2001 Minnesota Statutes

     43A.02 Definitions. 

    Subdivision 1.    Interpretation.  Unless the language 
 or context indicates that a different meaning is intended, the 
 following terms, for the purposes of this chapter, have the 
 meanings given them in this section.  

    Subd. 2.    Agency.  "Agency" means a department, 
 commission, board, institution, or other employing entity of the 
 civil service, in which all positions are under the same 
 appointing authority.  

    Subd. 3.    Allocation.  "Allocation" means the 
 assignment of an individual position to an appropriate class on 
 the basis of the kind, difficulty, or responsibility of the work 
 performed in the position.  

    Subd. 4.    Applicant.  "Applicant" means a person who 
 has completed a state application for employment and has 
 submitted it to the department of employee relations or other 
 appointing authority who has been delegated authority to recruit 
 and examine individuals for state jobs.  

    Subd. 5.    Appointing authority.  "Appointing authority"
 means a person or group of persons empowered by the 
 constitution, statute, or executive order to employ persons in 
 or to make appointments to positions in the civil service.  

    Subd. 6.    Appointment.  "Appointment" means the act of 
 filling a vacancy by placement of a person in a civil service 
 position through selection from an eligible list or a 
 noncompetitive or qualifying process including transfer, 
 demotion or reinstatement.  

    Subd. 6a.    Balanced class.  "Balanced class" means any 
 class in which no more than 80 percent of the incumbents are 
 male and no more than 70 percent of the incumbents are female.  

    Subd. 7.    Candidate.  "Candidate" means an applicant 
 whose application for employment has been accepted into the 
 examination process for a class.  

    Subd. 8.    Certification.  "Certification" means the 
 referral of names from an eligible list to an appointing 
 authority to fill vacant positions in the classified service.  

    Subd. 9.    Change in allocation.  "Change in allocation"
 means reclassification resulting from abrupt, management-imposed 
 changes in the duties and responsibilities of a position.  

    Subd. 10.    Civil service.  "Civil service" means all 
 employees in the legislative, judicial and executive branches of 
 state government and all positions in the classified and 
 unclassified services as provided in sections 43A.07 and 43A.08. 

    Subd. 11.    Class.  "Class" means one or more positions 
 sufficiently similar with respect to duties and responsibilities 
 that the same descriptive title may be used with clarity to 
 designate each position allocated to the class and that the same 
 general qualifications are needed for performance of the duties 
 of the class, and that the same schedule of pay can be applied 
 with equity to all positions in the class under the same or 
 substantially the same employment conditions. 

    Subd. 12.    Classified service.  "Classified service" 
 means all positions now existing or hereafter created in the 
 civil service and not specifically designated unclassified 
 pursuant to section 43A.08.  

    Subd. 13.    Commissioner.  "Commissioner" means the 
 commissioner of employee relations.  

    Subd. 14.    Commissioner's plan.  "Commissioner's plan" 
 means the plan required by section 3.855 regarding total 
 compensation and terms and conditions of employment, including 
 grievance administration, for employees of the executive branch 
 who are not otherwise provided for in this chapter or other law. 

    Subd. 14a.    Comparability of the value of the work.  
 "Comparability of the value of the work" means the value of the 
 work measured by the composite of the skill, effort, 
 responsibility, and working conditions normally required in the 
 performance of the work.  

    Subd. 15.    Competitive open.  "Competitive open" means 
 eligibility to compete in an examination for state employment is 
 extended to all interested persons.  

    Subd. 16.    Competitive promotional.  "Competitive 
 promotional" means eligibility to compete in an examination for 
 state employment is limited to persons currently occupying, or 
 on leave or layoff from, civil service positions.  

    Subd. 17.    Declassified position.  "Declassified 
 position" means a position which is removed from the classified 
 service and placed in the unclassified service.  

    Subd. 18.    Department.  "Department" means the 
 department of employee relations.  

    Subd. 19.    Eligible.  "Eligible" means a person whose 
 name is on an eligible list.  

    Subd. 20.    Eligible list.  "Eligible list" means a 
 list of candidates qualified under provisions of this chapter 
 for employment in a specific class.  

    Subd. 21.    Employee.  "Employee" means any person 
 currently occupying, or on leave from, a civil service position. 

    Subd. 22.    Executive branch.  "Executive branch" means 
 heads of all agencies of state government, elective or 
 appointive, established by statute or constitution and all 
 employees of those agency heads who have within their particular 
 field of responsibility statewide jurisdiction and who are not 
 within the legislative or judicial branches of government.  The 
 executive branch also includes employees of the iron range 
 resources and rehabilitation board.  The executive branch does 
 not include agencies with jurisdiction in specifically defined 
 geographical areas, such as regions, counties, cities, towns, 
 municipalities, or school districts, the University of 
 Minnesota, the public employees retirement association, the 
 Minnesota state retirement system, the teachers retirement 
 association, the Minnesota historical society, and all of their 
 employees, and any other entity which is incorporated, even 
 though it receives state funds.  

    Subd. 22a.    Female-dominated class.  "Female-dominated 
 class" means any class in which more than 70 percent of the 
 incumbents are female.  

    Subd. 23.    Intermittent employee.  "Intermittent 
 employee" means an employee who works an irregular and uncertain 
 schedule which alternately begins, ceases and begins again as 
 the needs of the agency require.  

