Staff Reduction 11.1 When a reduction within the District is needed, the affected employee(s) and the Association will be notified as to which position(s) will be eliminated or reduced at least fourteen (14) calendar days prior to the reduction.
11.2 When a reduction within the District is needed, the Board will determine which position(s) will be eliminated or reduced. An employee whose position will be eliminated or reduced shall have the right to displace an employee in his/her present job classification or another job classification in accordance with the following:
a. The laid off or reduced employee has greater seniority than the employee to be displaced.
b. The laid off or reduced employee had an equal or greater number of hours in his/her regular schedule than the employee to be displaced.
c. The laid off or reduced employee presently has the necessary qualifications to perform the work.
d. The laid off or reduced employee elects to exercise his/her displacement rights within five (5) working days of notification of his/her layoff or reduction. An employee displaced under this section is also entitled to displacement rights under this section.
11.3 When filling vacancies which occur after a reduction in staff, laid off bargaining unit members who have been released less than two (2) years, shall be recalled in the order of seniority, with the most senior member being recalled first to any position for which he/she is qualified. Effective July 1, 1991, newly hired bargaining unit members shall be subject to recall for two (2) years. If the employee fails to report to work within ten (10) working days from the receipt of the recall notice via certified or registered mail, that person shall be considered a voluntary terminated employee. However, if an employee is recalled to a position of lesser hours, he/she shall have the option to refuse the position and shall not be removed from the recall list as a result of this action.
11.4 An employee may elect to accept layoff rather than exercise his/her bumping rights.
11.5 For the purposes of this agreement, qualified shall be defined as capable of skillfully and efficiently performing the job duties as summarized in the job description in a competent manner with minimal instruction. The District reserves the right to test employees as needed. Qualified includes the following:
a. Any licenses, certification and training necessary to perform the job, and
b. demonstrated skills and merits. The most senior qualified employee shall be selected, excepting that a less senior candidate may be selected if he/she has greatly superior training and skills. The burden of proof of greatly superior training and skills shall be on the Board.
WORKFORCE REDUCTION SECTION 1 Layoffs
(A) When employees are to be laid off as defined in the F.S., the state shall implement such layoff in the following manner:
(1) The competitive area for the bargaining unit shall be statewide unless the Department and PBA agree otherwise.
(2) Layoff shall be by class or occupational level within the Security Services Bargaining Unit.
(3) An employee who has not attained permanent status in his current position may be laid off without applying the provision for retention rights.
(4) No employee with permanent status in his current position shall be laid off while an employee who does not hold permanent status in his current position is serving in that class or level unless the permanent employee does not elect to exercise his retention rights or does not meet the selective competition criteria.
(5) All employees who have permanent status in their current positions shall be ranked on a layoff list for the affected class or level based on the total retention points derived as follows:
(a) Length of service retention points shall be based on one point for each month of continuous service in a Career Service position.
1. An employee who resigns from one Career Service position to accept employment in another Career Service position is not considered to have a break in service.
2. An employee who has been laid off and is reemployed within one year from the date of the layoff shall not be considered to have a break in service.
3. Moving from Career Service to Selected Exempt Service or Senior Management Service and back to Career Service does not constitute a break in service unless the employee’s break in service is more than 31 calendar days. Only time spent in the Career Service is counted in calculating retention points.
(b) Retention points deducted for performance not meeting performance standards or work expectations defined for the position shall be based on the five years immediately prior to the agency’s established cutoff date. Five points shall be deducted for each month an employee has a rating below performance expectations.
(6) The layoff list shall be prepared by totaling retention points. Employees eligible for veterans’ preference pursuant to section 295.07(1)(a) or (b), F.S., shall have 15 percent added to their total retention points, those eligible pursuant to section 295.07(1)(c), (d), or (e), F.S., shall have 10 percent added to their total retention points, and those eligible pursuant to section 295.071(1)(f), or (g), F.S., shall have five percent added to their total retention points.
(7) The employee with the highest total retention points is placed at the top of the list, and the employee with the lowest retention points is placed at the bottom of the list.
