Applicable Law; Arbitration This Agreement shall be interpreted, construed, applied and enforced in accordance with the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, with regard to its “choice of law” rules. Any “Dispute” (as such term is defined in the Management Agreements) under this Agreement shall be resolved through final and binding arbitration conducted in accordance with the procedures and with the effect of, arbitration as provided for in the Management Agreements.
Rules of Arbitration The arbitration procedures initiated under this Contract shall operate under the arbitration rules in effect for ICSID, the Additional Facility or UNCITRAL, as the case may be, at the time of the filing of the request for arbitration, which rules are deemed to be incorporated herein by reference in this Article 26.
Terms of Arbitration The arbitrator chosen in accordance with these provisions will not have the power to alter, amend or otherwise affect the terms of these arbitration provisions or the provisions of this Agreement.
Scope of Arbitration The Executive expressly understands and agrees that claims subject to arbitration under this section include asserted violations of the Employee Retirement and Income Security Act of 1974; the Age Discrimination in Employment Act; the Older Worker’s Benefit Protection Act; the Americans with Disabilities Act; Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (as amended); the Family and Medical Leave Act; any law prohibiting discrimination, harassment or retaliation in employment; any claim of promissory estoppel or detrimental reliance, defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress; or the public policy of any state, or any federal, state or local law.
GRIEVANCE ARBITRATION Notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement, for the purposes of this Article, an Employee has the right to grieve any filling of a vacancy or Assignment in the bargaining unit.
Level Four - Arbitration a. Within ten (10) school days after such written notice of submission to arbitration, the Board and the Association shall attempt to agree upon a mutually acceptable Arbitrator and shall obtain a commitment from said Arbitrator to serve. If the parties are unable to agree upon a mutually acceptable Arbitrator, or obtain such a commitment within the specified period, a request for a list of Arbitrators may be made to the Public Employment Relations Commission by either party. The parties shall then be bound by the rules and procedures of the Public Employment Relations Commission in selection of an Arbitrator.
b. The Arbitrator so selected shall confer with the Committee of the Board and the Aggrieved Person and Association representative, and hold hearings promptly and shall issue his decision not later than twenty (20) days from the date of the close of the hearings, or if oral closings have been waived, then from the date the final statements and proofs on the issues are submitted to him. The Arbitrator's decision shall be in writing and shall set forth his findings of fact, reasoning and conclusions on the issues submitted. The Arbitrator shall be without power or authority to make any decision which requires the commission of an act prohibited by law, or which is violative of the terms of this Agreement. The decision of the Arbitrator shall be submitted to the Board and the Aggrieved Person and Association representative, and shall be final and binding on the parties. The Arbitrator shall be limited to the issues submitted and shall consider nothing else. The Arbitrator can add nothing to, nor subtract anything from the Agreement between the parties.
c. The costs for the services of the Arbitrator, including per diem expenses, if any, and actual and necessary travel, subsistence expenses, and the cost of the hearing room, shall be borne equally by the Board and the Association. Any other expenses incurred shall be paid by the party incurring same.
GRIEVANCE ARBITRATION PROCEDURE 8.01 For purposes of this Agreement, a grievance is defined as a difference arising between the parties relating to the interpretation, application, administration or alleged violation of the Agreement, including any question as to whether a matter is arbitrable.
8.02 In all steps of this Grievance Procedure, the aggrieved nurse, if desired, may be accompanied by or represented by a nurse representative.
8.03 It is the mutual desire of the parties hereto that complaints of the nurses shall be adjusted as quickly as possible, and it is understood that a nurse has no grievance until she has first given the Unit Manager the opportunity of adjusting her complaint. Such complaint shall be discussed with the Unit Manager within ten (10) days after the circumstances giving rise to it have occurred or ought reasonably to have come to the attention of the nurse and failing settlement within five (5) days, it shall then be taken up as a grievance within ten (10) days following the Unit Manager's decision in the following manner and sequence: The nurse may submit a written grievance on the form set out in Appendix "A", signed by her, to the Unit Manager. The grievance shall identify the nature of the grievance and the remedy sought and should identify the provisions of the Agreement which are alleged to be violated. The Unit Manager will deliver her decision in writing within five (5) days of the submission of the grievance. Failing settlement, then: Within five (5) days following the decision in Step No. 1, the nurse may submit the written grievance to the Director of Resident Care who will deliver her decision, in writing, within five (5) days from the date on which the written grievance was presented to her. The parties may, if they so desire, meet to discuss the grievance at a time and place suitable to both parties. Failing settlement, then: Within ten (10) days of receiving the decision under Step 2, the grievance, in writing, may be referred to the Chief Executive Officer who shall call a meeting of the Grievance Committee within five (5) days of receipt of same. Within five (5) days following the meeting, the Chief Executive Officer shall reply, in writing, to the nurse and the Chairperson of the Grievance Committee. If the decision is unsatisfactory to the nurse, it may be referred to arbitration within fifteen (15) days and the Chief Executive Officer so notified, in writing.
