Benefits

This is a summary of benefits only. Policies pertaining to these benefits are on file in the Human Resources Department or in the Risk Management division of Fiscal Services for insurance and insurance-related benefits at the City of Grapevine and are available for employees’ review at any time. Regular full-time employees receive a variety of excellent benefits. Regular part-time employees, those who are regularly scheduled to work at least 20 hours per week, receive benefits on a pro-rated basis.

Holidays

Nine holidays including:

Vacation

All regular full-time and regular part-time employees accrue vacation leave for each month of active service with the City. Accrual rate increases are based on length of service and number of hours worked per regular work week. Initial accruals are earned at the rate of 15 days per year (10 hours per month) for full-time employees. Firefighters working 24 hour shifts will accrue vacation leave at 7 ½ shifts per year (15 hours per month). Maximum vacation carried over from the end of one calendar year to the beginning of the next calendar year is 1 ½ times the employee’s annual vacation accrual rate. Vacation accruals may be used after satisfactory completion of initial probationary period.

Sick Leave

All regular full-time and regular part-time employees accrue sick leave. Regular full-time employees accrue at the rate of 15 days per year (10 hours per month). Maximum sick leave accrual is 520 hours. Regular part-time employees accrue sick leave in proportion to hours budgeted for their position. Monthly maximum sick leave accrual shall never exceed the proportionate amount earned by a regular full-time employee. Firefighters accrue sick leave at the rate of 7.5 shifts per year (15 hours per month). Maximum accrual is 780 hours. Sick leave accruals may be used after satisfactory completion of initial probationary period.

Sick Leave Buy-Back

Any full-time employee actively at work from November 1^st to September 30, who has an accrued balance of 160 hours of sick leave as of September 30 of each year, can surrender 40 hours for cash payment at their current hourly rate. Firefighters who have an accrued balance of 240 hours as of September 30, can surrender 56 hours for cash payment paid at their current hourly rate of pay.

Longevity Pay

Full-time employees with one full year of service as of December 1^st receive longevity pay of $48 for each completed year of service up to a maximum of $1200.

Texas Municipal Retirement System (TMRS)

Regular full-time and regular part-time employee's tax-deferred contribution into the pension fund is 7% of gross wages. The City matches this contribution on a 2 to 1 ratio, vested after 5 years. Employees are eligible to retire with 20 years of service at any age or at age 60 with at least 5 years of service.

Public Agency Retirement System (PARS-AR 457 Account)

Part-time, casual, and seasonal employees who are not eligible to participate in the Texas Municipal Retirement System will contribute 6.2% of gross wages into their tax-deferred PARS-AR 457 Account. The City will contribute 1.3% of the employee’s gross wage into the employee’s account. Employees are 100% vested immediately in the PARS-AR 457 Account.

Medicare

The employee and the City contribute 1.45% of earnings towards Medicare but are exempt from other Social Security taxes.

Deferred Compensation Programs

ICMA-RC and Nationwide are provided as optional tax-deferred supplemental retirement programs that allow public employees who are classified as regular full-time or regular part-time to contribute a portion of their salary before taxes to a retirement account. An employee may contribute a minimum of $20 per month or up to 100% of gross income to a maximum of $18,000 per year.

Direct Deposit

Employees are required to have bi-weekly paychecks automatically deposited to any bank requested.

Legal Shield

An employee has the option of having prepaid legal services provided on a payroll deduction basis.

Tuition Reimbursement

Regular full-time employees can be reimbursed tuition and fees for college classes approved by the Human Resources Department - $240 maximum per credit hour for undergraduate courses and $280 maximum per credit hour for graduate courses. Minimum grade of "C" for undergraduate classes and "B" for graduate classes also required for reimbursement.

The REC of Grapevine

Employee membership to The REC is free for employees who are eligible for City health insurance benefits. Family memberships for employees who are eligible for City health insurance benefits are discounted.

Family and Medical Leave

An employee may be eligible for leave under designated conditions as provided in the Family and Medical Leave Act. Contact Risk Management for additional details.

Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance

The City of Grapevine offers medical, dental, and vision insurance coverage's to regular full-time and regular part-time active employees. In addition, employee’s dependent coverage is available on an optional basis. Employees waiving health insurance coverage receive $500 credit to their 125-Flex-Med account. Employee premium costs vary depending on the plan chosen and the employee’s election of dependent coverage. Additional information can be found in the 2022-2023 Employee Benefits Overview. Contact the Risk Management for additional details.

Transparency in Coverage

In accordance with the Transparency in Coverage Rule, UMR creates and publishes the Machine-Readable File on behalf of the city. The link will go live on  July 1, 2022 and update monthly by UMR.

After clicking the link, please scroll down to view the City of Grapevine file.  

transparency-in-coverage.uhc.com/

Employee Assistance Program

The Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is a benefit available for employees and their dependents, offering up to eight (8) free visits for problems relating to family relationships, depression, stress, substance abuse, or other difficulties. Contact Risk Management for additional details.

Disability Benefit

The long-term disability plan provides financial protection for regular full-time employees by paying a portion of the employee’s income (up to 60% of monthly earnings to a maximum benefit of $5,000 per month) while the employee is disabled. There is no cost to the employee for this coverage. Contact Risk Management for additional details.

Life Insurance

The City provides life insurance equal to two times salary up to a maximum of $350,000 at no cost for regular full-time and regular part-time employees up to age 65. Insurance at age 65 and older will be reduced for regular full-time and regular part-time employees. Accidental Death and Dismemberment insurance is also provided at no cost for regular full-time and regular part-time employee. Regular full-time and regular part-time employees may purchase dependent coverage at various premiums depending upon the amount of coverage. Employees have the option of purchasing supplemental life, critical illness, and short term disability insurance through existing payroll deduction accounts. Contact Risk Management for additional details. 

Flexible Spending Account

Regular full-time and regular part-time employees may participate in the Flexible Spending Plan, which corresponds to Section 125 of the IRS Code. The plan allows employees to set aside pre-tax dollars to pay for qualified healthcare and dependent care expenses. Contributions are deducted from the employee's paycheck in equal amounts during the year and are not subject to Federal Income Tax, FICA tax, and in most cases, state and local income taxes. Contact Risk Management for additional details.