(8) The employee at the top of the list shall bump the employee at the bottom of the list. The next highest employee on the list and the remaining employees shall be handled in the same manner until the total number of filled positions in the class to be abolished is complete.
(9) Should two or more employees have the same combined total of retention points, the order of layoff shall be determined by giving preference for retention in the following sequence:
(a) The employee with the longest service in the affected class.
(b) The employee with the longest continuous service in the Career Service.
(c) The employee who is entitled to veterans’ preference pursuant to section 295.07(1), F.S.
(10) An employee who has permanent status in his current position and is to be laid off shall be given at least 14 calendar days’ notice of such layoff or two weeks’ pay, or a combination of days of notice and pay. Any payment will be made at the employee’s current hourly base rate of pay. The notice of layoff shall be in writing and sent to the employee by certified mail, return receipt requested. Within seven calendar days after receiving the notice of layoff, the employee shall have the right to request, in writing, a lateral action, reassignment, or demotion within the competitive area in lieu of layoff to a position in a class within the bargaining unit in which the employee held permanent status, or to a position in a class at the level of or below the class in the bargaining unit in which the employee held permanent status.
(11) An employee’s request for lateral action, reassignment, or demotion shall be granted unless it would cause the layoff of another employee who possesses a greater total of retention points.
(12) An employee adversely affected as a result of another employee having a greater number of retention points shall have the same right of lateral action, reassignment or demotion under the same procedure as provided in this section.
(13) If an employee requests a lateral action, reassignment, or demotion in lieu of layoff, the same formula and criteria for establishing retention points for that class shall be used as prescribed in this section.
(B) If there is to be a layoff of employees, the state shall take all reasonable steps to place any adversely affected employees in existing vacancies for which they are qualified.
(C) If work performed by employees in this unit is to be performed by non-state employees, the state agrees to encourage the employing entity to consider any adversely affected unit employees for employment in its organization if the state has been unable to place the employees in other positions within the State Personnel System.
REDUCTION IN STAFF 15.1 Procedure According to provisions of Missouri Statute 168.124, the Board of Education may place on leave of absence as many teachers as necessary because of decrease in enrollment, school district reorganization, or financial conditions. Whenever the Board anticipates a reduction in teaching staff, the superintendent or his/her designee will notify the officials of the Association concerning the anticipated reduction in the teaching staff. A meeting between the Association officials and the superintendent or his/her designee will be scheduled for purposes of discussing the proposed reduction in staff within two weeks (2) following the above notification. Individual teachers will not be contacted prior to the above meeting. In placing teachers on leave, the Board shall be governed by the following provisions:
a. Teachers placed on leave of absence as herein provided shall be considered to be on "unrequested leave of absence."
b. Seniority for the purposes of this reduction shall be defined as continuous full-time, complete years of employment in the school district. Authorized leaves of absence shall not be considered interruptions in service. Seniority date shall be the date of Board approval of the teacher's initial contract with the district. A district-wide seniority list including all areas of certification for each teacher shall be established and kept current. (Definition of official hire date: The most recent uninterrupted continuous full-time employment as a teacher.)
c. No permanent teacher shall be placed on unrequested leave of absence while probationary teachers are retained in positions for which a permanent teacher is certified.
d. Permanent teachers shall be retained on the basis of merit and qualification. The following criteria will be used to determine merit and qualifications for the purpose of reduction in staff.
1. Educational placement on the salary schedule.
2. Areas of permanent certification.
3. Activities beyond the teaching contract.
4. Related teaching experience.
5. Effectiveness in the field or at the grade level. If one or more teachers are determined to have equal merit and qualifications, those teachers shall be ranked in order of seniority as defined in b., with the more senior teacher to be considered more meritorious and qualified.
PERSONNEL REDUCTION 1. When the District deems a reduction in force is necessary, it shall provide notification to the Union no later than notification is provided to the affected employees. Meetings with the Union for discussion of the effects of the proposed reduction will be scheduled upon request. Reductions shall be accomplished in accordance with the following provisions:
A. Requests shall be made for volunteers in the affected classifications within the division. Management reserves the right to reject volunteers based on business needs.
