ARTICLE 9

GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE

Grievance - The term "grievance" as used in this Article refers to a written allegation by an employee that there has been a violation, misapplication, or misinterpretation of a specific term(s) of this Agreement.

9.2

Grievant - The term "grievant as used in this Article refers to a:


a. permanent employee(s);


b. probationary employee(s);


c. apprentice employee;


d. temporary employee(s) employed at least thirty (30) consecutive days immediately prior to the event giving rise to the grievance; and


e. limited hourly employee(s) beginning thirty (30) days after appointment who alleges in a grievance that he/she has been directly wronged by the alleged violation, misapplication, or misinterpretation of the specific term of this Agreement



The term "grievant" as used in this Article may refer to the Union when alleging a violation of union rights as provided for in this Agreement.

9.3

Immediate Supervisor - The term "immediate supervisor" as used in this Article refers to the appropriate non-bargaining unit supervisory or management person to whom the employee is accountable.

9.4

Representative - The term "representative" as used in this Article shall be an employee or representative of the Union who at the grievant's request may be present at Levels I through IV. Representation of the employee at Level V shall be by a Union Representative only.

9.5

Respond and File - The terms "respond" and "file" as used in this Agreement refer to personal delivery or deposit in the U. S. mail or transmittal by facsimile or electronic mail.


a. If mail delivery is used, it shall be by certified, return receipt requested mail and the date mailed shall establish the date of response or filing. If personal delivery is used, the calendar date of delivery shall establish the date of response or filing.


b. If facsimile transmittal is used either to file or respond to a grievance, the facsimile transmittal cover letter must be returned and shall include the signature of the receiving party acknowledging receipt as well as the date of receipt. A response or filing shall not be considered accomplished in the absence of such date and signature on the cover letter.


c. If electronic mail is used, the receiving party must respond acknowledging receipt and date of receipt of the electronic mail transmission.


d. A copy of all responses shall be concurrently served on the grievant’s representative. If the grievant has not provided a facsimile number, the grievant may be served by U.S. mail.

Level I - Informal Review

9.6

a. Before filing a formal written grievance, the employee shall attempt to resolve the problem by an informal conference with the immediate supervisor no later than thirty (30) days after the event giving rise to the problem or no later than thirty (30) days after the employee knew or should have known of the event giving rise to the complaint.


b. The immediate supervisor shall provide an answer to the employee no later than fifteen (15) days after the Level I meeting.


c. A resolution of the problem at the informal level shall not be precedent setting.

Level II - Formal

9.7

a. If the problem is not resolved through Level I informal discussions, the employee may file a Level II grievance with the Director of Plant Operations or the appropriate administrator no later than thirty (30) days after receipt of the response of the immediate supervisor at Level I. The grievant shall state clearly and concisely on a grievance form provided by the CSU:


1. the specific terms(s) of the Agreement alleged to have been violated;


2. a description of the grounds of the grievance including names, dates, places, and times necessary for an understanding of the facts of the grievance;


3. the remedy sought;


4. the name, classification, and signature of all grievants (if there is more than one grievant at least one shall sign the grievance at Level II with the signatures of all grievants submitted by Level III);


5. the name and address of the campus representative, if any; and


6. the date of submission.

b. Provided the grievance form is complete, containing the information specified in 9.7 a. 1.-6., the Director of Plant Operations or the appropriate administrator shall hold a meeting with the grievant at a mutually acceptable time and location within fifteen (15) days of receipt of the grievance. The Director of Plant Operations or the appropriate administrator shall respond in writing to the grievant within fifteen (15) days of the Level II meeting.


c. All Formal grievances received by the campus facilities shall be given a grievance number by the Office of the Chancellor and subsequent management communications will reflect that number.


d. The Office of the Chancellor will notify SETC by email of Unit 6 grievance numbers when grievances are initially filed. After notification SETC shall indicate this number on all subsequent communications.


e. Every attempt shall be made by both parties on the campus to resolve grievances at Level II, if at all possible.

