Massachusetts 2023-2024 Regular Session

Massachusetts House Bill H2547 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	1 of 1
2	2	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 703 FILED ON: 1/17/2023
3	3	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 2547
4	4	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
5	5	_________________
6	6	PRESENTED BY:
7	7	Ryan M. Hamilton
8	8	_________________
9	9	To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
10	10	Court assembled:
11	11	The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
12	12	An Act relative to the reinstatement of positions in a departmental unit according to seniority for
13	13	the city of Methuen.
14	14	_______________
15	15	PETITION OF:
16	16	NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Ryan M. Hamilton15th Essex1/15/2023 1 of 3
17	17	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 703 FILED ON: 1/17/2023
18	18	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 2547
19	19	By Representative Hamilton of Methuen, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 2547) of
20	20	Ryan M. Hamilton (with approval of the mayor and city council) for legislation relative to the
21	21	reinstatement of positions in a departmental unit according to seniority for the city of Methuen.
22	22	Public Service. [Local Approval Received.]
23	23	[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
24	24	SEE SENATE, NO. 3142 OF 2021-2022.]
25	25	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
26	26	_______________
27	27	In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
28	28	(2023-2024)
29	29	_______________
30	30	An Act relative to the reinstatement of positions in a departmental unit according to seniority for
31	31	the city of Methuen.
32	32	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
33	33	of the same, as follows:
34	34	1 SECTION 1. (a) Notwithstanding sections 31, 33, and 39 of the Massachusetts General
35	35	2Laws Chapter 31, or any other general or special law to the contrary, if permanent employees
36	36	3tenured under Chapter 31, who hold the same rank in an agency, are to be separated from
37	37	4employment because of lack of work, lack of funding, or abolition of positions, such employees
38	38	5shall, except as hereinafter provided, be separated from employment according to their seniority
39	39	6in such rank and shall be reinstated in the same agency unity and in the same position or
40	40	7positions similar to those formerly held by them according to seniority in such rank. Thus,
41	41	8employees senior in length of service within each respective rank shall be retained the longest 2 of 3
42	42	9and reinstated first. Employees separated from positions under this section shall be reinstated
43	43	10prior to the appointment of any other applicants to fill such openings.
44	44	11 (b) Any action by an appointing authority to separate a tenured employee from
45	45	12employment based on lack of work, lack of money, or abolition of positions shall comply with
46	46	13section 41 of Chapter 31. Any such employee who has received written notice of an intent to
47	47	14separate the employee from employment for such reasons may, as an alternative to such
48	48	15separation, file with the appointing authority, within seven days of receipt of such notice, a
49	49	16written consent to demotion in (i) a position in the next lower rank or ranks in succession in the
50	50	17official service or to (ii) the next lower rank or ranks in the labor service, as the case may be, if
51	51	18in such next lower rank or ranks there is an employee junior to the employee in length of service
52	52	19within that rank. If work or funding is restored, any employee so demoted shall be restored to the
53	53	20rank in which the employee was formerly employed, according to seniority in such rank.
54	54	21 (c) A permanent employee tenured under Chapter 31, who has become separated from
55	55	22employment because of disability and is subsequently deemed capable of employment as
56	56	23determined pursuant to section eight of Massachusetts General Laws Chapter thirty-two by the
57	57	24Methuen Retirement Board, as defined in section one of chapter thirty-two, such employee shall
58	58	25be placed in a position in the same or similar title in the department from which the employee
59	59	26was separated, or any other department prior to the appointment from any civil service list;
60	60	27provided, however, that if such placement of such employee occurs more than five years after the
61	61	28date of such separation, or if such placement is in a different title from the title of the position
62	62	29from which the employee was separated, such employee must undergo a retraining program
63	63	30established by the appointing authority, and approved by the personnel administrator, prior to,
64	64	31and as a condition of, such placement. 3 of 3
65	65	32 SECTION 2. Nothing in this section shall impair the preference provided for disabled
66	66	33veterans by section twenty-six.