Juan Vigil, who took over the reins as Sandoval County Manager on Jan. 1, from Debbie Hays, wants to implement an updated personnel ordinance and sexual harassment policy.

Vigil and Hays asked the commissioners to adopt the policy on Dec. 18, so it would become effective in January. However, some county employees had some concerns about the ordinance and said their input was not included.

Commission vice-chairman David Bency wanted to ensure that all input was gathered before the policy was implemented. He suggested that a workshop be held to hash out all details. Therefore, he voted to not approve the ordinance and have a workshop at 6 p.m. on Monday. Fellow commissioners Joshua Madalena and Orlando Lucero voted with Bency, while commissioners Donnie Leonard and Jack Thomas dissented.

Bency explained he voted to postpone the ordinance and policy because it’s a combined 96 pages and he wants to be thorough.

“We are the ones that make policy so on something this comprehensive we need to take our time,” Bency said. “It has been changed numerous times over 10 years and taking more time to study it is not a bad thing.”

Some specific aspects of the personnel ordinance that Bency wants to further review are what the rules should be for employees running for public office and nepotism.

Despite the postponement, Bency commended Vigil for his work.

“I think they are improvements,” Bency said. “Juan did a good job working at length devoting his time to those issues.”

Leonard said the county has been working on getting the revised personnel manual for several months and it is time for it to be enacted.

“It has been pretty well completed since September,” Leonard said. “I felt that Juan Vigil had allowed employees ample time to give their input. It’s time to move forward on this.”

Leonard said he’s read the documents several times and that it looks like a sound document to him, but he said he won’t know the effectiveness of the updated personnel ordinance and sexual harassment policy until it has been in effect for a while.

“You can study something to death, but until it comes in use, you don’t know really what needs to be changed,” Leonard said. “The document is a living document, meaning that it can be changed over time.”

The updated personnel ordinance will create a performance appraisal process so employees know where they stand performance wise, county spokesperson Gayland Bryant said.

“There is much more delineation on who can earn compensatory time versus overtime and provisions on banking that time. The option will be with the employee, rather than the supervisor,” Bryant said.

He also explained that the highlight of the ordinance is that it gives a concrete definition of nepotism. Bryant said it won’t be against the ordinance for two relatives to work for the county, but it will be against the ordinance for one relative to supervise another.

The updated sexual harassment policy is more comprehensive than the present one. The new one delineates the responsibilities of supervisors and how to handle sexual harassment complaints, Bryant explained. He said it also creates an investigation process into sexual harassment complaints. Bryant said the present ordinance does not do that in detail. The policy’s comprehensiveness can be measured by how long it is, encompassing 13 pages. Meanwhile, the present policy is contained on three-quarters of a page.

Bryant said the county went through an extensive process informing employees and the public on both the personnel ordinance and sexual harassment policy. He said that Vigil held a series of county meetings throughout the county over a period of weeks.

Leonard praised the updated ordinance and policy.

“I think it is good for the employees because they know what’s expected right up front,” Leonard said. “If you are just guessing, then that’s another story.”