    Subd. 24.    Intern.  "Intern" means an individual who, 
 for a work experience, is receiving academic credit from or is 
 fulfilling an academic requirement of, an accredited educational 
 institution.  

    Subd. 25.    Judicial branch.  "Judicial branch" means 
 all judges of the appellate courts, all employees of the 
 appellate courts, including commissions, boards, and committees 
 established by the supreme court, the board of law examiners, 
 the law library, the office of the state public defender, 
 district public defenders and their employees, all judges of all 
 courts of law, district court referees, judicial officers, court 
 reporters, law clerks, district administration employees under 
 section 484.68, court administrator or employee of the court in 
 a judicial district under section 480.181, subdivision 1, 
 paragraph (b), guardian ad litem program employees, and other 
 agencies placed in the judicial branch by law.  Judicial branch 
 does not include district administration or public defenders or 
 their employees in the second and fourth judicial districts, 
 court administrators not under section 480.181, subdivision 1, 
 paragraph (b), or their staff under chapter 485, or other 
 employees within the court system whose salaries are paid by the 
 county, other than employees who remain on the county payroll 
 under section 480.181, subdivision 2.  

    Subd. 26.    Layoff list.  "Layoff list" means an 
 eligible list by class of former permanent or probationary 
 employees who have been terminated from positions in the class 
 because of a shortage of funds or curtailment of service or for 
 any other reason beyond their control not reflecting discredit 
 on the employee.  

    Subd. 27.    Legislative branch.  "Legislative branch" 
 means all legislators and all employees of the legislature, 
 legislative committees or commissions.  

    Subd. 27a.    Male-dominated class.  "Male-dominated 
 class" means any class in which more than 80 percent of the 
 incumbents are male.  

    Subd. 28.    Managerial.  "Managerial" means those 
 positions designated pursuant to section 43A.18, subdivision 3 
 as being accountable for determining, securing, and allocating 
 human, financial, and other resources needed to accomplish 
 objectives.  Positions in this category also are accountable for 
 determining overall objectives, priorities, and policies within 
 a program area.  Higher level positions in this category handle 
 significant and involved relationships with governmental 
 leadership.  Incumbents of these positions have the authority to 
 exercise discretionary powers on a regular basis. 

    Subd. 29.    Officer.  For purposes of chapter 15A the 
 term "officer" may be used interchangeably with the term 
 "employee"  within the executive branch.  

    Subd. 30.    Permanent status.  "Permanent status" means 
 the state or condition achieved by an employee in the classified 
 service who has successfully completed an initial probationary 
 period or a probationary period required following reinstatement 
 or reemployment, or whose probationary period is waived through 
 specific statutory direction.  

    Subd. 31.    Position.  "Position" means a group of 
 duties and responsibilities assigned or delegated by competent 
 authority, requiring the full-time or less than full-time 
 employment of one person.  

    Subd. 32.    Probationary period.  "Probationary 
 period", part of the examination process, means a working period 
 following unlimited appointment to a position in the classified 
 service, during which the employee is required to demonstrate 
 ability to perform the duties and fulfill the responsibilities 
 of the position.  

    Subd. 33.    Protected groups.  For affirmative action 
 purposes, "protected groups" means females, persons with 
 disabilities, and members of the following minorities:  Black, 
 Hispanic, Asian or Pacific Islander, and American Indian or 
 Alaskan native.  

    Subd. 34.    Qualifying appointment.  "Qualifying 
 appointment" means the selection, from other than an eligible 
 list, of a candidate who has demonstrated through an examination 
 process that the candidate meets minimum job-related 
 requirements.  

    Subd. 35.    Reallocation.  "Reallocation" means 
 reclassification resulting from significant changes over a 
 period of time in the duties and responsibilities of a position. 

    Subd. 36.    Reclassification.  "Reclassification" means 
 changing the allocation of a position to a higher, lower or 
 equivalent class.  

    Subd. 37.    Reemployment list.  "Reemployment list" 
 means an eligible list by class of current or former permanent 
 or probationary employees laid off, demoted in lieu of layoff, 
 or separated in good standing from the class, or former 
 permanent or probationary employees of the class who are 
 receiving disability benefits under a state retirement plan and 
 whose written applications for consideration for reemployment in 
 the class have been approved by the commissioner.  

    Subd. 38.    Total compensation.  "Total compensation" 
 means salaries, cash payments and employee benefits including 
 paid time off, group insurance benefits, and other direct and 
 indirect items of compensation with the exception of retirement 
 plans.  

    Subd. 39.    Unclassified service.  "Unclassified 
 service"  means all positions designated not being classified 
 pursuant to section 43A.08.  

    Subd. 40.    Unlimited appointment.  "Unlimited 
 appointment" means an appointment for which there is no 
 specified maximum duration.  

    HIST: 1981 c 210 s 2; 1982 c 560 s 8; 1982 c 634 s 2-5; 1983 c 
 247 s 19; 1989 c 335 art 3 s 2; 1990 c 594 art 2 s 1; 1993 c 146 
 art 2 s 9; 1997 c 79 s 2-6; 1999 c 182 s 2,3; 1999 c 216 art 7 s 
 1 

*   NOTE:  Laws 1999, chapter 216, article 7, section 46, 
*subdivisions 1 and 3, provide specific effective dates for the 
*state takeover of court administrative and miscellaneous costs 
*under subdivision 25, as amended by Laws 1999, chapter 216, 
*article 7, section 1.