This benefit information applies only to non-union employees and is subject to change at any time.

Hastings Utilities employees, Police Union employees and Fire Union employees may have different benefit programs.

Vacation Leave
General full-time employees are entitled to accrue vacation leave based on years of service. After six months of service employees received one week of vacation and then earn 6.6666 hours per month which is equivalent to two weeks of vacation per year. After six years of service employees receive an additional week of vacation and earn 10 hours per month which is equivalent to three weeks of vacation per year. After fifteen years of service employees receive an additional week of vacation and earn 13.333 hours per month which is equivalent to four weeks of vacation per year.

Permanent part-time employees who work between 1300-1559 hours per year will be entitled to 50% of full-time hours while those who work between 1560-2079 hours per year will be entitled to 75%.

All employees are allowed to accrue up to two times his or her yearly allowance for vacation leave.

General employees receive the following 11 holidays per year: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Friday after Thanksgiving, 1/2 day Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and 2.5 days Floating Holiday.

Sick leave is provided so the employee will not suffer financially because of an inability to work due to illness or injury.

Full-time employees accrue sick leave at the rate of one work day per month of service. Sick leave may be accrued up to a maximum of 1060 hours of sick leave. Permanent part-time employees who work between 1300-1559 hours per year will earn 50% of the hours earned by full-time employees while those who work between 1560-2079 hours will earn 75%.

Each year employees who have accumulated more than 1060 hours of sick leave are paid for any unused sick leave over and above the 1060 hours which may be carried over to the next year. Compensation is 25% of the accumulated sick leave in excess of 1060 hours.

The City pays most of the premium for your medical plan. You may have to pay a portion of the premium, depending on the number of dependents covered and which plan is chosen.

Monthly Cost for Insurance

Single Coverage       $36.90 per month

Family Coverage      $195.20 per month

Per Person                  $400

Per Family                   $800

Co-insurance             80/20 PPO

                                     60/40 Non PPO

Prescription Card      $10 Generic, $20 Brand Name, $35 Formulary

Employees also receive group term life insurance equal to the employee's annual salary rounded to the nearest $1,000 up to a maximum of $50,000.

Long-term disability is also provided at no expense to the employee.

EAP services are available to all regular full and part-time employees.  Confidential services are available to each employee, employee's spouse, employee's minor children and any other family member who regularly resides with the employee and is a legal dependent of the employee.  Each person receives four free visits annually for help with many personal and work-related issues.

Employees join the mandatory pension plan on the first of the month following one year of service during which at least 1,000 hours must have been worked provided the employee is 21 years of age.

The employee contributes 4% of the first $20,000 gross pay and 8% in excess of $20,000. Contributions are made with "before tax" dollars. The City will contribute an amount equal to the employee’s contribution. State statutes mandate the contribution amounts for Police and Fire employees.

Employees may select from many different types of accounts for investment purposes. Employees are always 100% vested in their own contribution. After 5 years of service, the employee is 100% vested in the City's matching contribution.

Salary Information

Employees have their paycheck directly deposited into a checking or savings account at the bank of his/her choice.  Paydays are every other Friday.

Optional Programs
The City offers many optional programs that an employee may elect to participate in. Following is brief outline of those programs.

• American Fund Savings Plan: This program allows employees to invest money by payroll deduction into a mutual fund family with over 25 different accounts without paying front-end fees. This is an after-tax savings plan that allows money to be withdrawn without tax penalties.

• YMCA: Discount memberships are offered under the "corporate plan". Currently, City employees are offered a 15% discount for individual, single parent family, and family memberships. Dues may be paid in full each year or on a monthly basis. 

• ICMA: This is an optional retirement plan that works much like an IRA. Contributions are made by payroll deduction and are made with "before tax" dollars. Allocations of the contributions may be invested in a variety of different funds.

• U.S. Savings Bonds: Face values of $50, $100, $200, $500 or $1,000 may be purchased by payroll deduction. Bonds may be purchased each pay period, every other pay period, etc.

• Life Insurance: Additional life insurance for the employee, spouse and children may be purchased by payroll deduction.