Section 310 - Classification plan; rules(a) The Department of Human Resources shall adopt a uniform and equitable plan of classification for each position within State service, now or hereafter created, including positions within the Department of Public Safety, except those positions expressly excluded by section 311 of this title or by other provisions of law. For purposes of internal position alignment and assignment of positions to salary ranges, the plan shall be based upon a job content comparison method of job evaluation. As used in this section, "job content comparison method" means a system under which positions are assigned to salary ranges based on a scale of values against which job evaluations of individual positions are compared.(b) It shall be the responsibility of the Department of Human Resources to perform job evaluations for each position based on current job descriptions that describe the nature, scope, and accountabilities for each class of employees. It shall be the responsibility of the head of each department to provide current job descriptions for all positions within his or her department and such other information as may be required to the Department of Human Resources in order to enable that department to carry out its responsibility under this section.(c) The Department of Human Resources, upon the approval of the General Assembly, shall establish and maintain a salary structure consisting of salary ranges with a minimum salary and a maximum salary for each range. Classes shall be assigned to salary ranges based upon the job evaluation provided for under subsection (b) of this section.(d) Subject to bargaining rights as set forth in chapter 27 of this title, the Secretary of Administration shall adopt rules and procedures to carry out the foregoing provisions of this section.(e) Subject to bargaining rights as set forth in chapter 27 of this title, the Commissioner of Human Resources shall make such regulations and adopt such methods of qualifying employees for positions as will make the plan effective, and shall prescribe rules governing appointments, probation, promotions, demotions, transfers, separations, vacations, sick leave, and hours of employment applicable to persons in the classified service.(f) The Classification and Compensation Plan and the rules and regulations for personnel administration shall be based on merit system principles and shall provide for compliance with the laws relating to preference granted to qualified persons who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces and received honorable discharge.(g)(1) After the requirements of an applicable collective bargaining agreement have been satisfied with regard to hiring issues and after compliance with subsection 327(a) of this title, and consistent with applicable State or federal standards for affirmative action, the State shall make a diligent effort to recruit, interview, and hire:(A) those applicants who meet the definition of a veteran as defined by 38 U.S.C. § 101 and who received an honorable discharge; and(B) the spouses of veterans, as defined in subdivision (A) of this subdivision (1), who currently receive disability compensation or improved pension from the U. S. Department of Veterans' Affairs and are unable to work due to disability and the surviving spouses of veterans in cases where the surviving spouse currently receives dependency indemnity compensation from the U. S. Department of Veterans' Affairs.(2) Veterans who apply for and meet the requirements for any open competitive recruitment that is conducted using a point-based examination and who receive a passing score shall have five points added to their competitive examination rating, and service-connected disabled veterans, veterans' unremarried widows or widowers, and spouses of totally service-connected disabled veterans who meet the requirements for any open competitive examination and who receive a passing score shall have ten points added to their competitive examination rating, subject to the provisions contained in 20 V.S.A. § 1543.(h) Those individuals qualifying under subdivision (g)(1)(A) of this section shall be entitled to apply and compete for vacant positions for which recruitment is being conducted only on a statewide promotional basis.(i) The appeal procedures for classification and reclassification of an employee's or employees' positions shall be a subject for collective bargaining and when bargained this aspect of employment may be included as a grievance under subdivision 902(14) of this title.(j) Subject to the provisions of the collectively bargained agreements with the Vermont State Employees' Association, the Secretary of Administration may exceed established classified pay plan maximums to implement market factor adjustments for the purpose of attracting and retaining qualified employees in the classified system.Amended 1959, No. 331 (Adj. Sess.), § 5, eff. 2/9/1960; 1961, No. 35, eff. 3/24/1961; 1961, No. 177, § 4; 1969, No. 113, § 4; 1971, No. 191 (Adj. Sess.), § 2; 1971, No. 193 (Adj. Sess.), §§ 1, 17, eff. 4/3/1972; 1975, No. 118, § 66, eff. 4/30/1975; 1979, No. 59, § 10; 1979, No. 90 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. 2/28/1980; 1981, No. 249 (Adj. Sess.), § 24; eff. 7/4/1982; 1989, No. 67, § 15; 1997, No. 147 (Adj. Sess.), § 274b; 2003, No. 111 (Adj. Sess.) , § 1; 2003, No. 156 (Adj. Sess.) , § 15; 2017 , No. 85, § E.108. 2.