Employee Safety
A. All incidents of workplace violence, unsafe equipment or job conditions shall be brought to the attention of the immediate supervisor, or in their absence, the next higher level of supervision. Should the unsafe condition not be corrected within a reasonable time, the equipment or job practice shall be brought to the attention of the Safety Committee. Additionally, employees shall report any exposure to known or suspected carcinogens in writing on a separate form. A copy of the form shall be sent to the Local Safety Committee. Employees have the right to file complaints with the State Department of Labor and Industry OSHA Division.
B. Any protective equipment or clothing, e.g., safety glasses or other types of eye protection (including prescription lenses and frames when required), safety helmets, safety vests, welding gloves and aprons, safety shoes, ear protection, protective gloves, etc., shall be provided and maintained by the Appointing Authority whenever such equipment is required as a condition of employment either by the Appointing Authority, by OSHA, or by the Federal Mine Safety and Health Administration. The employee shall have the responsibility to use all such provided protective equipment (see Article 20, Section 11).
C. All employees who are injured or who are involved in an accident during the course of their employment shall file a first report of injury and/or an accident report, on forms furnished by the Appointing Authority, no matter how slight the incident. A summary of the first report of injury and/or accident report shall be furnished to the Safety Committee. All such injuries shall be reported to the employee's immediate supervisor and any necessary medical attention, including transportation if required, shall be arranged. The Appointing Authority shall provide assistance to employees in filling out all necessary Workers' Compensation forms, when requested.
D. Any medical examination required by the Appointing Authority shall be at no cost to the employee and the Appointing Authority shall receive a copy of the medical report. Upon request, the employee shall receive a copy of the medical report.
E. During every four (4) hour period in which an employee spends all their time on a computer, the employee will be given a five (5) minute alternative work assignment or if this is not practicable, a five (5) minute rest period scheduled to interrupt continuous operation of the machine. This five (5) minute rest period is in addition to the formal rest period provided in Article 5, is not cumulative, and cannot be used at the beginning or end of a shift, formal rest breaks, or a lunch period.
F. Any pregnant employee assigned to work with Department of Corrections' inmates, may request reassignment to alternate work within her seniority unit. The Appointing Authority will attempt to accommodate such a request. Such reassignment shall not be subject to the provisions of Article 12, Section 4. In the event that such reassignment is not practicable, the employee shall have the right to request an unpaid leave of absence, pursuant to Article 10, Section 0X.
Employment and Training Administration The ratio of trainees to journeymen on the job site shall not be greater than permitted under the plan approved by the Employment and Training Administration. Every trainee must be paid at not less than the rate specified in the approved program for the trainee's level of progress, expressed as a percentage of the journeyman hourly rate specified in the applicable wage determination. Trainees shall be paid fringe benefits in accordance with the provisions of the trainee program. If the trainee program does not mention fringe benefits, trainees shall be paid the full amount of fringe benefits listed on the wage determination unless the Administrator of the Wage and Hour Division determines that there is an apprenticeship program associated with the corresponding journeyman wage rate on the wage determination which provides for less than full fringe benefits for apprentices. Any employee listed on the payroll at a trainee rate who is not registered and participating in a training plan approved by the Employment and Training Administration shall be paid not less than the applicable wage rate on the wage determination for the classification of work actually performed. In addition, any trainee performing work on the job site in excess of the ratio permitted under the registered program shall be paid not less than the applicable wage rate on the wage determination for the work actually performed. In the event the Employment and Training Administration withdraws approval of a training program, the contractor will no longer be permitted to utilize trainees at less than the applicable predetermined rate for the work performed until an acceptable program is approved.
Labor Relations; Employees (a) Except as set forth on Section 5.15(a) of the Company Disclosure Letter, (i) neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries is a party to or bound by any collective bargaining agreement or any similar agreement, (ii) no such agreement is being negotiated by the Company or any of the Company’s Subsidiaries, and (iii) no labor union or any other employee representative body has requested or, to the knowledge of the Company, has sought to represent any of the employees of the Company or its Subsidiaries in the past three (3) years. In the past three (3) years, to the knowledge of the Company, there has been no labor organization activity involving any employees of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries and there has been no actual or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened strike, slowdown, work stoppage, lockout or other labor dispute against or affecting the Company or any Subsidiary of the Company, in each case except as would not be or reasonably be expected to be, individually or in the aggregate, material to the business of the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole.
