Nebraska § 23-2517 - Act, how cited; purpose of act.

§ 23-2517. Act, how cited; purpose of act.

(1) Sections 23-2517 to 23-2533 shall be known and may be cited as the County Civil Service Act.

(2) The general purpose of the County Civil Service Act is to establish a system of personnel administration that meets the social, economic, and program needs of county offices. This system shall provide means to recruit, select, develop and maintain an effective and responsive work force, and shall include policies and procedures for employee hiring and advancement, training and career development, position classification, salary administration, fringe benefits, discharge and other related activities. All appointments and promotions under the County Civil Service Act shall be made based on merit and fitness.

A county board has no power or authority to bargain or agree that any appointment or promotion shall be based upon anything other than merit and fitness except as provided in the County Civil Service Act. Blakely v. Lancaster County, 284 Neb. 659, 825 N.W.2d 149 (2012).

A county cannot implement any provision of the county employees’ collective bargaining agreement that would violate a provision of the County Civil Service Act. Blakely v. Lancaster County, 284 Neb. 659, 825 N.W.2d 149 (2012).

An “appointment” under the County Civil Service Act refers to an appointing authority’s designation of a person to fill a vacant classified service position. Blakely v. Lancaster County, 284 Neb. 659, 825 N.W.2d 149 (2012).

Civil service acts promote effective public service by establishing a personnel administration system that provides equal opportunity for public employment and advancement based on merit and fitness principles. By requiring a county to incorporate these principles, the Legislature intended to prohibit the county, as much as practical, from making these decisions based on political control, partisanship, and personal favoritism. Blakely v. Lancaster County, 284 Neb. 659, 825 N.W.2d 149 (2012).

Properly conducted examinations provide the cornerstone of a merit-based civil service system. Blakely v. Lancaster County, 284 Neb. 659, 825 N.W.2d 149 (2012).

The board of county commissioners is required to bargain with its employees on all matters relating to employment except those covered by the specific provisions of these statutes. American Fed. of S., C. & M. Emp. v. County of Lancaster, 200 Neb. 301, 263 N.W.2d 471 (1978).