NEGOTIATIONS PROCEDURES A. The parties agreed to implement a Collaborative Bargaining Process beginning with the 1998- 99 fiscal year within the authority of Chapter 447 of the Florida Statutes and any appropriate rules and procedures. Salary and fringe benefits shall be automatically reopened each year, as well as any provisions imposed by the Board. In compliance with requirements that tentative agreement items must be formally ratified, the parties agree to establish the following protocol:
1. Formal ratification votes on tentative agreement(s) by the parties shall be held as needed.
2. Interim decisions to implement agreements before formal ratification shall be confirmed in writing in the form of a Memorandum of Understanding.
3. Issues may be raised for consideration through an appropriate process at any time during the length of this ratified agreement.
B. If negotiations reach impasse, the procedures as set forth in the Florida Statutes and/or the rules of the Public Employees Relations Commission shall be followed. At the request of either party, a mediator shall be appointed.
C. Neither party shall have any control over the selection of the bargaining representatives of the other party, and the parties mutually pledge that their representatives will be empowered to reach tentative agreement on items being negotiated. Should either party utilize the services of outside consultants to assist in negotiations, the party using the consultants shall pay for any cost incurred for such services.
D. This Contract may not be modified in whole or in part except by mutual written agreement.
E. If any provision or application of this Contract is held to be contrary to law, then such provision or application shall not be deemed valid and subsisting except to the extent permitted by law, but all other provisions or applications shall continue in full force and effect. The parties shall either immediately meet to reopen negotiations on that provision or application or mutually agree to deal with the matter in subsequent negotiations.
F. The agreements in this Contract shall supersede any rules, regulations, or practices of the Board which are contrary to or inconsistent with the terms recorded herein.
G. There shall be two official signed copies of the final ratified Contract, one to be retained by each of the parties. The Board agrees to print one thousand five hundred (1,500) copies of the current Contract for distribution to new hires. A link will be provided to all employees during pre-planning each school year. The Association will be provided 500 copies of the full contract each year.
H. If bargaining is mutually scheduled during the teacher duty day, up to eleven members of the Association’s bargaining team shall be granted release time for travel, caucusing, and attendance at bargaining sessions. The parties shall mutually agree on parameters to release from duty Association team members following bargaining sessions which extend late.
I. Tentative agreements shall be reduced to writing and submitted for ratification, within an agreed upon time, to the employees and to the Board. Failure to ratify tentative agreements shall make such tentative agreements null and void.
1. The parties may agree to submit packages of tentative agreements for ratification to the employees and the Board at any time.
2. If impasse is declared, the parties shall meet to review any pending tentative agreements unrelated to the impasse and to consider their submission for ratification as outlined in Section 1. above, prior to a special master hearing and prior to a public hearing.
J. During the term of this Contract the Association and the Board recognize that events may arise which require a mutual interpretation or modification of this Contract that does not constitute a substantive change in employees’ salaries or benefits. Under these circumstances, the parties are authorized to enter into a settlement agreement or memorandum of understanding expressing these interpretations or modifications. If such are entered into during the term of this Contract, they will remain in effect until expiration of the Contract, until superseded by the Contract, or until mutually withdrawn by the parties.
K. Operating Procedures and Guidelines:
1. The Collaborative Bargaining Leadership Team (CBLT) shall be composed of equal numbers of CTA members and District personnel.
2. The CBLT mutually agrees to coordinate and participate in appropriate training opportunities designed to support the process and/or build skills essential to the success of the process. The CBLT may utilize the services of consultants to assist in the negotiations. Any cost incurred shall be shared equally by the parties.
3. Define consensus as a status in which all members can support the decision and use consensus as the preferred decision making strategy in all decisions.
4. Operate as an open forum to identify, explore and resolve issues of importance to CTA and the District using District personnel as resources. The CBLT will solicit and value input from personnel affected by the outcome of the process.
