The following shall be the grievance procedure (Working days shall mean Monday through
Friday excluding Holidays, not the actual days worked by grievant):
Step 1:
Not later than seven (7) working days after occurrence, an employee shall inform his/her
Department Head he/she has a grievance concerning his/her employment. The Department Head
shall meet with the employee within the next three (3) working days for a discussion of the
grievance in an attempt to resolve the matter. If the aggrieved employee wishes, he/she may
have his/her Steward assist him/her in his/her oral presentation.
Step 2:
- If the aggrieved employee does not receive a satisfactory answer from his/her Department
Head within three (3) working days after his/her presentation, he/she may submit the grievance
in written form to his/her Director, or designee, for a written decision, provided the submission
is made within the five (5) working days following an unsatisfactory answer. If the aggrieved
employee wishes, he/she may have his/her Steward assist him/her in the written presentation.
The written grievance must specify 1) the Section and Paragraph of the Agreement allegedly violated,
2) date of occurrence of each alleged violation, 3) manner of alleged violation, and 4) the adjustment
requested.
- Upon receipt of the written grievance, the Director, or designee, shall set a place and time
within seven (7) working days for a grievance hearing. If the aggrieved employee wishes, he/she
may have his/her Steward assist him/her at the grievance hearing. Whether or not his/her Steward
assists at the grievance hearing, the Steward and the President shall each receive a copy of the
written decision.
Step 3:
If the grievance is not resolved by step two, the Association will submit the grievance to the Human Resources Department within three (3) working days after receiving the written answer from the Director or designee. The Human Resources Department will within five (5) working days after receipt of the grievance, arrange to hold a meeting with the Grievant, Steward, District Representative and President, and attempt to resolve the grievance. The Human Resources Department will provide its written answer within ten (10) working days from the day of the meeting.
Step 4:
If the grievant is not satisfied with the decision in Step 3, he/she may request that the grievance be determined by an arbitrator. Notification of this decision must be sent to the Human Resources Department within ten (10) days of receiving the answer from the Human Resources Department or within ten (10) days of when the answer from the Human Resources Department was due.
Step 5 - Arbitration:
Any grievance which cannot be settled through the above procedures may be submitted to an arbitrator who shall be appointed from the staff of the Michigan Employment Relations Commission (MERC). The arbitrator appointed by the MERC shall meet with the parties at a mutually agreeable date to review the evidence and hear testimony relating to the grievance. Upon completion of the hearing, the arbitrator shall render a written decision to both parties which shall be final and binding except for judicial review. The arbitrator shall have no authority to add to or modify the terms of this Agreement.