B. Any employee subject to layoff can accept and/or request a voluntary demotion to a lower classification that they are qualified to fill providing a position vacancy exists.
C. Temporary positions within the affected classification, within the division, shall first be eliminated.
D. Probationary employees in the affected classification, within the division, shall be subject to layoff before layoff of regular full-time employees.
E. Part time employees in the affected classification, within the division, shall be subject to layoff before regular full-time employees.
2. The determination regarding a layoff of regular full-time employees shall be based on the following criteria applied to the affected division(s):
A. Seniority within the classification.
B. In the event two (2) or more employees have the same classification seniority, District seniority will be used.
C. In the event two or more employees have the same seniority, in the classification and within the district, active discipline history will be considered. In the event no discipline is documented, the last four digits of the social security number will be used retaining the employee with the highest number.
D. An employee subject to layoff can move back to the most recently held vacant position within the classification series within the division. If the position is held by another employee, the person with the most classification series seniority retains the position.
E. An employee subject to layoff can move back to the most recently held vacant position. If the position is held by another employee, the person with the most District seniority retains the position.
F. An employee subject to layoff that moves into a lower paid position will receive a minimum 5% reduction in pay, not to exceed the top of the lower position pay scale.
3. Employees laid off under this collective bargaining agreement shall receive at least six (6) weeks' notice, payment in lieu of notice, or any combination of notice and payment. A copy of this notice will be provided to the Union.
4. Reduction in Force Appeal Committee
A. Concurrent with the announcement of a reduction in force, an appeals committee will be formed. The Union and the District will each select two (2) representatives who in turn will select a fifth member who shall serve as the chairperson of the committee.
B. Employees subject to reduction in force may, within five (5) working days of receipt of notice, request an appeal in writing to the Union and/or HR Director to review the facts related to their individual concerns related to the process.
C. Within ten (10) working days of receipt of the appeal, the committee shall review, investigate, and receive statements from the appealing employee, the division director, and/or any other relevant persons as determined by the committee. The committee will serve as an advisory committee to the Chief Health Officer and recommend action as they may agree upon. The committee shall submit a statement of findings to the Chief Health Officer within ten (10) working days of the review. The committee shall also state a recommended action upon a majority vote of the committee members.
D. The Chief Health Officer shall review the committee's report and issue a decision that either accepts or rejects the recommendation or, at his/her discretion, directs the implementation of some other action. The decision of the Chief Health Officer is final and binding.
ONA Staff Leave For an employee with at least two (2) years full-time or equivalent service (e.g. 3,000 hours of part-time RN service), upon application in writing by the Union to the Employer, an unpaid leave of absence may be granted to such employee selected for a secondment or a temporary staff position with the Ontario Nurses' Association. Such leave shall not be unreasonably denied or extended beyond twelve (12) months. Notwithstanding Article 11.10, there shall be no loss of service or seniority for an employee during such leave of absence. It is understood that during such leave the employee shall be deemed to be an employee of the Ontario Nurses' Association. The employee agrees to notify the Employer of her or his intention to return to work at least ten (10) weeks prior to the date of such return. The employee shall be reinstated to her or his former position, unless that position has been discontinued, in which case the employee shall be given a comparable job. During such leaves of absence all salary, statutory benefits, pension, vacation and benefits will be kept whole by the Employer and the Union agrees to reimburse the Employer for such salary and Employer contributions to benefits unless the Union decides to take sole responsibility for these employee obligations.
REDUCTION IN FORCE (RIF 13.1 This Section 13 shall apply to all Covered Employees.
13.2 As provided in state law and Board policy, the Board may cancel the employment contracts of Covered Employees when there is a justifiable decrease in the number of covered employee positions as a result of a fiscal exigency or program change as determined by the Board. However, before any meeting of the Board at which the Board will consider a proposed resolution or decision that a fiscal exigency exists or a program change is to be made that may require the cancellation of the employment contract of one or more Covered Employees, the Superintendent shall convene a meeting of the Professional Council established pursuant to Section 7 above to consult regarding the nature and extent of the fiscal exigency or proposed program change, and regarding any plan then contemplated by the administration for reduction of covered employee positions.
