1. Labor Relations and Collective Bargaining Seventh Edition © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved www.prenhall.com/carrell CHAPTER 10 Grievance and Disciplinary Procedures PART IV: The Labor Relations Process in Action Michael R. Carrell & Christina Heavrin

2. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -2 Chapter Outline  Sources of Employee Grievances  Steps in a Grievance Procedure  Functions of Grievance Procedures  Employee Misconduct  Disciplinary Procedures  Nonunion Grievance Procedures  Grievance Mediation  Public Sector Grievance Issues

3. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -3 Labor News  GRIEVANCES INCREASE 44% IN NEW YORK HOTELS  In 2005 the NY Hotel Association (149 hotels) reported 597 grievances during the previous year  Why?: increased workloads, according to the New York Hotel Trades Council president  Key issue: expanded duties-- cleaning coffee pots & triple-sheeting beds in 14 rooms per day  NY desk clerks and room attendants are among the highest paid in the industry: $20/hr  Union has over 1,000 unemployed members

4. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -4 Introduction  Grievance  Any perceived violation of a contract provision  Not just any “gripe”  Grievance procedure: “Core of a continuous CB process”  A specified series of four or five procedural steps that aggrieved employees, unions, and management representatives must follow when a complaint arises  Mechanism for administering the collective bargaining agreement  Most grievance procedures entail four or five steps  Employer’s refusal to process a grievance may be a violation of the NLRA

5. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -5 Sources of Employee Grievances  Clarifying contract provisions under changing conditions  Unforeseen circumstances may change some operations  Disagreement may arise on the contract provisions relevant to the new operation  Support for future negotiations  Union members may be encouraged to file grievances on specific matters that may be used as evidence for the need to change the contract

6. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -6  Rectifying a contract violation  Contract cannot address all possible circumstances  Contract can specify how debatable issues should be resolved  Most common source of grievance is the union’s honest belief that management has violated a provision of the existing contract Sources of Employee Grievances (cont.)

7. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -7 Sources of Employee Grievances (cont.)  Show of power  Union officials may need to remind members that they are representing employee interests  Filing a grievance acts as a safety valve to employees who might otherwise express their normal anxiety and frustration in more harmful ways  Increased pay  Many grievances stem from employees’ beliefs that they are entitled to additional pay  Management, on the other hand, believes that additional pay is not required

8. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -8 Steps in a Grievance Procedure Step 1 Employee, Steward, Supervisor Informal Resolution Formal Resolution Formal Resolution What happened? When did it happen? Who was involved? Where did it happen? Why is complaint a grievance? Step 2 Written Grievance Step 5 Final and Binding Arbitration Before Neutral Arbitrator Step 4 Union Grievance Committee, Director of Personnel Step 3 Steward, Department Head

9. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -9 Functions of Grievance Procedures  Conflict management resolution  Without grievance procedures, parties would rely on harmful tests of economic strength to resolve disputes involving contract interpretation  Agreement clarification  All contracts contain some unintentional ambiguity  Grievance procedure used to interpret contract in specific instances  Communication  Offers channel to express problems and perceptions  Discuss perceived inequities in the workplace

10. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -10  Due process  Most grievances provide arbitration by neutral, third-party intervention as a final step  Strength enhancement  Representation in grievance cases develops members’ loyalty to their union Functions of Grievance Procedures (cont.)

11. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -11 Employee Misconduct  A broad spectrum of offenses  Serious offenses - warrant immediate discharge under normal circumstances without the necessity of prior warnings or attempts at corrective action  Minor offenses - utilize corrective action  Do not discharge after first offense, provide multiple levels  Specify escalating penalties for additional offenses

12. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -12  Arbitrators decide employee misconduct cases on the basis of:  Management’s consistent enforcement of the pertinent rules  Management’s compliance with the contract’s disciplinary procedures  The employee’s work history  An employee’s length of service with the company Employee Misconduct (cont.)

13. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -13 Employee Misconduct (cont) Horseplay Most Common Examples Sleeping or loafing on the job Gambling Garnishment Off-duty misconduct Damaging Property Dress / Grooming & Discourtesy Dishonesty Fighting/ Violence Moonlighting

14. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -14 Employer Misconduct (cont.)  Minor offenses  Penalty for minor offenses determined by how often it has occurred  Progressive discipline for minor offenses  First offense - oral warning  Second offense - written warning  Third offense - second written warning and suspension without pay  Fourth offense - termination  Incident removed from the employee’s record if it is not repeated for a certain period of time

15. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -15 Employee Misconduct (cont.)  Serious (Major) offenses:  Certain actions can lead to immediate discharge for the first offense:  Discharge must be for “just cause”  Serious offenses are usually identified in the contract  “workplace equivalent of capital punishment”  Arbitrators expect both parties to carefully adhere to the letter and spirit of the contract.

16. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -16 Disciplinary Procedures  Every company at some time must administer corrective discipline  Both labor and management should support fair and effective disciplinary policies  Virtually all collective bargaining agreements outline disciplinary procedures  Management views the right and ability to discipline its employees effectively as the heart of maintaining a productive workforce  Protection from biased or arbitrary discipline has been a prime motive of union organizing campaigns

17. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -17 Consider employee’s past record Disciplinary Procedures (cont.) Recommended disciplinary policies Explain company rules Discipline without discharge Get the facts Give adequate warning Ascertain motive Act timely

18. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -18  Face-to-face counseling by supervisor is of critical importance  Should provide the worker with feedback  State the problem  State the preferred action  State future expectations  Describe disciplinary action  Labor-Management Relations Act  Provides restrictions on employee discipline  Prohibits discipline for union-related activity  Prohibits discipline against stewards for giving assistance in the filing of a grievance Disciplinary Procedures (cont.)

19. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -19

20. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -20 Grievance Mediation  A voluntary last step before arbitration  Offers the opportunity for a neutral, third party to assist the parties to reach their own settlement  It is not a substitute for the process  Advantages  Faster resolution of issues compared to arbitration  Both parties may present their case to mediator  Enables both parties to reevaluate their cases before proceeding to arbitration  Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service provides the service without charge

21. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -21 Grievance Mediation (cont.)  2005 study of 3,387 cases over 24 years supports the use of grievance mediation in comparison to arbitration: 1. Cost savings. The average cost of mediation was $672 compared to $3,202 for arbitration 2. Time savings. The average time to mediate a case was 43.5 days – compared to 473 days to arbitrate 3. Satisfaction with process. The participants who were “highly satisfied” with mediation included: 89% management, 68% union, and 47% grievants 4. Increased ability to resolve grievances. Participants (83%) indicated they were better able to resolve future grievances because they learned how to communicate better

22. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -22  Public- and private-sector grievances processed in the same way  At the federal, state, and local levels, grievance arbitration procedures are very similar to the private sector  Grievance arbitration has proved to be a more useful means of contract enforcement than strikes  Expense of grievance arbitration is a concern  Relationship between the parties determines the amount of disagreement regarding contract interpretation Public Sector Grievance Issues

23. © 2007 Prentice Hall Inc. All rights reserved 10 -23  Discipline and dismissal  Government employees afforded constitutional protection  Disciplining or dismissing a government employee is a form of state action  Constitutionally protected acts include  Privilege against self-incrimination  Freedom of association  Right to participate in partisan politics  Freedom of expression Public sector Grievance Issues (cont.)