supervisors' toolkit
Whether you are preparing for a supervisory role, a newly appointed supervisor, or an experienced supervisor, we want to provide as many resources to you as possible. To learn more, browse the Supervisor's Toolkit below
Whether you are preparing for a supervisory role, a newly appointed supervisor, or an experienced supervisor, we want to provide as many resources to you as possible. To learn more, browse the Supervisor's Toolkit below
Depending on your position and on the policies of your department, as a supervisor, you may have the opportunity to select or promote employees to work for you. Determining who gets the job can be a difficult decision and it is certainly one of the most critical decisions you can make as a supervisor.
As you probably know, selection into most positions in the City is governed by a civil service process that is detailed in the Civil Service Rules. An overview of the process and necessary forms can be found in the Supervisor's Guide to Department Employee Selection. Employees exempt from civil service, or at-will employees, may also work for the City, but there are fewer rules and regulations for entry into and exit from the City. If you have a role in the selection process whether or not the employee is Civil Service, it will most likely occur during the interview.
If a candidate or an employee has a disability that needs an accommodation, you will need to understand your responsibilities for accommodating disabilities. Once the employee is hired, you will want to provide them with an orientation. Also, the new employee will be required to serve a probation period, and it is critical that you understand how to best use that period to evaluate your new hire.
When it comes to the medical issues of our employees, supervisors are often skittish. They may be afraid to ask the employee a medical question for fear they are violating the employee’s privacy. Even if they want to ask, they may not know how to talk to the employee about this sensitive issue. But rather than respond to the confusion by avoiding the situation altogether, it is best that the supervisor pay attention and work with their Human Resources section to find the best solution. The Personnel Department’s Medical Services Division (MSD) is a great resource that provides a number of services to address employees’ medical issues. MSD can help you to identify whether employees are medically and psychologically capable of doing their jobs. Procedures concerning Work Fitness Evaluations and information on employees Returning to Work after a medical leave are provided. MSD can also help if there are questions about the authenticity of a doctor’s note. Call your Human Resources section to get MSD involved if a doctor’s note needs to be validated or if you think an employee may need work restrictions due to a medical condition.
Supervisors also have questions about light duty and how to accommodate the needs of employees who have medical or psychological restrictions. The Personnel Department’s Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Division provides a number of services to address employees’ accommodation issues. Detailed information on the employer’s responsibility with respect to Reasonable Accommodations for disabilities as well as Lactation Accommodations can be found on-line.
The City of Los Angeles supports its employees through a comprehensive benefits package. The Personnel Department’s Employee Benefits Division is responsible for administering some but not all of the benefit programs provided to City employees. Eligibility to participate varies by program. A summary of programs administered by the Employee Benefits Division follows:
visit benefits pageAccording to the Los Angeles Administrative Code and various Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), City employees are entitled to the following types of leave and compensated time off: Family and Medical Leave, Military Family/Caregiver Leave, bereavement leave, and jury service. As a supervisor, you will need to be aware of the time off that employees are permitted to take, and at the same time, be mindful that employees are not abusing these entitlements. More information on sick leave, the Family and Medical Leave Act, Military Family/Caregiver Leave, bereavement leave, and jury service is provided below.
One of the critical - and satisfying - responsibilities of supervision is to develop your employees. Some of the ways in which you do so are through conducting performance evaluations, encouraging employee engagement, and coaching and mentoring.