13.3 If the Board decides that the number of covered employee positions is to be reduced, normal attrition, retirement, and resignations shall be considered prior to any cancellation of Covered Employee employment contracts. In the event that cancellation of Covered Employee employment contracts is necessary to achieve the reduction required by the Board, the following shall be considered as significant factors in determining which particular employment contracts will be recommended for cancellation:
13.3.1 The needs of the district.
13.3.2 The best interest of the students enrolled in the district.
13.3.3 Education, licensing endorsements and other professional qualifications.
13.3.4 Job performance over the previous three year period as measured using the criteria and standards set by the Board for evaluation of Teachers and Counselors in accordance with applicable state law and state board of education rules governing evaluation of licensed personnel.
13.4 The probationary or non-probationary status of a Covered Employee, and the seniority of a Covered Employee, shall also be considered as additional factors in determining which employment contracts will be recommended for cancellation as a result of the decrease in covered employee positions, except that such additional factors may be considered only after the consideration of the factors set forth in the Paragraph 13.3 above, and only if consideration of such additional factors is in the best interest of the students enrolled in the district. The parties agree that such additional factors shall be applied as follows: (1) as between Covered Employees in the same endorsement area for whom the factors set forth subparagraph 13.3.1 to 13.3.4, above are not determinative as to whose employment contract should be cancelled, the Probationary I Covered Employees should be cancelled first, Probationary II Covered Employees second, and Probationary III Covered Employees third, before the employment contracts of Non-probationary Status Covered Employees are cancelled; and (2) as between Non-probationary Status Covered Employees in the same licensed and endorsement area for whom the factors set forth subparagraph 13.3.1 to 13.3.4, above are not determinative as to whose employment contract should be cancelled, the employment contracts of Non-probationary Status Covered Employees will be cancelled in the inverse order of seniority.
13.5 Covered Employees who have been subject to a RIF shall have the right to be recalled to a covered employee position, for which they are qualified, within the District for one (1) year from the date of RIF. Covered Employees shall be recalled in reverse order of RIF and previously accrued benefits shall be restored.
13.6 Probationary Covered Employees whose contracts will be canceled during, instead of at the end of, a school year; and Non-probationary Status Covered Employees whose contracts will be canceled either during, or at the end of, a school year, shall have a right to a hearing on the propriety of such cancellation in accordance with Board policy and regulations. If such a hearing is desired, the Covered Employee will request it in writing to the Board or Superintendent within ten (10) days after being notified of the proposed contract cancellation. If a hearing is requested, the Board will appoint an impartial hearing officer, who will specify the procedural rules to apply at such hearing. At the hearing, the Covered Employee may be represented by a person of the Covered Employee’s choice.
PROMOTIONS AND STAFF CHANGES 11.01 Job Postings
a) When a vacancy occurs or a new position is created for a regular position which the Employer has decided to fill it shall be posted on all bulletin boards for five (5) working days and filled within forty (40) working days of the posting closing. Positions may be advertised in the media only after the Employer has determined an internal applicant is not the successful applicant. Where the Employer decides not to fill a vacant position, the Employer will provide an explanation to the Union if so requested.
b) The Employer, on a temporary basis, may fill a posted position during the posting and selection period.
c) For temporary positions of up to forty-two (42) days, a posting is not required. Positions of longer than forty-two (42) days (seventy-eight (78) days only in the case of temporary aquatic program positions) shall be posted except where the vacancy is created by the absence of an Employee due to vacation.
d) If a temporary position is made into a regular position, the new regular position shall be posted at least 14 days prior to the end of the temporary position.
(i) A posting shall include the following information: Nature of position, qualifications, skills, required knowledge and education, current shift hours and days, number of hours of work per week, and wage rate.
(ii) Such qualifications may not be established in an arbitrary or discriminatory manner, and shall reflect the contents of the Job Description.
11.02 Role of Seniority in Appointments, Promotions, Demotions and Transfers
a) Both parties recognize the principle of promotion within the service of the Employer in the bargaining unit
(i) For classifications required by their job description to supervise other employees in the bargaining unit listed in XXX#4, appointments, promotions, demotions, and transfers shall be based on the ability, knowledge, qualifications and seniority of the Regular Employees considered. Where the ability, qualifications and knowledge of the applicants are relatively equal, the senior applicant will be the successful candidate.
