Company Profile
City of Austin, Minnesota
Company Overview
Austin, incorporated in 1856 and the seat of Mower County, is located in southeastern Minnesota, along Interstate Highway 90, approximately 100 miles south of Minneapolis and St. Paul. The population was 26,174 at the 2020 census. It sits in the heart of one of the most productive agricultural areas in the country. The City has a growing tax base and employment opportunities.
Hormel Foods Corporation, headquartered in Austin, is the only Fortune 500 Company in Minnesota located outside the Twin Cities metropolitan area. Hormel Foods’ corporate offices, research and development department, flagship processing plant, and Spam® Museum are all headquartered in Austin.
Organizational Values
In the City of Austin, the way we do business is as important as the business we do. Those who work for and on behalf of the City must be:
trustworthy, dependable, honest, and have a high degree of personal integrity.
Through our actions, the citizens we serve should feel that their input and participation are appreciated, that their city government is responsive, and that they have been treated fairly, professionally, and with respect.
The Mayor and City Council value:
Working as a team, making decisions collectively
Providing positive, progressive leadership
Providing government services efficiently
Treating employees with respect
Company History
There are twenty-eight beautifully-maintained parks and approximately 15 miles of pedestrian and biking trails throughout the city. In these parks, you will find an array of activities in which to participate or simply quiet space for your leisure. The park system includes two baseball and softball complexes, a large outdoor swimming pool, entertaining many guests through the summer season, and two indoor arenas for winter activities. Austin has been awarded the Tree City USA designation for 43 years. Austin residents value the display of over 250 gorgeous, overflowing hanging flower baskets and planters that line the downtown city streets.
The Jay C. Hormel Nature Center, which began in 1971, is made of over 530 acres of restored and remnant prairie, hardwood forest, wetlands, and meandering streams. It is located in western Mower County outside the city of Austin. The nature center provides opportunities for viewing birds and wildlife as visitors walk, run, or ski the over nine miles of trail. Thousands of students and other visitors participate in nature-themed programs annually.
Forestry Crew - The forestry crew performs the maintenance on all trees in boulevards and parks in
the city of Austin. They remove and trim trees that block the view of street signs and also those in
preparation for street construction. They are amongst the first to get called in following (tree) storm
damage on boulevards, clearing the way of City trees, limbs, and branches that may have fallen,
thus obstructing streets, driveways, and sidewalks. The team grinds all of the tree stumps and cleans
up shrubs and trees from the City’s parks. This crew also works with other maintenance staff within our park system to perform other work as necessary. The department was able to secure two urban foresters from Ampact/ClimaCorps. They have been primarily working on the Emerald Ash Borer plan and the city tree inventory.
Benefits
Summary of the benefits offered by the City of Austin for this union, non-exempt position are as follows:
• Health insurance coverage, HSA/HRA compatible, effective on the first of the month following two months of employment. The amount of your contribution towards insurance is dependent upon which plan selection you choose. City contribution to HSA/HRA – $4,000 family and $2,000 single. Health insurance summary available on the city's website at https://www.ci.austin.mn.us/tree-maintenance-trimmer
• Accumulation of sick and safe leave at the rate of 8 hours for each month of service (4 hours each pay period); starting from the date of hire (pro-rated for the first month, depending upon start date) with no limit as to accumulation amount. As per City policy, if an employee stays until retirement, 50 percent (50%) of the dollar value of accumulated, unused sick and safe leave is paid out to the employee or health care savings plan.
• Vacation is prorated from the date of hire to January 1st and on each step of vacation. Employees will start to earn vacation from the date of hire. From that time until the start of their fifth year, they will be awarded eighty (80) hours of vacation. Following the end of the fourth, eleventh, nineteenth, and twenty-fourth year, the increase of an additional week of vacation will be awarded the following January 1st. This would be the start of the fifth, twelfth, twentieth, and twenty-fifth year. Vacation schedule, after 5 years – 120 hours, after 12 years – 160 hours, after 20 years – 200 hours, and 25 years – 240 hours.
• Twelve paid holidays (96 benefit hours) per year (pro-rated based on date of hire).
• $40,000 life insurance policy paid by the City. Optional supplemental coverage is available.
• Long-term disability insurance policy for employees with Employer to pay 40% and employee to pay 60% of premium through payroll deduction.
• Pension plan with Public Employees Retirement Association (PERA); contribution is based on a percentage of your wage. Currently, the contribution from the City of Austin is 7.5% and your contribution is 6.5%.
• Optional short-term disability, vision, dental, accident, critical illness, and accident plans, the cost of each depends on enrollment selection (no city contribution). Optional deferred compensation program administered by Nationwide Retirement Solutions (no city contribution).
• United Auto Workers union dues are currently approximately $45.00 per pay period.