ARTICLE 12
GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE
A grievance is any controversy between the parties to this agreement which pertains to (1) any matter involving interpretation of this agreement, and (2) any matter involving a violation of
any of the provisions of this agreement.
Any grievance must be presented to the bargaining agent within twenty (20) days of
occurrence. Within ten (10) days of notification of the grievance, the bargaining agent shall
present the grievance to the appropriate supervisor.
Within five (5) working days of receipt of the grievance by the supervisor, the supervisor and
the employee grievant shall discuss the grievance in an effort to informally resolve the
grievance. If the grievance is not resolved informally, it may be presented in writing to the
head of the department within five (5) days of the informal grievance discussion. The head of
the department shall have ten (10) days from receipt of the grievance to respond in writing.
If the grievance is still unresolved, it may be presented in writing, within five (5) days from
receipt of the department head's response, to the personnel office. The personnel office shall
have ten (10) days from receipt of the grievance to respond in writing.
If the grievance is not resolved by means of the formal procedure, the bargaining agent and the
employer may agree to refer the grievance to a grievance committee for resolution prior to
arbitration. A request to use a grievance committee may be initiated by the employer within
ten (10) days from the bargaining agent's request to arbitrate or by the bargaining agent within
ten (10) days from receipt of the step 2 decision of the personnel office. If the parties agree to
the use of a grievance committee, the Commissioner of Higher Education shall appoint three
(3) committee members and the bargaining agent shall appoint three (3) committee members.
No employee of the unit from which the grievance originated may be selected by the employer
or the bargaining agent to serve on the committee. The grievance committee shall conduct the
hearing at the unit from which the grievance originated and shall arrive at a decision within
five (5) days following the date the grievance was heard by the committee. Any decision
concurred in by a majority of the members of the grievance committee is final and binding and
may not be appealed to arbitration. In the event the grievance committee is unable to arrive at
a decision which is concurred in by a majority of committee members, the bargaining agent
may submit the matter to arbitration by giving written notice of their intention to arbitrate to
the Commissioner of Higher Education and the campus personnel office within five (5) days
from the date the committee decision was due.
A. Request for Arbitration
In the event the grievance committee is unable to arrive at an agreement within the time
specified, the bargaining agent and the grievant may submit the matter to arbitration by
giving written notice of their intention to arbitrate to the campus personnel office with a
copy to the Commissioner of Higher Education within ten (10) days from the date the
committee decision was due. Upon the written request of the Commissioner or the
bargaining agent, a fifteen (15) day postponement in the selection of an arbitrator shall
be granted to allow the Commissioner a final opportunity to attempt to resolve the
matter prior to arbitration. If no settlement is reached within the fifteen (15) days, the
parties shall proceed to arbitration.
B. Selection of Arbitrator
Upon a request for arbitration or upon the expiration of the fifteen (15) day extension
granted the Commissioner, the parties shall attempt to mutually agree to an acceptable
impartial arbitrator. If the parties are unable to agree upon an arbitrator, the Federal
Mediation and Conciliation Service shall be requested to provide a list of names of
seven (7) potential arbitrators from the northwest region. Each party shall alternatively
strike names and the remaining name shall be the arbitrator.
C Authority of Arbitrator
The decision of the arbitrator shall be final and binding except that no arbitrator shall
have the authority to add to, subtract from, or modify the terms of this agreement.
D. Costs of Arbitration
Each party shall be responsible for the fees and expenses of presenting its own case.
The cost of the arbitrator shall be shared equally between the parties. If one of the
parties wants a transcript of the arbitration proceedings, the party requesting the
transcript shall pay the cost of such transcript. If both parties want a transcript, the
cost of said transcript will be borne equally by both parties.
A. Timeframes
Reference to days regarding time period in this procedure shall refer to working days.
A working day is defined as all week days which are not designated as holidays. In
computing any period of time prescribed herein, the date of the act, event, or default
for which the designated period of time begins to run shall not be included. Time
limits specified herein may be extended by mutual agreement of the parties involved at
that step of the procedures. Any grievance which is not filed or advanced within the
time limits provided for herein shall be invalid and without further recourse.
B. Exclusive Procedure
The grievance/arbitration procedures established herein shall be the sole and exclusive
method for resolving employee grievances.
C. Written Grievances
Grievances presented in writing shall include all of the following:
- a complete statement of the grievance and the facts upon which it is based;
- the contractual provisions which have been allegedly violated and the remedy or
correction requested; and
- The signature of the aggrieved employee and union representative.
Back to Table of Contents