(ii) For all other classifications, where the ability, qualifications and knowledge are sufficient to perform the functions of the posted position, the senior applicant shall be appointed.
c) If the position is not filled by a Regular Employee in (i) or (ii) above, the ability and qualifications of Casual, Temporary and Seasonal Employees shall be considered, and if relatively equal, the senior applicant as determined in Article 10.05 shall be appointed.
d) If the position is not filled by an Employee in b (i), (ii), or c) above, all other applicants shall be considered.
REDUCTION OF STAFF A. In the event that the Board decides to reduce the number of employees through layoff of employment, or to reduce the number of teachers in a given subject area, field or program, or eliminate or consolidate a position or positions, the Board shall lay off last those teachers with a Michigan Teaching Certificate or appropriate credential having longest service in the District and who are qualified to teach the positions remaining.
1. The phrases "longest service in the District" or "number of years in the system" shall be computed from the last day of hire and shall not be interrupted by leaves of absence approved by the Board or transfer to administrative positions, subject, however, to Paragraph H(4).
2. Qualified teachers are those teachers who meet the minimum requirements under ESEA/NCLB and the Michigan Department of Education.
3. In cases where teachers are equally qualified and have the same number of years in the system, the Board shall have the right to determine who is laid off, provided, however, such action shall not be contrary to the priorities established under the Teachers' Tenure Act or its successor law.
4. The Board shall give twenty-one (21) or more calendar days' notice of such layoff to the Association and to the employees involved.
B. A teacher laid off pursuant to this Article shall not be entitled to pay for fringe benefits while on layoff, it being understood that layoff will terminate individual contracts. A teacher that has taught the full school year and is laid off at the end of the year will continue to be covered by health, vision, and dental insurance for the months of June, July and August as per Article 15(E).
C. The Board shall have no obligation to recall any nontenure teacher laid off pursuant to this Article or to recall any tenured teacher who has been laid off for three (3) or more years.
D. Tenure teachers shall be recalled in the opposite manner as described in Paragraph A for layoff.
E. The Board shall give written notice of recall from layoff by sending a registered or certified letter to said teacher at his/her last known address. It shall be the responsibility of the teacher to notify the Board of any change in address. The teacher's address, as it appears in the Board's records, shall be conclusive when used in connection with layoffs, recall, or any other notice to the teacher. If a teacher fails to provide notice of intent to return within five (5) days from the date of receipt of the written recall document, said teacher shall be considered a voluntary quit or resignation. If a teacher fails to report for work within five (5) days of receipt of notification to report to work, unless an extension is granted in writing by the Board, said teacher shall be considered a voluntary quit and shall thereby completely terminate the individual employment contract and any other employment relationship with the Board.
F. In the event of a necessary reduction in staff, the Board agrees to grant requests for voluntary leaves of absence provided that the teaching position(s) or the leave applicant(s) can be filled by another bargaining unit member. Such leave of absence shall not exceed one (1) school year.
G. The Board shall publish a seniority list and distribute it to all teachers by October 15 of each year.
1. Teachers shall be listed in order, starting with the teacher with the longest service in the bargaining unit.
2. The seniority list shall also list the teacher's longevity credit and certification with majors/minors.
H. Seniority shall accrue from the first day of work as a bargaining unit member.
1. A part-time teacher shall accrue seniority on a prorated basis.
2. A teacher in a job-share position, under the terms of Article 18, shall accrue seniority as if employed full time.
3. A teacher on an approved unpaid leave of absence under terms of this Agreement shall not accrue seniority while on leave, except as provided in this Agreement.
4. Administrators shall not accrue seniority while in administrative positions. If a teacher becomes an administrator and later returns to the bargaining unit, he/she shall be reinstated with the seniority he/she had at the time he/she left the bargaining unit.
I. Seniority shall be lost upon severance of the employment relationship between the teacher and the District.
REDUCTION IN FORCE A. In any reduction in the bargaining unit as a result of budgetary actions or curriculum and/or administrative organization, every effort will be made to transfer affected teachers to other similar positions within the school system where vacancies exist and for which the affected teachers are certified.
