Title 22, Public officers and Employees

This chapter shall be known as the State Personnel Relations Law. [Amended by 1979 c.468 §2]

The general purpose of this chapter is to establish for the state a system of personnel administration based on merit principles. [Amended by 1979 c.468 §3]

(1) The Legislative Assembly declares that the interests of the state are best served by a system that goes beyond consideration of mere short-term cost to encompass other benefits, such as efficiency, continuity of operations, public protection and avoidance of the spoils system…

The Legislative Assembly finds that job sharing is an efficient and effective technique which should be used to improve management of state agencies. It further finds that job sharing offers employment opportunities to those who otherwise may be unable to participate in state emp…

Insofar as reasonably possible, individuals who hold job-sharing positions shall be entitled to benefits and privileges and suffer detriments under this chapter in proportion to their seniority as adjusted in the proportion that their monthly time employed bears to the monthly ti…

As used in this chapter, unless the context clearly requires otherwise: (1) “Administrator” means the Administrator of the Personnel Division. (2) “Appointing authority” means an officer or agency having power to make appointments to positions in the state service. (3) “Board” me…

The Department of Civil Service that has heretofore functioned under ORS chapter 240 is hereby renamed the Personnel Division and transferred into the Oregon Department of Administrative Services. [Amended by 1969 c.80 §31]

The Personnel Division shall be under the supervision and control of an administrator who shall be appointed by and hold office at the pleasure of the Director of the Oregon Department of Administrative Services. [1979 c.468 §7]

(1) The Civil Service Commission that has functioned under this chapter shall be continued as a board of three members to be known as the Employment Relations Board. Each member of the board shall be a citizen of the state known to be in sympathy with the application of merit pri…

(1) The members of the Employment Relations Board shall be appointed by the Governor for a term of four years. (2) Each member shall be appointed for a term ending four years from the date of the expiration of the term for which the predecessor of the member was appointed, except…

A member shall be paid in accordance with the provisions of ORS 240.240. However, the Personnel Division shall adopt a salary plan that requires the chairperson of the Employment Relations Board to receive a higher salary than the other members. In addition, subject to any other …

A member of the Employment Relations Board shall be removable by the Governor only for cause, after being given a copy of charges against the member and an opportunity to be heard publicly on such charges before the Governor. A copy of the charges and a transcript of the record o…

The Governor shall appoint one of the members of the Employment Relations Board as chairperson, who shall serve for a term not to exceed four years. The chairperson shall be the chief administrative officer of the board. The board shall meet at such times and places as are specif…

The duties of the Employment Relations Board shall be to: (1) Review any personnel action affecting an employee, who is not in a certified or recognized appropriate collective bargaining unit, that is alleged to be arbitrary or contrary to law or rule, or taken for political reas…

(1) If after a hearing on the exceptions filed as provided in ORS 240.086 (2), it appears to the Employment Relations Board that the award should be vacated or modified, the board may by order refer the award back to the arbitrator with proper instructions for correction or rehea…

Each member of the Employment Relations Board may administer oaths, subpoena witnesses, and compel the production of books and papers pertinent to any investigation or hearing authorized by this chapter. [Amended by 1969 c.80 §38]

All officers and employees of the state and of municipalities and political subdivisions of the state shall allow the Personnel Division or Employment Relations Board the reasonable use of public buildings under their control, and furnish heat, light, and furniture, for any exami…

The Employment Relations Board may maintain such action or proceeding at law or in equity as it considers necessary or appropriate to secure compliance with this chapter and its rules and orders thereunder.

(1) The Employment Relations Board shall employ such personnel as it considers necessary for the efficient administration of its vested duties, and fix the compensation of its employees in accordance with the compensation plan for state employees. (2) The board shall designate a …

The Employment Relations Board Administrative Account is established separate and distinct from the General Fund. The account consists of all moneys received by the Employment Relations Board, other than moneys appropriated to the board by the Legislative Assembly. All moneys in …

The Administrator of the Personnel Division, subject to the approval of the Director of the Oregon Department of Administrative Services, shall direct and supervise all the administrative and technical activities of the Personnel Division. In addition to the duties imposed upon t…

A division of the service may designate a staff employee to serve as personnel officer for that division of the service. Such a personnel officer shall administer, within the division of the service, training and educational programs developed by the administrative head thereof i…

(1) The administrative expenses and costs of operating the Personnel Division shall be paid by the various divisions of the service in the state government. To establish an equitable division of the costs, the amount to be paid by each division of the service shall be determined …

(1) The administrative expenses and costs of operation of the Employment Relations Board in behalf of the state service shall be paid by the various divisions of the service in the state government. The board shall determine the amount of the expenses and costs to be paid by each…

All moneys received by the Personnel Division pursuant to the state personnel management program shall be deposited in the State Treasury to the credit of the Oregon Department of Administrative Services Operating Fund and are appropriated continuously out of that fund for the pa…

(1) On and after January 1, 2018, the number of persons employed by the state may not exceed 1.5 percent of the state’s population of the prior year. (2) The population figure shall be that required by ORS 190.510 to 190.610. (3) This section applies to all full-time equivalent b…