Arbitration Board Where the parties agree to a Board of Arbitration, the party referring the grievance to arbitration shall also provide the name of that party’s nominee to the Board of Arbitration. Within ten (10) days thereafter, the other party shall answer by registered mail, indicating the name and address of its nominee to the Board of Arbitration. The selection of the Chair shall be in accordance with the list of arbitrators above.
Step Four - Arbitration 1. With respect to all non-disciplinary grievances and disciplinary cases involving the discharge, suspension of three (3) days or more, or the reduction in rank, the OPBA may make a written request that the decision of the underlying grievance be submitted to binding arbitration pursuant to Step Four, hereunder. A written request for appellate arbitration must be submitted to the other party within fourteen (14) calendar days following such party’s receipt of the written decision at Step 3. In the event the decision at Step 3 is not referred to arbitration within the time limits prescribed, the decision of the Trustees or Designee shall be final and binding upon the OPBA, the member and the Township.
2. Upon receipt of a request for appellate arbitration, the Township and the OPBA shall, within fourteen (14) calendar days following the request for arbitration, jointly agree to an arbitrator or request a list of seven (7) impartial arbitrators from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS). Upon receipt of the list of seven (7) arbitrators, the parties shall meet to select an arbitrator within fourteen (14) calendar days from the date the list is received. The parties shall use the alternate strike method from the list of seven (7) arbitrators submitted to the parties by the FMCS. The party requesting the arbitration shall be the first (1st) to strike a name and alternate in this manner until one (1) name remains on the list. The remaining name shall be designated as the arbitrator to hear the dispute in question. Either party shall have the right to elect to reject the list in its entirety and to request the submission of a new seven (7) member panel, which election may only be exercised once. All procedures relative to the hearing shall be in accordance with the rules and regulations of the FMCS. The arbitrator shall hold the appellate arbitration promptly and issue a decision within a reasonable time thereafter.
3. The arbitrator shall determine the grievance in accordance with the terms of the Agreement in effect on the date of the incident giving rise to the grievance.
4. The arbitrator shall not have the authority to add to, subtract from, modify, change or alter any provision of this Agreement. The arbitrator shall be confined solely to the issues submitted for arbitration. The arbitrator shall not establish any new or different wage rates not negotiated as part of this Agreement. In cases of discharge, suspension or reduction in rank, the arbitrator shall have the authority to order modification of said discipline for the offense charged. In the event of a monetary award, the arbitrator shall limit any retroactive settlement to no earlier time than forty-five (45) calendar days prior to the date the grievance was presented to the Township in Step One of the Grievance Procedure.
5. The question of arbitrability of a grievance may be raised by either party before the arbitration hearing of the grievance, on the grounds that the matter is non- arbitrable or beyond the arbitrator’s jurisdiction. The first question to be placed before the arbitrator will be whether or not the alleged grievance is arbitrable. If the arbitrator determines the grievance is not arbitrable, the arbitrator shall render no decision on the merits.
6. The decision of the arbitrator shall be final and binding upon the OPBA, the member and the Township. Any cost involved in obtaining the list of arbitrators shall be equally divided between the Township and the OPBA. All costs directly related to the services of the arbitrator shall be paid by the losing party. Expenses, if any, of the witnesses shall be borne by the party calling the witness except that member witnesses on duty time shall not lose any wages due from the Township. The fees of the court reporter shall be paid by the party asking for one. The fees of the court reporter shall be split equally if both parties desire a court reporter’s recording, or request a copy of any transcript. The Township shall not incur any overtime expense as a result of this Step.
Arbitration Appeal A. If an employee grievance is not resolved at Step 2, the aggrieved employee or the PBA may, within fifteen (15) calendar days after receipt of the Step 2 response, submit a request for arbitration to the Labor Relations Office.
B. In non-disciplinary grievances, either the PBA or the Employer may request to take the issue or grievance directly to arbitration by submitting the request for arbitration to the Labor Relations Office.
C. If the parties fail to mutually agree upon an arbitrator within five (5) calendar days after the date of receipt of the arbitration request, a list of seven (7) qualified neutrals shall be requested and paid for by the moving party from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS). Within fifteen (15) calendar days after receipt of the list, the parties shall meet and alternately strike names on the list, and the remaining name shall be the arbitrator. A coin shall be tossed to determine who shall strike first. Each party has the right to reject one list. The party rejecting the list shall be responsible for paying for and obtaining the next list and the above described procedures will be followed for selection from the list. If the selected arbitrator is not available for a hearing within ninety (90) days of the date the arbitrator was selected, another list may be requested by the Labor Relations Office, which will pay the fee for that particular list. If the grievant is not represented by the Union, the list of arbitrators shall be requested from the American Arbitration Association with the moving party paying whatever fees may be charged. Once a list has been obtained, the procedures detailed above shall be used for selecting an arbitrator.
D. The hearing on the grievance shall be informal and the rules of evidence shall not apply; however, to assure an orderly hearing, the rules of judicial procedure should be followed as closely as possible.
