SCDC POLICY/PROCEDURE

TITLE: EMPLOYEE CLEARANCE

ISSUE DATE:  JULY 1, 2004

RESPONSIBLE AUTHORITY: DIVISION OF HUMAN RESOURCES

SUPERSEDES: ADM-11.11 (July 1, 2001)

ACA/CAC STANDARDS: NONE

PURPOSE: To establish guidelines for the clearance of any employee who either voluntarily or involuntarily terminates, resigns, is placed on leave without pay status, or is suspended from the Agency.

POLICY STATEMENT: The South Carolina Department of Corrections will establish clearance procedures to be followed whenever an employee terminates, resigns, is placed on leave without pay, or is suspended from the Agency in compliance with all related State Office of Human Resources Regulations and applicable state and/or federal statutes or regulations. Further, in an effort to provide the Agency with valuable information as to the cause(s) of employee turnover, the SCDC will carry out a systematic program of conducting voluntary exit interviews with all terminating and resigning employees.

1. CLEARANCE PROCEDURES FOR EMPLOYEE RESIGNATIONS/ TERMINATIONS:  Wardens, Division Directors, and members of the Director's staff or their designees will ensure that all employees who are under their direct or functional supervision are properly cleared, as follows:

1.1 Employee Clearance Form:  The employee and designated official established by the Warden, Division Director, or appropriate member of the Director's staff must ensure that a SCDC Form 16-7, "Employee Clearance," is completed at each appropriate checkpoint for termination. Completed copies of this form will remain on file with the Warden, Division Director, appropriate member of the Director's staff, or their designee(s). The "Employee Clearance" form must not be altered by strike overs, white out, or "substitute" signatures.  The SCDC Form 16-7, "Employee Clearance," should be hand-carried by the terminating employee to each issuing authority and finally to the Division of Human Resources, Payroll Branch.

1.2  Return of Issued Items:  All items issued to employees during their tenure must be returned to the appropriate clearing area and documented on SCDC Form 16-7. A general list of items is as follows:

 

SCDC Identification Card; (NOTE: See SCDC Policy/Procedure ADM-11.01, "Employee and Service Provider ID Cards," for information concerning the destruction/deactivation of the employee’s ID card.)	Notary Seal (if issued by SCDC); (NOTE: A terminating employee may reimburse the SCDC for the cost of the seal and keep it for continued use.)
Correctional Officer Training Manual	Gasoline Credit Card
Keys - Key Tag	Telephone Credit Card
Badge	Weapons
Emergency Squad Equipment	Vehicle (if assigned)
Uniforms	Constable Commission
Cellular Phones	Pagers
Radio/Communication Equipment	Any other SCDC/institutional/divisional issued items

Any items that are not properly returned will be subject to reimbursement from the clearing employee by cash, money order, or cashier’s check made payable to the "S.C. Department of Corrections," with a receipt being issued to the employee by the Financial Accounting Branch, Division of Budget and Finance, for final coordination with the Payroll Branch. The Payroll Branch is responsible for ensuring that an employee has cleared before a final payroll check is released. An employee’s failure to comply with these procedures may cause a delay in the release of his/her final paycheck. An employee’s final paycheck will be held by the Payroll Disbursement Section until the SCDC Form 16-7, "Employee Clearance," is received and the employee is fully cleared.  In the case of a deceased or permanently disabled employee, the Warden, Division Director, or his/her designee will ensure that assistance is offered to the deceased/disabled employee’s family in returning any and all items issued to the employee during his/her tenure.

1.3  Personnel Advice Form: It will be the responsibility of the appropriate supervisory or terminating personnel to submit a SCDC Form 16-5, "Personnel Advice Form," to the Payroll Branch, along with any and all related personnel, medical, training, and leave files, indicating the last date worked (or other appropriate date) in accordance with established payroll deadlines. See SCDC Policy/Procedure ADM-11.29, "Employee Record Maintenance and Confidentiality of Information," for more information regarding inactive employee files. (NOTE: When a termination is disciplinary in nature, the Employee Relations Branch will be responsible for submitting a completed SCDC Form16-5 to the Payroll Branch. However, personnel, medical, training, and leave files must be submitted to the Division of Human Resources by the appropriate supervisory personnel. Established payroll deadlines must always be observed.)

1.4  Final Payroll Checks: An employee’s final payroll check will be released by the Payroll Disbursement Section, Division of Budget and Finance, as instructed by the Payroll Branch, Division of Human Resources.

1.5 Computer Passwords: It will be the responsibility of the appropriate supervisory personnel to notify the Division of Resource and Information Management in writing when a user under their supervision is suspended in excess of 15 days, on leave without pay in excess of 30 days, or terminates his/her employment.  When there is a need to immediately revoke a user’s access to the automated system for other reasons, the manager will inform the Division Director of RIM by telephone. 

1.6  Exit Interview Forms: It will be the responsibility of the appropriate supervisory personnel to ensure that the employee has been provided an SCDC Form 16-29, "Exit Interview," pursuant to  Section 5., below.

2. CLEARANCE PROCEDURES FOR EMPLOYEES PLACED ON LEAVE WITHOUT PAY:

2.1 Leave Without Pay in Excess of 30 Days: Employees who are placed on leave without pay for a period in excess of 30 work days or more will be required to follow the same clearance procedures as those indicated for terminating employees in Sections 1.1 through 1.6, above. The Payroll Branch will approve the release of an employee’s final payroll check once the employee has completed the appropriate clearance procedures. If an employee has direct deposit, it will be canceled for the final check for leave without pay purposes.

2.2  Leave Without Pay Less than 30 Days: Employees who are placed on leave without pay for a period less than 30 days will be handled on a case-by-case basis in coordination with the Division of Human Resources. (NOTE: The employee’s SCDC ID card may be required to be deactivated and will be reactivated upon his/her return to work. Security personnel will be required to turn in their badge to their immediate supervisor who will, in turn, ensure that the badge is provided to the Warden or designee.)