B. If no similar positions are available, rehired retirees, provisionally certificated teachers and non- tenured teachers in the subjects and/or grade levels affected will be laid off or separated from the active employment rolls prior to tenured teachers in the same subjects and/or grade levels. If it becomes necessary to lay off tenured teachers, they shall be laid off in the inverse order of their seniority. An appropriate seniority list will be made available for inspection when a tenured teacher has been laid off and disputes a seniority ranking. The seniority list will be developed from the last date of employment and furnished to the Association. If there is a tie, the affected teachers will have seniority calculated as defined in Article I, Section B.7. Teachers on an unpaid leave of absence shall retain accrued seniority. Teachers on military leave, Association leave and on layoff shall continue to accrue seniority during that time. A countywide list of all certificated personnel employed as of July 1 of each year shall be compiled and available upon request of FCTA. The list will indicate name, date of first employment, date of current employment and department and location code.
C. Teachers on layoff shall be placed on a priority recall list in accordance with their seniority. The teachers shall be recalled as vacancies become available in accordance with their position on the list and their certification for said vacancies.
D. When vacancies become available, the teacher will be notified of the vacancy by phone and email sent to the last known address. The teacher so notified shall notify the responsible administrator, in writing, in not more than ten (10) days after receipt of notification of the vacancy as to whether or not the position will be accepted. The teacher may decline the first offer of employment. If the teacher declines the second offer of a position, reemployment rights shall be forfeited. All teachers shall remain on the priority recall list for a maximum of three (3) years.
E. While a layoff continues, no new teachers shall be hired except in those unique circumstances where (a) there are no teachers on the priority recall list qualified to fill the vacancy or (b) all qualified teachers on the priority recall list decline the offer to fill the vacancy.
F. Any layoff due to reduction in force shall not be subject to any dismissal procedure required elsewhere in this Agreement.
G. Teachers recalled under these provisions shall have restored to them all previously accrued sick leave and personal leave.
H. The Board and the Association recognize that appropriate governmental agencies that have jurisdiction may promulgate rulings and/or regulations that may impact this Article. If such rulings or regulations cause any provisions to be in conflict, the parties shall meet within ten (10) days for the purpose of renegotiating only the provision(s) held to be contrary.
Reduction in Force and Recall Section 13.1. It is the intent of the parties, through this article, to establish an objective procedure by which a reduction in force (i.e., layoff or job abolishment) may be accomplished, should the need arise, and supersede the provisions of ORC 124.321 to 124.328, 124.37, OAC 123: 1-41-01 to 123: 1-41-22, and all local rules and regulations of the City of East Cleveland Civil Service Commission governing work force reductions.
Section 13.2. Employees may be laid off as a result of lack of work, lack of funds, or abolishment of position. In the event of a layoff, the Employer shall notify the affected employee thirty (30) calendar days in advance of the effective date of layoff. The Employer agrees to discuss with representatives of the FOP the impact of the layoff on the bargaining unit member. Any layoff in the bargaining unit shall be in accordance with departmental seniority, i.e., the most recent employee hired is the first employee laid off. Any employee laid off from a bargaining unit position may, at his option, displace a permanent part-time or intermittent employee in the same classification. Failure to bump or failure to accept a recall to a part-time or intermittent position shall not jeopardize an employee’s recall rights to a full-time position.
Section 13.3. Employees who are laid off shall be placed on a recall list for a period of three (3) years. If there is a recall, employees who are still on the recall list shall be recalled, in the inverse order of their layoff, provided they are presently qualified to perform the work in the work section to which they are recalled. Any recalled employee requiring additional training to meet the position qualifications in existence at the time of recall must satisfactorily complete the additional training required in this section. Such training shall be at the Employer’s expense.
Section 13.4. The recalled employee shall have ten (10) calendar days following the date of recall notice to notify the Employer of his intention to return to work and shall have fifteen (15) calendar days following receipt of the recall notice in which to report for duty, unless a different date for return to work has been otherwise agreed upon.
