(A) PURPOSE. The Grievance Resolution Procedure provides a means for reconciling complaints concerning minor disciplinary actions and working conditions or departmental rules. The purpose of this grievance procedure is to promote harmonious relations among employees, supervisors and managers; to encourage the settlement of disagreements informally at the employee-supervisor level; to provide an orderly procedure to handle grievances through the various supervisory levels when necessary; to resolve grievances as quickly as possible; and to discourage the filing of unfounded grievances.
(B) SCOPE. This grievance procedure applies to all permanent classified employees who are not covered by labor agreements providing an alternate grievance procedure.
(C) DEFINITIONS. For purposes of this section, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
EMPLOYEE. Includes all permanent classified city employees.
GRIEVANCE. A formal complaint regarding disciplinary suspensions of five days or less, letters of reprimand and the application of existing rules, regulations, or policies.
GRIEVANCE COMMITTEE. A neutral ad hoc committee composed of four permanent city employees (two supervisory and two nonsupervisory) randomly selected by the Chief Administrative Officer to investigate and recommend solutions to an employee grievance.
GRIEVANT. The employee who files a grievance.
REPRESENTATIVE. An individual duly authorized by an employee to act on the employee's behalf.
(D) GRIEVABLE AND NONGRIEVABLE ISSUES.
(1) To be reviewable under the grievance procedure an issue must:
(a) Concern matters or specific incidents that have occurred, and
(b) Result from an act or omission by management regarding aspects of employee-employer relations over which the department director has control, and
(c) Arise out of a specific situation or act that has resulted in inequity or damage to the employee.
(2) An issue is not reviewable under this grievance procedure if it is a matter which:
(a) Is subject to those management rights (specified elsewhere in this article and in the Labor-Management Relations Ordinance) which are necessary to exercise control and discretion over the organization and efficiency of the operations of the city;
(b) Would require modification of a policy established by the City Council, State or Federal law;
(c) Has been reviewed via another grievance procedure (as authorized in an agreement with a labor organization);
(d) Is reviewable under the Personnel Rules and Regulations or another administrative procedure;
(e) Is subject to the provisions of the Labor-Management Relations Ordinance.
(3) The Chief Administrative Officer or designee shall decide whether the issue is grievable as defined in this article. This decision is final. The Chief Administrative Officer or his designee may not determine that a claim of retaliation pursuant to the Whistleblower Ordinance is not grievable.
(E) STEPS IN THE GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE. An employee must take the following steps to submit a grievance pursuant to this policy. If at any step the employee fails to take action within the allotted time, the grievance procedure will be concluded. If at any step a city representative, the Chief Administrative Officer or a grievance committee fails to take action within the allotted time, the procedure shall move to the following step.
(1) Step One. The employee initiates the grievance by submitting a written request for review of the dispute by the City Employee Mediation Program within ten calendar days from the date of the act or from the point that the employee became aware of the occurrence. It the 10th day is a weekend or holiday, the following day of business becomes the "10th day". Within seven calendar days, the Coordinator of the City Employee Mediation Program will determine if mediation of the dispute is appropriate. If so, mediation will be held according to the guidelines for the City Employee Mediation Program.
(2) Step Two. If the Coordinator determines that mediation would not be appropriate or if mediation is conducted and the dispute is not resolved, within seven calendar days after the mediation or the decision of the Coordinator, the employee shall submit a written grievance to his or her department director. The written grievance shall contain the employee's name, department, position, and immediate supervisor; the date of the alleged incident; a statement of the problem and the employee's suggested solution. Either the employee or the director may request a meeting, but it is the director's option to respond only in writing. Within seven calendar days from receipt of the grievance or a meeting, whichever is later, the department director must submit a written response to the employee.
(3) Step Three. If the employee is not satisfied with the Department Director's decision, the employee may submit the written grievance described in Step Two to the Chief Administrative Officer who will convene a grievance committee to investigate the dispute and recommend a resolution. The committee will recommend a resolution of the grievance to the Chief Administrative Officer. The Chief Administrative Officer will review the Committee's recommended resolution, provide a final written resolution to the grievance and forward it to the employee and the Department Director. The Chief Administrative Officer's decision is the final step in the administrative process.
(F) GENERAL PROVISIONS.
(1) Grievances may be initiated only by the employee concerned and may not be pursued without the affected employee's consent.
(2) Once a grievance has been investigated and denied, repeated filing of grievances on the same issue will not be permitted.
(3) While the grievant may designate a representative at any step of the grievance procedure, labor unions do not have representation rights for nonbargaining unit employees. A grievance committee is not required to recognize more than one representative for any grievance.
(4) If the grievance involves a group of employees or if several employees file separate grievances on the same matter, the grievances may be handled as a single grievance.
(5) The City Clerk's office will act as facilitator for the Grievance Committee to ensure that the Committee has access to all information necessary to conduct the investigation. The Committee will have the authority to call witnesses and to review all necessary records and reports.
(6) Whenever possible, grievances will be handled during the regularly scheduled working hours of the parties involved.
(G) ADDITIONAL GUIDELINES.
(1) Employees and supervisors are strongly encouraged to request mediation at any step in this process.
(2) Any grievance will be considered resolved at the completion of any step if all parties are satisfied or if the employee concerned chooses not to present the matter to the next step of the procedure within the prescribed period.
(3) As a condition of employment, employees shall be required to appear as witnesses in grievance resolution hearings when requested by the grievant or by the members of the city administrative staff. In addition, refusal to appear or participate in the grievance resolution procedure at any stage by a grievant shall result in forfeiture by the grievant of any further right to use of the grievance resolution procedures to resolve the grievance.
(4) The Director of Human Resources shall develop written guidelines for the operation of the Grievance Committee, addressing such issues as confidentiality of information revealed to the Committee and bias or interest of Committee members, and operating procedures.
(5) Following completion of the grievance process, department managers shall ensure the grievant experiences no retaliation for having pursued the grievance. Any Chief Administrative Officer direction associated with the grievance resolution is to be carried out as quickly as possible.
('74 Code, § 2-9-25) (Ord. 52-1978; Am. Ord. 6-1987; Am. Ord. 48-1988; Am. Ord. 30-1989; Am. Ord. 46-1995; Am. Ord. 29-1998; Am. Ord. 2-2004)