Bethel Township employees will need approval for overtime

The Bethel Township supervisors approved rules requiring township auditors to OK overtime hours for township employees.

Solicitor Elizabeth Magovern noted that the rules would apply to township supervisors Mike Graby and Robbi Lane, since they also serve as road master and police secretary, respectively.

Employees planning on working over 40 hours will now have to submit a request for overtime to auditors and receive approval beforehand.

The new procedure follows a series of recommendations issued last month by township auditors about the township’s methods of tracking employee activities and equipment use.

Other auditor recommendations included using time clocks and having set hours for employees, keeping accurate daily records of work done by the road crew, having payroll done by the township secretary, forming a committee to rewrite the township personnel policy, using purchase orders and keeping logbooks for township vehicles.

Officials said some recommendations have already been implemented by the township, including keeping log books for vehicles and having the road crew maintain daily records.

Also at Thursday’s meeting, supervisors approved enabling township police and building code enforcers to issue citations for nuisance violations.

Nuisance violations include having garbage and junk on the property, like dismantled cars and other junk, Magovern said.

She said citations could result in fines of $1,000.

One resident asked whether there would be a time frame for individuals with vehicles sitting on their property for restoration purposes to move the vehicles.

Magovern said there is no time frame. She said the ability to cite would be at the discretion of police.

In other business, township engineer Jeffrey Steckbeck said plans to renovate the Bethel Township Public Library will be ready to advertise for bids within the next three to four weeks.

Plans for a comprehensive renovation of the aging library have been in the works for years, but are now in the process of being implemented after a consultant with the Reading Library District visited the library in September, and found conditions could be hazardous for employees and visitors.

Steckbeck noted that the project may be eligible for grants of up to $100,000 per year for three years from nonprofit organizations.