DANE COUNTY BOARD CONSIDERS UPDATED STAFF RULES

August 15, 2019
Supervisor Paul Nelson, 1st Vice Chair, Dane County Board - 608.695.1464
County Board

Thursday 7 p.m. meeting set for Henry Vilas Zoo

 

Continuing a trend of taking its business outside downtown Madison, the Dane County Board will meet Thursday for the first time at the Henry Vilas Zoo.

 

The meeting begins at 7 p.m. inside the Zoo’s Glacier Grille and is open to the public. Attendees should enter at the zoo’s main entrance at 702 S. Randall Ave.

 

 The agenda includes a review of updates to the county’s civil service ordinance relating to salaries, benefits and other provisions of new or existing employees, as well as updates to the Dane County employee handbook. The updates cover nearly 2,500 hardworking Dane County employees.

 

“I am especially pleased how effectively administrators, managers and representatives of the Employee Group worked together to update the handbook,” said Dane County Board Vice Chair Paul Nelson (District 9, Madison) “We value the contributions of the county’s many dedicated employees and appreciate how hard they work to make Dane County a better place for all of us.”

 

Updates to the employee handbook include accommodations for disabilities, acting class pay, probationary period leave, and recruitment processes to name a few. 

 

Supervisor Patrick Miles, Chair of the Personnel and Finance Committee, noted: “born out of respectful dialog about their workplace needs, this resolution updates key provisions for our dedicated county employees.”

 

The meeting at the Henry Vilas Zoo follows a meeting in May held at Dane County Rodefeld landfill off U.S. 12-18 near the Yahara Hills Golf Course.

 

“We’re taking our meeting to the people …. and in this case to the animals as well,” said Supervisor Chuck Erickson (District 13, Madison) whose district includes the facility which is owned and operated by Dane County as one of the only free zoos in the U.S.

 

Other items on the County Board’s Thursday agenda include:

 

  • Accepting a $74,000 grant from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Urban Rivers Grant Program for a bridge replacement during resurfacing of the Capital City State Trail. About 9.5 miles of the Capital City State Trail are managed by Dane County Parks per a cooperative agreement with DNR. The County has planned a phased project to resurface the trail. In 2018, 6-miles of the trail were resurfaced during phase one. In 2019, the county plans to complete phase two of the resurfacing on the trail segment from Fish Hatchery Road to Seminole Highway. This phase will include the bridge replacement.

  • Accepting a $63,000 grant from the Wisconsin Fast Forward Program for the Dane County Department of Human Services Children, Youth and Families (CYF) Division to provide employer-focused worker training. The CYF Division and Centro Hispano will team to provide training to undeserved new and incumbent minority county staff. They will learn and apply skill-sets through in-class practice and real-world application in their field for various options of advancement. The curriculum will incorporate certification options, college credits and applied work hours.