Level III– Campus President or Designee

9.8

a. Since time is frequently of the essence in rendering a remedy that is meaningful for both the grievant and the CSU, the President and the grievant may mutually agree to forego the Level III meeting based on the CSU Level II response and the grievance shall automatically be elevated to Level IV, Office of the Chancellor.

b. In the event the grievance is not settled at Level II, the grievant may file a Level III with the President no later than fifteen (15) days after the receipt of the Level II response.

c. Should either party elect to have a Level III meeting and response the following procedures and timeframes apply:


1. The grievant shall include in the grievance a written statement indicating the reason that the proposed settlement at Level II was unsatisfactory.


2. The President shall, within fifteen (15) days of the receipt of a Level III appeal, hold a meeting with the grievant at a mutually acceptable time.


3. The President shall respond to the grievant no later than fifteen (15) days after the Level III meeting.

Level IV – Office of the Chancellor

9.9

a. In the event the grievance is not settled at Level II or III, the grievant may file a written request for review with the Office of the Chancellor no later than fifteen (15) days after receipt of the Level II or III response, whichever is applicable. The grievant shall attach a copy of the Level II and Level III (if applicable) responses together with any documents presented at these levels.


b. A designated individual in the Office of the Chancellor and the representative of the grievant shall schedule a conference at the Office of the Chancellor for the purpose of reviewing the matter within fifteen (15) days of the receipt of the Level IV appeal.


1. Conference shall be defined as either an in-person meeting or telephone conference call.

c. In accordance with 9.9 of this Article, SETC and CSU agree to the following internal procedures at the Office of the Chancellor:


1. SETC Level II (or Level III if applicable) appeals to Level IV may be filed by the SETC Chief Campus Steward or by an SETC Officer or Designated Consultant. All Level IV filings shall be submitted to the Office of the Chancellor.


2. The Level II (or Level III if applicable) grievances should include the cover appeal letter, grievance number and as much initial information as to enable the Chancellor’s Office to understand and resolve the grievance filed by SETC.


3. Extensions at Level IV will be in writing, either by e-mail, facsimile, or United States mail in accordance with 9.5 of this Article.


d. After the Level IV meeting and response, in lieu of a Level V Arbitration, upon mutual agreement the parties may agree to schedule a "Med-Arb" hearing as described in provisions 9.17-9.19 below.

Level V – Arbitration

9.10

If the grievance is not resolved at level II or III, whichever is applicable, the Office of the Chancellor shall have up to ninety (90) days to resolve or issue a Level IV response. If the grievance has not been resolved within this period, then the parties may mutually agree to schedule a “Med-Arb” as per provisions 9.9.d. above and 9.17 – 9.19 below or the Union alone may, no later than fifteen (15) days after receipt of the Level IV response, file a request for arbitration by giving notice to that effect by certified mail, return receipt requested, directed to the Office of the Chancellor

9.11

The arbitration procedure shall be conducted in accordance with the rules of the AAA, subject to the provisions below:


a. The parties hereby designate Tom Angelo, Mei Bickner, Howard Block, Doug Collins, Walt Daugherty, John Kagel, Michael Prihar, and Ken Perea as members of the Arbitration Panel under this Agreement. The panel members shall be designated to serve in the order of rotation noted above, provided the panel member reached has an available day within sixty (60) days of request.

9.12

At least five (5) days prior to the scheduled date of arbitration, the parties shall attempt to prepare a submission to arbitration signed by both parties setting forth the issue(s) and specific provision number(s) in dispute. Should the parties fail to agree upon a submission, the arbitrator shall determine the issue(s), provided that such issues are arbitrable under the terms of this Agreement, after the parties' opening statements and prior to the taking of evidence or testimony.

9.13

If an arbitrability question exists, the arbitrator shall determine the arbitrability question prior to hearing the merits of the grievance. When the grievance is found not arbitrable, the grievance shall be denied and the arbitrator shall not hear the merits of the grievance. When the grievance is found arbitrable, the arbitrator shall hear the merits of the grievance. This provision shall not prohibit the parties from mutually agreeing to a second arbitration hearing on the merits of the grievance or from mutually agreeing to select a second arbitrator to hear the merits of the grievance.

