Employee Referral

• Each referred employee results in an incentive payment up to $1,000 to the referring employee.
  • The first $500 will be paid following the referred employee’s 90th day of employment.
  • The final $500 is paid following the referred employee’s completion of one year with the same Appointing Authority. 
• The referring employee and the referred employee must both be employed by the Unified Personnel System at the time the incentive is awarded.
• The candidate hired may be classified or exempt status, but may not be a temporary employee.

The candidate must indicate the name of the employee who referred them on the supplemental questionnaire portion during the initial submission of the employment application. Names may not be added at a later time and multiple names are not accepted.

• Supervisors in the position’s chain of command or otherwise involved in the hiring process for the position are not eligible for this incentive.
• Supervisors who supervised a volunteer who is hired within the Unified Personnel System are not eligible for this incentive.
• The new hire referral must be external and cannot be a current employee; i.e., internal transfers, demotions, and promotions do not qualify for this incentive.
• A new hire cannot have been assigned to the Unified Personnel System through a contractor providing supplemental employees, such as a temporary employee from Personnel Solutions Plus.
• Human Resources staff involved in the recruitment, selection or otherwise involved in the hiring process for the position are not eligible for this incentive.
• Employees who attended a recruiting event on behalf of Pinellas County Government and referred a new hire as a result are not eligible for this incentive.

Yes. There is no limit to the number of incentive payments an employee can qualify for if s/he refers more than one person who is hired.

• Once the referred employee has completed 90 days of employment with the Appointing Authority, Human Resources will notify Payroll of the referring employee’s initial incentive award.
• Once the referred employee has completed one year of employment with the Appointing Authority, Human Resources will notify Payroll of the final incentive award.
• Payroll will process the approved incentive amounts which will appear as part of the referring employee’s paycheck (not a separate check).
• Referral incentives will be processed monthly for the next available pay date.

To learn more, view the Employee Referral Program Policy.

For questions, please contact Human Resources at (727) 464-3367, option 2 or email onboarding@pinellas.gov.