5. All monies, except for School Recognition Dollars allocated by the Legislature as “bonus” and/or “incentive money” for teachers, shall be subject to discussion by the Collaborative Bargaining Leadership Team before distribution.
6. The CBLT will establish committees and will receive, review and make final decisions on recommendations from appropriate committees. All decisions are to be supported by data from those committees. All committee meetings will be accurately recorded.
7. Communicate with employees through a variety of mediums.
8. There will be a notice to the CBLT participants before either party communicates any specific issues generated or discussed during the CBLT process unless it is mutually agreed to amend this timeline.
L. Provisions to submit issues to the CBLT
1. Employees shall submit issues to the CBLT using the Issues for Submission form found on the CBLT websites: xxxxx://xxx.xxxx.xxx/es/legislative/laborrelations/Pages/default.aspx and xxx.xxxxxxxxx.xxx.
2. Forms may be found at individual work locations or the Association office.
3. The CBLT shall determine the appropriate action to be taken and notify the submitting party of such action.
M. Committees of the CBLT
1. Committees shall be composed of equal numbers of CTA members and District personnel.
2. Committees will receive and undertake activities to execute the specific charge from the CBLT. Each party shall select a member that will act as a co-chair for each committee.
3. Committees shall welcome employees who might be affected by the issue to attend and provide information as a resource. Committees may invite outside resources as necessary.
4. Committees shall identify options supported by data to be recommended to the CBLT.
5. Committees shall keep accurate records of all committee meetings.
6. Committees and Task Forces
a. Standing Committees The Collaborative Bargaining Leadership Team has established standing committees to field issues and concerns from their stakeholders. The committees meet on a regular basis to discuss issues and to collect data to support their recommendations. Each committee presents periodic reports and recommendations to the Collaborative Bargaining Leadership Team. The committees are as follows:
1.) Finance and Compensation 2.) Assessment
Procurement procedures 11.1 The Recipient must secure the best value for money and shall act in a fair, open and non-discriminatory manner in all purchases of goods and services.
AUDIT REVIEW PROCEDURES Any dispute concerning a question of fact arising under an interim or post audit of this AGREEMENT that is not disposed of by agreement, shall be reviewed by ALAMEDA CTC’s Deputy Executive Director of Finance and Administration. Not later than thirty (30) calendar days after issuance of the final audit report, CONSULTANT may request a review by ALAMEDA CTC’s Deputy Executive Director of Finance and Administration of unresolved audit issues. The request for review will be submitted in writing. Neither the pendency of a dispute nor its consideration by ALAMEDA CTC will excuse CONSULTANT from full and timely performance, in accordance with the terms of this AGREEMENT. CONSULTANT and subconsultants’ contracts, including cost proposals and ICRs, may be subject to audits or reviews such as, but not limited to, an AGREEMENT Audit, an Incurred Cost Audit, an ICR Audit, or a certified public accountant (“CPA”) ICR Audit Workpaper Review. If selected for audit or review, the AGREEMENT, cost proposal and ICR and related workpapers, if applicable, will be reviewed to verify compliance with 48 CFR, Chapter 1, Part 31 and other related laws and regulations. In the instances of a CPA ICR Audit Workpaper Review it is CONSULTANT’s responsibility to ensure federal, state, or local government officials are allowed full access to the CPA’s workpapers including making copies as necessary. The AGREEMENT, cost proposal, and ICR shall be adjusted by CONSULTANT and approved by ALAMEDA CTC to conform to the audit or review recommendations. CONSULTANT agrees that individual terms of costs identified in the audit report shall be incorporated into the contract by this reference if directed by ALAMEDA CTC at its sole discretion. Refusal by CONSULTANT to incorporate audit or review recommendations, or to ensure that the federal, state, or local governments have access to CPA workpapers, will be considered a breach of contract terms and cause for termination of the AGREEMENT and disallowance of prior reimbursed costs.