9.14

It shall be the function of the arbitrator to rule on the specific grievance. The arbitrator shall be subject to the following limitations:

a. In no event shall the arbitrator have the authority to add to, subtract from, modify, or amend any provision of this Agreement.

b. The arbitrator shall not be authorized to review the merits of an administrative judgment or substitute his judgment therefore.

c. Either party to the Agreement may preemptively challenge one panel member at any time during the term of this Agreement and such panel member shall be removed from the panel and replaced with a mutually acceptable replacement.

d. Any grievance filed into arbitration shall be considered withdrawn by the Union if it has not been scheduled for an arbitration hearing within nine (9) months of the filing to arbitration from Level IV. For grievances filed prior to the effective date of this Agreement, the nine (9) month limitation shall commence upon the effective date of the Agreement.

9.15

A final decision or award of the arbitrator shall be made within thirty (30) calendar days after the close of the hearing. Such decision or award shall be binding upon the Union, the CSU, and the employees affected thereby.

9.16

TThe cost of arbitration, excluding advocate, unilateral withdrawal, postponement, or cancellation fees, shall be born equally by the parties. Expenses for witnesses, however, shall be borne by the party who calls them.

Mediation/Arbitration ("Med/Arb")

9.17

"Med/Arb" is a process under which the mediator begins the hearing by attempting to mediate a settlement. If unable to settle the grievance, the mediator assumes the role of arbitrator and the hearing changes from a mediation to an expedited arbitration process, with no court reporter, no hearing briefs, in which a final and binding decision is rendered on a non-precedent setting basis.

9.18

Grievances may be subject to "Med/Arb" for the purpose of compromising, settling, or resolving a grievance in accordance with the following guidelines:

a. Either party may request "Med/Arb" at any time following the Level IV conference and prior to the grievance being scheduled for arbitration.

b. Both parties must agree to use the "Med/Arb" procedure.

c. Should a settlement not be reached during the mediation portion of the "Med-Arb" hearing, the award of the mediator/arbitrator from the arbitration portion of the "Med-Arb" shall be final and binding on both parties and is not subject to arbitration under Level V of the Grievance Procedure.

d. The parties shall establish a panel of three (3) mediators/arbitrators by mutual agreement, to serve in alphabetical rotation. The panel shall consist of Mei Bickner and Fred Horowitz and may be modified by mutual agreement of the parties.

e. All costs of "Med/Arb" shall be borne equally by both parties.

f. At least forty (40) calendar days prior to the "Med/Arb" hearing, the parties shall conduct a Pre-Hearing Conference to try to reach agreement on an issue statement, stipulations, exhibits, and witnesses.

g. At or after the "Pre-Hearing Conference" but prior to encumbering a cancellation fee, should either party determine it did not wish to participate in a "Med/Arb" hearing, the "Med/Arb" shall be cancelled, a Level IV response issued (if one had not been previously issued under provision 9.10), and the Union may pursue their appeal in accordance with provision 9.10.

9.19

"Med/Arb" hearings shall be conducted in accordance with the following procedure:

a. The parties shall submit to the arbitrator any joint stipulations and exhibits agreed upon. Each side may also submit its own exhibits.

b. The parties shall make opening statements during which they will describe the facts and evidence they intend to submit should the hearing become an arbitration.

c. The mediator/arbitrator will then assist the parties pursue a resolution. If the mediator/arbitrator concurs, witnesses may be called during the mediation phase of the hearing.

d. If the parties are unable to reach agreement, the mediator/arbitrator shall end the mediation phase of the hearing and begin the arbitration phase of the hearing.

e. During the arbitration phase, both sides may call witnesses and enter evidence into the record.

f. Each side is limited to no more than 3 witnesses, unless they mutually agree to additional witnesses.

g. At the conclusion of the hearing the parties shall present oral arguments. Unless the parties mutually agree or the mediator/ arbitrator so requests, the parties will not submit written briefs.

h. The provisions of 9.14 and 9.16 apply to "Med/Arb" hearings.

i. The arbitrator shall issue a decision without any supporting opinion or analysis within 30 calendar days of the "Med-Arb" hearing.

General Provisions

9.20

Wherever a time limit is provided by this Article, the parties may extend the period only by mutual consent.


It is understood that the purpose of the procedure is to resolve grievances quickly and that extensions shall be sought only for good cause.

Extensions as needed by either party should be encouraged if the need exists to: (a) provide the necessary information identified above, and/or to (b) allow time for either party to investigate further and/or to (c) explore resolutions.

