Governor Sam Brownback’s administration wants to revamp some parts of state employment.
The proposal would give agencies the ability to move more jobs to unclassified positions. It’s easier to fire unclassified employees, as they don’t have protections under the Kansas civil service system. But Secretary of Administration Jim Clark says the reason for the change is flexibility.
“It’s easier also to give that person additional duties to revamp a job and change what that person does. It’s much easier, the flexibility in that. It doesn’t necessarily increase the ability to fire that person.”
Clark says the changes are modeled after policies used in the private sector.
The move would also modify the layoff procedures and eliminate separate vacation and sick leave. Employees would receive only one type of leave, known as paid time off.
The administration is also proposing to re-open negotiations with several unions to establish more consistent policies between employees.
The changes would largely not apply to university employees in Kansas.