Mandatory Supervisory Training Requirements
The Oklahoma Personnel Act
requires both classified and unclassified supervisors in the executive
branch of state government, excluding those within The Oklahoma State
System of Higher Education, to attend 12 hours of supervisory training
annually.
The OPM Administrator has adopted Merit Rules
to implement the statutory supervisory training requirement. These
rules require individuals appointed after January 1, 2000, to complete
24 hours within the first 12 months of employment. Performance
Management Process training and progressive discipline training also is
required within the first 12 months of appointment to a supervisory
position. Agencies must annually report
their level of compliance with the Merit Rules.
Q: What courses satisfy this requirement?
A: Courses or training related to the effective performance of an agency manager or supervisor.
Q: Who approves a course?
A:
Employing agencies. Training conducted by employing agencies, public
and private schools, and colleges and universities may count toward
supervisory training requirements if the coursework meets the
definition for supervisory training in the Merit Rules.
Q: Does all the training have to be taken through OPM or
HRDS?
A: No. State agencies may provide courses taught by agency instructors, hire consultants, send employees to seminars, etc.
Q: Is classroom training the only training that counts?
A: No.
However, casual reading of a book is not training. There must be some
other form of learning demonstrated. Agencies may utilize video
conferencing, professional conferences, computer-based training (not PC
courses), CD-ROMs, small group discussion sessions, book/article
reports, brown-bag sessions, etc.
Q: What records do agencies need to keep?
A: Employing
agencies must keep records of the training of all supervisory employees
and submit reports of supervisory training to OPM at the request of the
OPM Administrator. OPM courses will show up on individual transcripts.
It is advisable for agencies to get something in writing from each
manager and supervisor listing what course was taken, the date, and the
hours earned. Agencies who want their training courses to show up on
OPM transcripts should submit participant sheets to HRDS.
Q: How long is an "hour" of HRDS training?
A: 60
minutes. An HRDS course which lasts from 8:30 am until 4:30 pm is
considered six hours of training instead of eight hours because breaks,
lunch, and luncheon speakers are deducted.
Q: How much of a course may a person miss and still get credit for attending?
A: Each situation is determined individually. Full attendance is usually required.
Q: Do conferences count?
A: It
depends on the topics taught at the conference. Often, portions of a
conference will count. Agencies should look for direct connections to
an employee's job duties as a supervisor or manager.