9.21

When hearings or meetings are held under this Article on CSU time, unit members who are entitled to attend hearings, or who are called as witnesses by a party, shall be excused for that purpose from other duties without loss or penalty. The parties shall not call witnesses at Levels I through III to give testimony that has already been given at the same hearing or meeting. This shall not preclude the grievant from presenting new documentary and/or testimonial evidence necessary to resolve the grievance.

9.22

No reprisals of any kind shall be taken against any unit member for the filing and processing of any grievance.

9.23

No representative or agent of the exclusive representative may solicit complaints or grievances.

9.24

In cases where it is necessary for the grievant or his/her representative to have access to information for the purpose of investigating a grievance, the grievant or his/her representative shall make a written request for such information to the appropriate administrator a reasonable amount of time before such information is needed. The appropriate administrator shall provide such information to the requesting party within a reasonable amount of time after the request for the information is made.

9.25

A grievance settled prior to arbitration shall be binding only as to that particular grievance and shall not be precedent setting.

9.26

By mutual agreement, the parties may consolidate grievances on similar issues at any level of the grievance procedure.

9.27

The parties shall present at Level II or III (if utilized) all evidence known or which could have been reasonably known and related to the grievance.

9.28

There shall be no modification of issues presented or allegations made after the completion of Level II or III (if utilized) procedures.

9.29

a. By mutual agreement, a grievance may be filed at the step at which the authority to resolve the grievance resides.

b. By mutual agreement, the parties may waive one or two steps of the grievance procedure and expedite the grievance to a higher step of the grievance procedure.

9.30

Prior to filing a grievance, the potential grievant and representative, if any, shall each be provided with one (1) hour release time for grievance preparation and reasonable time for grievance presentation at Level I - Informal Review.

9.31

After the grievance has been filed, a representative and the grievant shall be provided reasonable release time for the purpose of preparation and presentation of the grievance. CSU will not pay for the release time of employees to go to or be at another campus to represent employees in a grievance hearing unless the CSU has requested the employee to participate in the grievance procedure and/or hearing or the employee has been requested by the Chief Steward at another campus to represent that Chief Steward on a grievance where the Chief Steward is the Grievant.


a. It is understood by both CSU and SETC that the amount of release time requested by SETC shall be reasonable based on the issues and number of grievant(s) involved in the grievance. Should there be an issue with SETC’s request for release time the parties shall first attempt to resolve the issue before SETC files a grievance regarding denials.

9.32

The procedures for securing release time for grievance processing shall be:

a. Representatives and potential grievants shall contact the Director of Plant Operations or designee if release time is required to prepare and present a Level I grievance. The Representative or potential grievant shall be required to cite only provision 9.30 as a basis for his/her request.

b. Release time requested pursuant to provision 9.31 shall require the citation of only provision 9.31 as a statement of need.

c. In either case, the Director of Plant Operations or designee shall grant the contractually specified release time after considering the needs of the operation of the University.

d. Requests for release time shall include: (1) who the Representative or potential grievant desires to see; (2) at what time and location; and (3) the estimated duration of the meeting.

9.33

A grievant may withdraw a grievance at any time. The grievant shall not file any subsequent grievance on the same incident.

9.34

If the Employer fails to respond within the designated time limits, the grievance may be appealed to the next step of this grievance procedure. If the grievance is not appealed within the applicable time limits, the grievance shall be considered settled on the basis of the Employer's last answer and shall not be subject to further review.

9.35

The processing of grievances filed and unresolved prior to the effective date of this Agreement shall proceed under the provisions of the grievance procedure as amended by this Agreement.

9.36

Grievance records shall be filed separately from an employee's personnel file and shall be considered confidential.

9.37

An employee may present grievances and have such grievances adjusted without union representation as long as adjustment is not inconsistent with the terms of a written agreement then in effect; and provided that the Employer will not agree to resolution of the grievance until the Union has received a copy of the grievance and the proposed resolution.

9.38

During release time granted for grievance preparation pursuant to provisions 9.30 and 9.31 above, the Union representative and the grievant shall be permitted to use campus telephones provided that the use of such telephones does not interfere with University business nor result in any expense to the University. The CSU has the right to refuse the use of campus telephones if abuses occur.

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