GRIEVANCE AND ARBITRATION PROCEDURES A. A grievance is a dispute, claim, or complaint arising under this Agreement, filed by either an authorized representative of or an employee in the Bargaining Unit, or the County, involving the interpretation or application of this Agreement. All discipline shall be for just cause.
B. Grievances will be processed in the following manner and strictly in accordance with the following stated time limits:
Step 1. The aggrieved employee shall be accorded fifteen (15) working days from the occurrence of the action or event or when the employee has knowledge or should have had knowledge of the action or the event giving rise to the complaint to seek resolution on an informal basis. The Employee must discuss his alleged grievance with the Airport Fire Chief and the Fire Rescue Division Director. If informal resolution is not accomplished, the employee, if a Union member, must present the proposed grievance in writing to a Union officer on or before the fifteenth (15th) working day for consideration by the Union Grievance committee. If, in the Committee's opinion, no reasonable grievance exists, no further action may be taken.
Step 2. If the Committee wishes to pursue the member's complaint, a written grievance shall be presented to the Director of the Fire Rescue Division or his designee within twenty (20) working days from the occurrence of the action or event giving rise to the grievance or from the date on which the employee reasonably should have had knowledge of that occurrence. A written grievance must be presented on a grievance form provided by the County in Appendix A. Upon receipt of a formal grievance or a class action submitted by the Union, the Fire Rescue Division Director or his designee shall investigate the facts and conduct a meeting within five (5) working days with the aggrieved employee and any other persons possessing knowledge considered critical by the Director. The aggrieved employee may be accompanied at this meeting by a local Union representative. The Fire Rescue Division Director or his designee shall notify the grievant of his decision no later than five (5) working days following the date of the meeting.
Step 3. If the grievance is not resolved at the second step, the aggrieved employee shall present the written grievance within five (5) working days of the Step 2 decision to the Department Head. The Department Head or his designee shall investigate the facts and may conduct a hearing within five
NEGOTIATIONS PROCEDURE A. Upon the request of Local 149 or the Board, not earlier than ninety (90) calendar days prior to the expiration of this Agreement, the parties may open negotiations for a successor contract. The first meeting will be held within fifteen (15) calendar days of receipt of the request unless the parties mutually agree to a later date.
B. The Board and the Union shall be represented at negotiation meetings by a team of not more than six (6) members each.
C. The Board and the Union negotiating teams shall exchange items for negotiations at the first negotiating session. All contract proposals shall be presented in writing by both parties. No issue shall be introduced by either party following the first session unless mutually agreed by both negotiating teams.
D. Neither team shall release information to the public media without mutual agreement of the other team until such time as impasse is declared by either side.
E. When tentative agreement is reached covering the matters of negotiation, it shall be reduced to writing, reproduced at Board expense for the Local 149 membership to ratify or reject. When approved by Local 149 membership, it shall be presented to the Board for its approval or rejection.
F. In the event agreement is not reached within thirty (30) calendar days after the first actual negotiating session, either party may request that Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service be notified and requested to furnish the services of a mediator for the purpose of assisting the parties in reaching agreement. The request for a mediator shall be jointly filed. This procedure is intended to serve as an alternate dispute resolution procedure to those set forth in Chapter 4117 of the Ohio Revised Code.
G. The procedures set forth above may be modified prior to the start of negotiations by joint agreement of the parties. Should that occur, the bargaining shall be governed by the ground rules agreed to modifying these procedures.