(b) Each of the Company and its Subsidiaries are, and have been for the past three (3) years, in compliance with all applicable Laws respecting labor and employment including, but not limited to, all Laws respecting terms and conditions of employment, health and safety, wages and hours, holiday pay and the calculation of holiday pay, working time, employee classification (with respect to both exempt vs. non-exempt status and employee vs. independent contractor and worker status), child labor, immigration, employment discrimination, disability rights or benefits, equal opportunity and equal pay, plant closures and layoffs, affirmative action, workers’ compensation, labor relations, employee leave issues, unemployment insurance and contributions required to be made with respect to any statutory plan, program, practice or arrangement that is required under applicable law and maintained by any Governmental Authority, except where the failure to comply would not be or reasonably be expected to be, individually or in the aggregate, material to the business of the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole.
(c) Except where it would not be or reasonably be expected to be, individually or in the aggregate, material to the business of the Company and its Subsidiaries, in the past three (3) years, the Company and its Subsidiaries have not received written (i) notice of any unfair labor practice charge or material complaint pending or threatened before any applicable Governmental Authority against them, (ii) notice of any complaints, grievances or arbitrations arising out of any collective bargaining agreement or any other material complaints, grievances or arbitration procedures against them, (iii) notice of any material charge or complaint with respect to or relating to them pending before any applicable Governmental Authority responsible for the prevention of unlawful employment practices, (iv) notice of the intent of any Governmental Authority responsible for the enforcement of labor, employment, wages and hours of work, child labor, immigration, or occupational safety and health Laws to conduct an investigation with respect to or relating to them or notice that such investigation is in progress, or (v) notice of any complaint, lawsuit or other proceeding pending or threatened in any forum by or on behalf of any present or former employee of such entities, any applicant for employment or classes of the foregoing alleging breach of any express or implied Contract of employment, any applicable Law governing employment or the termination thereof or other discriminatory, wrongful or tortious conduct in connection with the employment relationship.
(d) To the knowledge of the Company, no present or former employee, worker or independent contractor of the Company or any of the Company’s Subsidiaries’ is in material violation of (i) any restrictive covenant, nondisclosure obligation or fiduciary duty to the Company or any of the Company’s Subsidiaries or (ii) any restrictive covenant or nondisclosure obligation to a former employer or engager of any such individual relating to (A) the right of any such individual to work for or provide services to the Company or any of the Company’s Subsidiaries’ or (B) the knowledge or use of trade secrets or proprietary information, in each case except as would not be or reasonably be expected to be, individually or in the aggregate, material to the business of the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole.
(e) Neither the Company nor any of the Company’s Subsidiaries is party to a settlement agreement with a current or former officer, employee or independent contractor of the Company or any of the Company’s Subsidiaries that involves allegations relating to sexual harassment, sexual misconduct or discrimination by either (i) an officer of the Company or any of the Company’s Subsidiaries or (ii) an employee of the Company or any of the Company’s Subsidiaries at the level of Director (for the avoidance of doubt, such title does not refer to a member of the board of directors) or above. To the knowledge of the Company, in the last three (3) years, no allegations of sexual harassment, sexual misconduct or discrimination have been made against (i) an officer of the Company or any of the Company’s Subsidiaries or (ii) an employee of the Company or any of the Company’s Subsidiaries at the level of Director (for the avoidance of doubt, such title does not refer to a member of the board of directors) or above, in each case except as would not be or reasonably be expected to be, individually or in the aggregate, material to the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole.
Health and Safety Plan Consultant shall prepare and submit a Health and Safety Plan (“HASP”) for the portion of Consultant’s work that will involve field work, assessments, or investigations of certain Project elements. The HASP shall describe how Consultant plans to complete field work, assessments, and/or investigations at the RWF. Consultant’s HASP must comply with the CIP HASP and shall be updated as new conditions are encountered.
OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH & SAFETY (a) It is a mutual interest of the parties to promote health and safety in workplaces and to prevent and reduce the occurrence of workplace injuries and occupational diseases. The parties agree that health and safety is of the utmost importance and agree to promote health and safety and wellness throughout the organization. The employer shall provide orientation and training in health and safety to new and current employees on an ongoing basis, and employees shall attend required health and safety training sessions. Accordingly, the parties fully endorse the responsibilities of employer and employee under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, making particular reference to the following:
Certain Employees (a) Each of the following is included in the list of agreements set forth in the Disclosure Schedule: all collective bargaining agreements, employment and consulting agreements, bonus plans, deferred compensation plans, employee pension plans or retirement plans, employee profit-sharing plans, employee stock purchase and stock option plans, hospitalization insurance, and other plans and arrangements providing for employee benefits of employees of the Seller.
(b) The Disclosures Schedule contains a true, complete and accurate list of the following: the names, positions, and compensation of the present employees of the Seller, together with a statement of the annual salary payable to salaried employees and a summary of the bonuses and description of agreements for additional compensation and other like benefits, if any, paid or payable to such persons for the period set forth in the Disclosure Schedule. Except as listed in the Disclosure Schedule, to the best of Seller's knowledge, all employees of Seller are employees-at-will.
(c) Seller has no retired employees who are receiving or are entitled to receive any payments, health or other benefits from Seller.
Restricted Employment for Certain State Personnel Contractor acknowledges that, pursuant to Section 572.069 of the Texas Government Code, a former state officer or employee of a state agency who during the period of state service or employment participated on behalf of a state agency in a procurement or contract negotiation involving Contractor may not accept employment from Contractor before the second anniversary of the date the Contract is signed or the procurement is terminated or withdrawn.
TRAINING AND EMPLOYEE DEVELOPMENT 9.1 The Employer and the Union recognize the value and benefit of education and training designed to enhance an employee’s ability to perform their job duties. Training and employee development opportunities will be provided to employees in accordance with Employer policies and available resources.
9.2 Attendance at employer-required training will be considered time worked. The Employer will make reasonable attempts to schedule employer-required training during an employee’s regular work shift. The Employer will pay the registration and associated travel costs in accordance with Article 23, Travel, for employer-required training.
Accident Prevention Health and Safety Committee (a) The Employer and the Union agree that they mutually desire to maintain standards of safety and health in the workplace in order to prevent accidents, injury and illness.
(b) Recognizing its responsibilities under the applicable legislation, the Employer agrees to accept as a member of its Accident Prevention – Health & Safety Committee at least three (3) representatives, one from each base, selected or appointed by the Union from amongst bargaining unit employees. At any time where a vote is required, an equal number of representatives from each side shall be entitled to vote.
(c) Such Committee shall identify potential dangers and hazards, institute means of improving health and safety programs and recommend actions to be taken to improve conditions related to safety and health.
(d) The Employee agrees to co-operate reasonably in providing necessary information to enable the Committee to fulfill its functions.
(e) Meetings shall be held quarterly or more frequently at the call of the Chair if required. The Committee shall maintain minutes of all meetings and make the same available for review.
(f) Any representative appointed or select in accordance with (b) hereof shall serve a term of one (1) calendar year from the date of appointment which may be renewed for further periods of one (1) year. The Union will encourage its representative(s) to serve at least one (1) year. Time off for such representative(s) to attend meetings of the Accident Prevention – Health & Safety Committee in accordance with the foregoing shall be granted and time so spent attending such meetings shall be deemed to be work time for which the representative(s) shall be paid by the Employer at his regular or premium rate as may be applicable.
(g) The Union agrees to endeavour to obtain the full co-operation of its membership in the observation of all safety rules and practices.
(h) Pregnant employees may request to be transferred from their current duties if, in the professional opinion of the employee’s physician, the pregnancy may be at risk. If such a transfer is not feasible, the pregnant employee, if she so requests, will be granted an unpaid leave of absence before commencement of the maternity leave referred to in Article 16.04
COUNTY’S QUALITY ASSURANCE PLAN The County or its agent will evaluate the Contractor’s performance under this Contract on not less than an annual basis. Such evaluation will include assessing the Contractor’s compliance with all Contract terms and conditions and performance standards. Contractor deficiencies which the County determines are severe or continuing and that may place performance of the Contract in jeopardy if not corrected will be reported to the Board of Supervisors. The report will include improvement/corrective action measures taken by the County and the Contractor. If improvement does not occur consistent with the corrective action measures, the County may terminate this Contract or impose other penalties as specified in this Contract.