2.3 Should an employee on leave without pay status return to work, s/he should report to his/her immediate supervisor to have any items s/he may have been required to turn-in re-issued.

2.4 An SCDC Form 16-5, "Personnel Advice Form," must be completed by the employee’s immediate supervisor, or higher authority and must be submitted to the Payroll Branch to place an employee on leave without pay and to return an employee to work from leave without pay status, in accordance with established payroll deadlines.

3. CLEARANCE PROCEDURES FOR EMPLOYEE SUSPENSIONS:

3.1  Suspensions in Excess of 15 Days: Employees suspended for a period exceeding 15 working days must follow the same clearance procedures as outlined for a terminated employee in Sections 1.1 through 1.6, above. The Payroll Branch will approve the release of the employee’s payroll check once all required clearance procedures have been completed.

3.2 Suspensions Less Than 15 Days: Employees suspended for 15 days or less will be handled on a case-by-case basis in coordination with the Division of Human Resources. (NOTE: The employee’s SCDC ID card may be required to be deactivated and will be reactivated upon his/her return to work. Security personnel may be required to turn in their badge to their immediate supervisor who will, in turn, ensure that the badge is provided to the Warden or designee.)

3.3 When a suspended employee returns to work, s/he will immediately report to his/her immediate supervisor to have any items s/he may have been required to turn-in re-issued.

3.4 An SCDC Form 16-5, "Personnel Advice Form," must be completed by the employee’s immediate supervisor and must be submitted to the Payroll Branch to remove an employee from payroll and to return an employee to payroll. The effective date of the employee’s return to work must be included on this form. Established payroll deadlines must always be observed.

4.1 Letter of Resignation: An employee who intends to resign his/her employment for any reason with the Agency must submit a written notice to his/her immediate supervisor. Under no circumstances will verbal resignations be accepted nor will any supervisor accept a verbal resignation from an employee. Employees are to submit written notices of resignation at least two (2) weeks prior to the effective date of their intended resignation from the SCDC. At a minimum, the employee’s letter must contain the following information:  the effective date of resignation and the specific reason(s) for the employee’s resignation other than "personal." (NOTE: If the employee is resigning to accept employment with another state agency, s/he must include this information in his/her letter in order to avoid a break in service and loss of sick leave. Payment for annual leave upon termination of employment with this Agency constitutes a break in service.)  If an employee is permitted to resign his/her position in lieu of termination or investigation of charges of misconduct, the resignation letter must state: "I voluntarily resign my position with the South Carolina Department of Corrections." 

4.2 Once an employee submits a signed letter of resignation indicating the last day of employment, the resignation will be firm and automatically accepted by the Agency.  To rescind a resignation, an employee must forward a written request through the Warden or Division Director, through the appropriate member of the Director's staff to the Division Director of Human Resources, prior to the effective date of the resignation. (NOTE: The Warden/Division Director and appropriate member of the Director's staff will indicate their approval/disapproval on the request and will immediately forward it to the Division of Human Resources for necessary action [regardless of their approval/disapproval of the request]). 

4.3 Any employee who fails to report for duty for three (3) consecutive days without notification will be deemed to have voluntarily resigned his/her position with the Agency due to abandonment of position. (See SCDC Policy/Procedure ADM-11.04, "Employee Corrective Action.") (NOTE: The clearing official will ensure that the employee's ID card is deactivated in these cases by contacting the Central ID Station.)

4.4 An employee who resigns his/her position with the Agency will forfeit grievance and appeal rights to the Agency and State Employee Grievance Process.

4.5 A decision by an Agency manager to reemploy an individual should include consideration as to whether or not the individual provided appropriate prior written notification when terminating previous employment with the Agency, and the circumstances surrounding the termination or resignation.

4.6 It will be the responsibility of the appropriate supervisory personnel to ensure that the employee has been provided an SCDC Form 16-29, "Exit Interview," pursuant to the procedures contained in Section 5., below.

5.1 The Warden, Division Director, or other official who is responsible for completing the required clearance paperwork will also ensure that the employee is given an SCDC Form 16-29, "Exit Interview," to be completed as part of the clearance process. The employee will be advised that the completion of the entire portion of the form is not mandatory, but s/he must acknowledge receipt of the "Exit Interview" to ensure that the employee had the opportunity to participate in the exit interview process. The questionnaire will be distributed and processed along with SCDC Form 16-7, "Employee Clearance."  

5.2 When requested by the employee, the exit interview will be personally conducted by a staff member in the Employee Relations Branch. When an employee terminates his/her employment, the "Exit Interview" form may be completed by the employee and submitted to the Employee Relations Branch in a sealed inter-departmental envelope marked "Confidential."

5.3 To the extent possible, specific information obtained during the exit interview will be kept confidential. Normally, data compiled from exit interviews will be used to identify and remedy problems in a general way within the Agency and for statistical purposes. However, exceptions may be made in cases in which such information could be useful for internal investigations, or in cases in which the safety and security of the Agency could be jeopardized. Under such circumstances, an employee may be contacted by those Agency officials determined by the Agency Director to have a need-to-know.

5.4 Data compiled from the exit interview relating to specific areas of the Agency will be made available only to those Agency managers responsible for the operation of the particular area.

5.5 A computerized printout of statistical analyses of exit interview information will be provided to Agency managers when requested to advise them of problem areas within the Agency as well as positive aspects of the Agency.

6.  DEFINITIONS: NONE

SIGNATURE ON FILE

 ORIGINAL SIGNED COPY MAINTAINED IN THE DIVISION OF POLICY DEVELOPMENT.