New Procedures New procedures as to who shall provide certain of these services in Section 1 may be established in writing from time to time by agreement between the Fund and the Transfer Agent. The Transfer Agent may at times perform only a portion of these services and the Fund or its agent may perform these services on the Fund's behalf;
Claims Procedures Each Party entitled to be indemnified by the other Party (an “Indemnified Party”) pursuant to Section 8.1 or 8.2 hereof shall give notice to the other Party (an “Indemnifying Party”) promptly after such Indemnified Party has actual knowledge of any threatened or asserted claim as to which indemnity may be sought, and shall permit the Indemnifying Party to assume the defense of any such claim or any litigation resulting therefrom; provided:
(a) That counsel for the Indemnifying Party, who shall conduct the defense of such claim or any litigation resulting therefrom, shall be approved by the Indemnified Party (whose approval shall not unreasonably be withheld) and the Indemnified Party may participate in such defense at such party’s expense (unless (i) the employment of counsel by such Indemnified Party has been authorized by the Indemnifying Party; or (ii) the Indemnified Party shall have reasonably concluded that there may be a conflict of interest between the Indemnifying Party and the Indemnified Party in the defense of such action, in each of which cases the Indemnifying Party shall pay the reasonable fees and expenses of one law firm serving as counsel for the Indemnified Party, which law firm shall be subject to approval, not to be unreasonably withheld, by the Indemnifying Party); and
(b) The failure of any Indemnified Party to give notice as provided herein shall not relieve the Indemnifying Party of its obligations under this Agreement to the extent that the failure to give notice did not result in harm to the Indemnifying Party.
(c) No Indemnifying Party, in the defense of any such claim or litigation, shall, except with the approval of each Indemnified Party which approval shall not be unreasonably withheld, consent to entry of any judgment or enter into any settlement which (i) would result in injunctive or other relief being imposed against the Indemnified Party; or (ii) does not include as an unconditional term thereof the giving by the claimant or plaintiff to such Indemnified Party of a release from all liability in respect to such claim or litigation.
(d) Each Indemnified Party shall furnish such information regarding itself or the claim in question as an Indemnifying Party may reasonably request in writing and shall be reasonably required in connection with the defense of such claim and litigation resulting therefrom.
NEGOTIATION PROCEDURES A. At least sixty (60) days prior to the expiration of this Agreement, the parties will begin negotiations for a new Agreement covering wages, hours, terms and conditions of employment of employees covered by this Agreement.
B. In any negotiations described in this article, neither party shall have control over the selection of the negotiating representatives of the other party and each party may select its representatives from within or outside the school district. It is recognized that no final Agreement between the parties may be executed without ratification by the Board and the Association. The parties mutually pledge that representatives selected by each shall be clothed with necessary power and authority to make proposals and concessions in the course of negotiations, subject only to such ultimate ratification.
C. If the parties fail to reach an agreement in any such negotiations, either party may invoke the procedures established under Public Act 379 as amended.
D. Members of the Association’s negotiating team and/or consultants thereto, who are employees of the Employer, shall be released from their normal duties without loss of salary when meetings of the two negotiating teams are scheduled during their normal working hours.
E. The parties hereby agree that their Teams shall meet at least quarterly during the school year to attempt to resolve problems. The topics for these meetings shall be established by the group at the previous quarter’s meeting whenever possible. Topics will remain on the agendas until resolved or until deleted by mutual agreement.
F. Prior to the establishment of any new position in the bargaining unit, the Employer shall notify the Association of such a contemplated action, and meet with the Association to negotiate workload for the position. This provision does not preclude the Employer’s ability to create and post positions. If the timing of the decision to establish the position precludes such a meeting, the Employer shall meet with the Association as soon as possible. The parties may agree that the position should be allowed to operate without a defined workload for some defined period of time to determine what a reasonable workload might be.
G. By mutual consent of both parties any section of this agreement may be reopened.
Project Implementation Manual The Recipient, through the PCU, shall: (i) take all action required to carry out Parts 1.1, 1.3, 1.4, 2, 3.1(b), 3.2, 3.3 and 4 (ii) of the Project in accordance with the provisions and requirements set forth or referred to in the Project Implementation Manual; (ii) submit recommendations to the Association for its consideration for changes and updates of the Project Implementation Manual as they may become necessary or advisable during Project implementation in order to achieve the objective of Parts 1.1, 1.3, 1.4, 2, 3.1(b), 3.2, 3.3 and 4(ii) of the Project; and (iii) not assign, amend, abrogate or waive the Project Implementation Manual or any of its provisions without the Association’s prior agreement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if any of the provisions of the Project Implementation Manual is inconsistent with the provisions of this Agreement, the provisions of this Agreement shall prevail and govern.
