NATCHEZ — Employees of Adams County are only given three days of leave a year for bereavement, and the board of supervisors decided Thursday they didn’t believe that was appropriate.

County Administrator Joe Murray told the supervisors Thursday that the state policy for employees who have had a death in their immediate family is to grant three days medical leave. As it is written, the county’s personnel handbook only allows for three days annually, even if more than one family member dies.

“I don’t think that’s right,”Murray said. “I think it should be three days per occurrence.”

One county employee has already been affected by the policy this year due to multiple deaths in their family, Murray said.

The supervisors instructed Murray and board attorney Scott Slover to begin taking the necessary steps to amend the handbook to reflect the desired policy.

The supervisors also gave Murray and Slover the go-ahead to begin another handbook revision, which would change the definition of part-time employee from someone who works 20 hours a week to someone who works 30 hours a week.

While the county currently considers anybody who works 20 hours a week as a part-time employee, Murray said the county’s insurance does not consider anyone who works fewer than 30 hours a week to be part-time and eligible for benefits.

“Our personnel policy needs to mirror what our insurance policy says,” he said.

In other news:

•Murray told the supervisors that a construction firm that has in the past contracted with Elevance has requested to lease the county-owned Pickett building near the Natchez-Adams County Port.

The problem, Supervisor Mike Lazarus said, is that the county has previously made an oral commitment — though not a paper commitment — to Steve McNerney with the Green Alliance about the possible use of that building as a drop site for a future county recycling program.

“I hate to lose a tenant,” Lazarus said. “But (the alliance) has done a lot of work out there under the assumption that we are going to use it (for a recycling program).”

The site might have to be put out for bid before the lease could be granted or a recycling program could use the space, Slover said.

“You would have to have a finding of facts that it was in the best interest of the county to lease that building without bidding,” he said.

Lazarus said he would approach McNerney about looking for other sites with the City of Natchez.

•The supervisors voted to approve the request of Road Manager Robbie Dollar to hire Tony Ballard as a mechanic and to promote Warren Gaines to foreman of the mechanic’s shop.

•The supervisors authorized Slover to send a letter to the owner of a nuisance trailer located at 177 Morgantown Road.

Supervisor Calvin Butler said the trailer has exposed insulation, and rats and snakes are coming out of it.