Jill Dawson, CSC Docket No. 2022-360

Appellant's argumentJill Dawson requests a retroactive effective date of the reclassification of her position from Administrative Analyst 1 to Administrative Analyst 2.

BackgroundThe record in the present matter establishes that the petitioner, a permanent Administrative Analyst 1, with the Department of the Treasury, completed a Position Classification Questionnaire (PCQ) and submitted it to her immediate supervisor on March 9, 2020. The appellant’s supervisor agreed with the petitioner’s description of her duties on the PCQ and forwarded it to the Program Manager on March 12, 2020. However, due to an oversight caused by the onset of the Codvid-19 lockdown in March 2020, the Program Manager did not forward the PCQ to the appointing authority until May 13, 2021. Thereafter, the appointing authority forwarded the PCQ and supporting materials to Agency Services on May 17, 2021 explaining that because of an administrative error brought on from the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the petitioner’s request for a position classification review was never sent to its Office of Human Resources. In support, the appointing authority attached a copy of an email dated March 12, 2020 to the Director of the State Lottery, advising that the supervisor completed his portion of the PCQ and that the Director needed to review and sign it, so it could be submitted to the Human Resources Office within 15 days. The appointing authority requested that if the classification review was granted, that Agency Services consider a retroactive date of reclassification of April 25, 2020 due to the administrative oversight. Agency Services received the complete position classification review package from the appointing authority on May 20, 2021, found that the petitioner’s position should be classified as Administrative Analyst 2, and assigned the petitioner a provisional appointment date of June 5, 2021.

Appellant's argumentIn her request for a retroactive date of reclassification, the petitioner states that she submitted her completed PCQ to her supervisor on March 9, 2020, who signed it and sent it to the Program Manager on March 12, 2020. However, due to an administrative oversight caused by the COVID-19 lockdown, the PCQ was not forwarded to the Office of Human Resources until May 13, 2021. Under these circumstances, the appellant requests a retroactive effective date of position classification of April 25, 2020.

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CONCLUSION

In the instant matter, the petitioner submitted a request for a reclassification of her position to her supervisor on March 9, 2020, but the request was not forwarded to Human Resources until May 13, 2021. The petitioner was granted a reclassification to the title of Administrative Analyst 2 with an effective date of June 5, 2021. The petitioner requests a retroactive effective date of her reclassification due to the untimely submission of her request to Human Resources.

In accordance with N.J.A.C. 4A:3-3.9(c)3, Classification Appeals Procedure, the supervisor and program manager/division director shall complete their portions of the questionnaire and provide their signatures on the form … within fifteen days of the employee’s submission of the petition to the immediate supervisor. By no later than the end of this period, the program manager/division director shall submit to the agency representative the completed questionnaire, along with the petitioner’s most recent PAR form (See N.J.A.C. 4A:6-5).

Under these particular circumstances, the petitioner has provided a sufficient basis to substantiate that there was an undue delay on the part of her supervisor in the processing of the request for reclassification due to the operational challenges because of the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. Since there is no indication in the record that the appellant was not performing Administrative Analyst 2 duties from March 9, 2020 forward, for the purpose of establishing an effective date, assuming that the supervisor forwarded the appeal within the 15 days specified in N.J.A.C. 4A:3-3.9(c)3, it would have been received by Human Resources on March 24, 2020, and forwarded within ten days to Agency Services on April 3, 2020. N.J.A.C. 4A:3-3.9(f) provides that if an appeal is upheld, the effective date of implementation shall be, in State service, the pay period immediately after fourteen days from the date the appeal or reclassification request is received, or at such earlier date as directed by the Civil Service Commission. Therefore, in accordance with established controlling regulatory procedure, the appellant is to be granted a retroactive provisional appointment date to Administrative Analyst 2 of

April 25, 2020. Further the appellant should receive differential pay from April 25, 2020 to May 13, 2021, and for any other periods thereafter based on any salary step change caused by the retroactive date.

ORDER

Therefore, it is ordered that this appeal be granted, and the petitioner be granted a retroactive provisional appointment date to Administrative Analyst 2 of April 25, 2020. Further, the appellant should receive differential pay from April 25, 2020 to May 13, 2021, and for any other periods thereafter based on any salary step change caused by the retroactive date.

ClosingThis is the final administrative determination in this matter. Any further review is to be pursued in a judicial forum.