Board Policy 503 • Employment of Relatives

Board Policy No. 503

Title: employment of relatives

Purpose:

To set forth guidelines and conditions of employment of immediate family members.

Scope:

This policy applies to all cooperative employees and all applicants for regular, temporary, part-time and co-op student employment.

Policy:

Close relatives of West Florida Electric Cooperative Association, Inc.’s employees and trustees will not be employed by the cooperative. The term close relative is defined as children, stepchildren, or their spouses, husband, wife, sister, brother, parents, foster or stepparents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, mother-in-law, father-in-law or any relative residing in the employee’s household or a trustee’s household. The term “spouse” shall also mean persons who are living together in a conjugal relationship or opening co-habit with a party of the opposite sex even though not legally married and same sex partners.

Managers and supervisors are prohibited from having consensual relationships with any cooperative employee. If a management employee chooses to date or in any way begin a relationship with a co-worker, the management employee will leave the employment of the cooperative immediately. Failure on the part of the management employee to resign will result in termination of employment for violation of this policy.

In the event two (2) non-management employees marry each other, the following provisions apply:

1. The married employees cannot work in the same department or district within the cooperative. If, at the request of one of the employees, a transfer to a different district can be accomplished, one of the employees will be transferred. The cooperative will not create a job or accommodate the married employees by adjusting the number of employees assigned to each district office and/or department.

2. It will be the responsibility of one of the employees to leave the employment of the cooperative within two (2) weeks of their marriage, if a situation exists that prohibits segregating the two (2) married employees.

Exceptions:

There will be no exceptions to this policy without the approval of the Board of Trustees.

Responsibility:

Implementation of this policy shall be the responsibility of the Executive Vice President and CEO and/or his designated representative.