(1) It is declared to be the public policy of the State of Oregon to attempt to achieve an equitable relationship between the comparability of the value of work, as defined in ORS 292.951, performed by persons in state service and the compensation and the classification structure…

Positions in the service of the state are divided into the following categories: (1) The classified service as provided in ORS 240.210. (2) The unclassified service as provided in ORS 240.205. (3) The exempt service as defined in ORS 240.200. (4) The management service as provide…

The exempt service shall comprise: (1) Officers elected by popular vote and persons appointed to fill vacancies in elective offices. (2) Members of boards and commissions who serve on a part-time basis and who, if compensated, receive compensation on a per diem basis. (3) Judges,…

The unclassified service shall comprise: (1) One executive officer and one secretary for each board or commission, the members of which are elected officers or are appointed by the Governor. (2) The director of each department of state government, each full-time salaried head of …

The classified service comprises all positions in the state service existing on June 16, 1945, or thereafter created and which are not listed in ORS 240.200, 240.205 or 240.212. [Amended by 1955 c.738 §7; 1981 c.409 §2]

The management service shall comprise all positions not in the unclassified or exempt service that have been determined to be confidential employees, supervisory employees or managerial employees, as defined in ORS 243.650. [1981 c.409 §6; 1995 c.286 §25]

(1) The Personnel Division of the Oregon Department of Administrative Services shall adopt a classification plan which shall group all positions in the classified service in classifications based on their duties, authority and responsibilities; and which shall set forth for each …

Whenever class specifications for a class of positions in the classified service are changed to reflect revised or added responsibilities that require either the same level or a higher level of competence, such change will not result in a downward reclassification of the class. […

(1) Except as otherwise provided by section 30, Article IV of the Oregon Constitution, notwithstanding any statute or salary plan establishing the salary for a position in the exempt, unclassified or management service, a Senator or Representative who is appointed to a position i…

(1) The Personnel Division shall establish and implement a merit pay system which shall take into consideration individual performance and organizational accomplishment, prevailing rates of pay for the services performed and for comparable services in public and private employmen…

(1) The unclassified service or, except as provided in ORS 240.250, the management service shall not be subject to this chapter, except that employees and officers in the unclassified or management service shall be subject to the laws, rules and policies pertaining to any type of…

The exempt service shall not be subject to the provisions of this chapter, except that, with regard to any position for which salaries are not fixed by law, the officer authorized by law to appoint or fill such position shall maintain a salary plan equitably applied to the exempt…

The Personnel Division shall adopt rules, policies and procedures necessary for the management service. The rules may cover any wages, hours, terms and conditions of employment addressed by this chapter, even if, absent the rule, those wages, hours, terms and conditions would not…

(1) Recruiting, selecting and promoting employees shall be on the basis of their relative ability, knowledge, experience and skills, determined by open competition and consideration of qualified applicants, without regard to an individual’s race, color, religion, sex, sexual orie…

(1) Any complaint alleging violation of ORS 240.309 shall be filed with the Employment Relations Board. (2) Any employee may file a complaint with the board alleging violation of ORS 240.309. (3) If the employee makes a prima facie case showing that the employer has violated ORS …

(1) Temporary employment shall be used for the purpose of meeting emergency, nonrecurring or short-term workload needs of the state. (2) A temporary employee may be given a nonstatus appointment without open competition and consideration only for the purposes enumerated in this s…

(1) Delegations of authority and responsibility to operating agencies shall be subject to appropriate post-audit review by the Personnel Division. (2) Controversies between operating agencies and the division arising from post-audit reviews shall be resolved by the Director of th…

(1)(a) Persons initially appointed to or promoted to a permanent or seasonal position in state service shall be subject to a trial service period. (b) An appointing authority has the discretion to subject an employee to a trial service period when: (A) A management service employ…

(1) All collective bargaining between the state and its agencies and any certified or recognized exclusive employee representative of classified employees shall be under the direction and supervision of the Director of the Oregon Department of Administrative Services. (2) Notwith…

(1) In the event of emergency or abnormal employment conditions due to disaster, national defense, war or conflict in which the Armed Forces of the United States are participating and because of which Oregon citizens are subject to induction into the Armed Forces, if a critical s…

An appointing authority may file in writing with the Personnel Division names of staff employees to act in the name of the appointing authority and to perform any act or duty of the appointing authority authorized under the provisions of this chapter. [1971 c.695 §5; 1979 c.468 §…

An employee in the state service employed in an unclassified or exempt position who is not a confidential employee, managerial employee or supervisory employee, as defined in ORS 243.650, and who is not represented by an exclusive representative as defined in ORS 243.650 may be a…

At any time during the trial service period, the appointing authority may remove an employee if, in the opinion of the appointing authority, the trial service indicates that such employee is unable or unwilling to perform duties satisfactorily or that the habits and dependability…

Positions which occur, terminate and recur periodically and regularly regardless of the duration thereof shall be designated by rule, policy or procedure of the Personnel Division as seasonal positions. An employee who satisfactorily serves in a seasonal position the trial servic…