnel Board’s decision

6. To have the proceedings transcribed at the expense of the party requesting the transcript

Only a merit system employee may submit an appeal following an administrative suspension (see section 7.5) or a disciplinary action (see section 7.4) including dismissal (see section 8.4.)

Any employee or applicant may submit an appeal following a management decision regarding a claim of harassment or denial of a request for an accommodation under the ADA.

The notification of appeal must be in writing, copied to the head of Human Resources, and contain all of the following:

1. The statement, “This is a formal appeal”

2. The name(s) of the individual(s) making the appeal

3. A copy of the written notification of the action/decision being appealed

4. The reason(s) the employee believes the action/decision should be changed

5. A copy of any previous/other decisions regarding the appeal

6. Any supporting evidence including names of other parties or witnesses who may have relevant information

Any appeals, decisions and changes are filed in the employee’s personnel file (see section 1.4.1) for as long as the personnel file is retained.

There will be no retaliation against an individual for filing a complaint or an appeal in good faith. An individual who feels she/he is being retaliated against because of her/his complaint and/or appeal should report this to the head of Human Resources using the formal general complaint process (see section 7.6.1.1.)