PROFESSIONAL GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE A. Any claim by the Association or a teacher that there has been a violation, misinterpretation, or misapplication of the terms of the Agreement or violation of any established policy shall be a grievance and shall be resolved through the procedure set forth herein.
B. In the event that a teacher, or the Association believes there is a basis for a grievance, the teacher or representative of the Association within thirty (30) working days of the time the teacher knew of the circumstances giving rise to the grievance, shall first discuss the alleged grievance with the building principal either personally or accompanied by the Association Representative. The grievance process may begin at the Superintendent’s level when the building principal is not involved with an alleged incident.
C. If, as a result of the informal discussion with the building principal, a grievance still exists, the teacher or representative of the Association may, within ten (10) working days, invoke the formal grievance procedure through the Association on the grievance report form, signed by the grievant and a representative of the Association. Said form shall be available from the Association Representative in each building. A copy of the grievance form shall be delivered to the building principal, it may be filed with the Superintendent or a representative designated by him.
D. Within five (5) working days of receipt of the grievance the principal shall meet with the Association in an effort to resolve the grievance. The principal shall indicate his/her disposition of the grievance in writing within five (5) working days of such meeting and shall furnish a copy thereof to the Association. If the Association desires to proceed to the next step, it shall do so within fifteen (15) calendar days of the principal’s disposition.
E. If the Association is not satisfied with the disposition of the grievance, or if no disposition has been made within five (5) working days of such meeting (or ten [10] working days from the date of filing, whichever shall be later) the grievance shall be transmitted to the Superintendent. Within seven (7) working days the Superintendent or his/her designee, shall meet with the Association concerning the grievance and shall indicate his/her disposition of the grievance in writing within five (5) working days of such meeting, and shall furnish a copy thereof to the Association.
F. If the Association is not satisfied with the disposition of the superintendent, or if no disposition has been received within five (5) working days of such meeting the Association may proceed to a Board Level Hearing. This grievance hearing shall be heard in closed session, so long as it does not violate the open meetings act. If the grievance is not settled at the preceding step, it may be submitted to binding arbitration. Within fifteen (15) working days of the receipt of the Superintendent’s answer, the party choosing to arbitrate must give written notice to the other party, setting forth specifically the nature of the dispute to be arbitrated. The charging party shall file a Demand for Arbitration with the American Arbitration Association within fifteen (15) days from the notification date that arbitration will be pursued. The arbitrator shall be selected by the American Arbitration Association in accordance with its rules, which shall likewise govern the arbitration proceedings.
G. The arbitrator shall have no power to rule on any of the following:
1. The termination of services of or failure to re-employ any probationary teacher.
2. Any claim or complaint for which there is another remedial procedure or forum established by law or by regulation having the force of law, including any matter subject to the procedures specified in the Teacher’s Tenure Act (Act IV Public Acts, Extra Session of 1937 of Michigan, as amended).
3. Any matter involving the content of a teacher evaluation.
H. The Board and the Association shall not be permitted to assert in such arbitration proceedings any ground or to rely on any evidence not previously disclosed to the other party. The arbitrator shall have no power to alter, add to, or subtract from the terms of this Agreement. Both parties agree to be bound by the decision of the arbitrator and agree that judgment thereon may be entered in any court of competent jurisdiction.
I. The fees and expense of the arbitrator shall be shared equally by both parties.
J. The time limits provided in this Article shall be strictly observed but may be extended by written agreement of the parties. In the event a grievance is filed after May 15 of any year and strict adherence to the time limits may result in hardship to any party, the Board shall use its best efforts to process such grievance prior to the end of the school term or as soon thereafter as possible.
