VIDALIA — Vidalia aldermen on Tuesday discussed updating the town’s employee handbook for the first time since the 1990s, but the drug and alcohol policy halted any action.

The two main talking points were the town’s obligation to helping employees who test positive on a test and when an employee’s positive test should be forgiven. The town’s current policy calls for the second positive test to result in immediate termination, but some aldermen did not want a positive test to follow an employee for their career.

Other items discussed included vacation and employees holding a second job outside the town.

Alderman Tommy Probst said he wanted to see the town do more to aid an employee in seeking treatment in the case of a drug or alcohol addiction.

Town Manager Bill Murray said on the first positive test, an employee would be suspended for 30 days without pay. The town would help an employee get treatment within its resources, but the employee has to ask for it.

Probst said an employee’s supervisor should be required to inform an employee on how the town could help the employee seek counseling. The town would not pay for the treatment and accepting treatment would not be required, Murray said.

None of the aldermen expressed any concern with Probst’s suggestion, but several had concerns with Alderman Robert Gardner’s suggestion that an employee’s positive test be forgiven after a year. Gardner said an offense when a person makes a mistake should not hang over an employee for their lives.

Mayor Buz Craft said a year is too soon.

“What (Gardner) is suggesting would mean is that a year and a day after testing positive, we would have to treat it is if it was that person’s first offense,” Craft said. “To me that is too soon.”

Several department heads agreed with Craft, including Fire Chief Johnny Evans. Evans and other department heads said the second offense termination policy has been working.

Evans said he did not want to get in a situation where an ambulance driver was under the influence of drugs or alcohol on the job, is forgiven, goes through treatment but one or two years later is caught impaired on the job again and the town being required to forgive the employee.

Craft suggested a five-year forgiveness policy, but said he would also be OK with the offense staying with an employee for their life.

Gardner said he thought five years was too long, as did Alderman Tron McCoy.

McCoy said his concern was the forgiveness cycle potentially outlasting the terms of a mayor or alderman. McCoy said four years should be the maximum length to forgive.

“Another mayor should not walk in and fire an employee over a situation from another term,” McCoy said.

On the other hand, Alderwoman Sabrina Doré and Alderman Jon Betts said they leaned toward a positive test remaining with an employee for their career, as is the current policy.

Doré motioned they table pre-filing the ordinance on adopting the employee handbook, and Gardner seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.

“This is about more than the six of us,” Doré said. “This is about 200 employees and their lives.”

Some residents expressed concern with the delay, particularly in the example of a first responder being drunk or high on the job. Craft assured residents not taking action would leave the town under the old policy, which requires termination on the second offense regardless of time frame.