(a) The City of Geneva recognizes that within an organization there will be occasional differences among its employees regarding the interpretation or application of policies, procedures, rules and/or other problems stemming from the conditions of employment. It is the policy of the City that employees' questions, grievances and complaints should be heard and answered promptly and followed up with an appropriate action to remedy the particular situation,
(b) A grievance is defined as a complaint relating to wages, hours of work, the administration of personnel policies, perceived unfair or inequitable treatment or discipline, or other conditions of employment.
(c) In order to provide employees with an orderly process by which to seek resolution of such differences, the City has developed the following grievance procedure:
(1) Informal conference with supervisor. An employee may request a conference with his or her immediate supervisor within ten working days of the event giving rise to the grievance, or within ten working days from the date he or she could reasonably have expected to know of the event prompting the problem. Within three working days following such conference, the supervisor will inform the grievant of his or her decision.
(2) Step 1: immediate supervisor. An employee having a grievance and being dissatisfied with the informal conference answer shall file the grievance, in writing, with his or her immediate supervisor. In order for a grievance to be recognized, it must be filed within five working days from the date of the response to the informal conference. The immediate supervisor shall investigate the grievance, hold a hearing and provide a solution or explanation, in writing, within five working days following the date on which the grievance was submitted.
(3) Step 2: department head (if different than the immediate supervisor). Where the grievant is not satisfied with the Step 1 response, the aggrieved may submit the original grievance to the department head within three working days of the receipt of the Step 1 answer. The department head will review and investigate the grievance and, within three working days of receiving the grievance, shall give the grievant a written response.
(4) Step 3: City Manager. If the grievance is not satisfactorily resolved in Step 2, the employee may pursue the matter by filing a written grievance to the City Manager within ten working days after the receipt of the Step 2 response. The City Manager shall conduct a hearing of the grievance within fifteen working days of the receipt of the request. The grievant shall be advised, in writing, of the time, place and date of such hearing. If the City Manager is the complainant, or a witness to an event causing and/or leading up to a disciplinary action and/or grievance, an outside administrator shall be selected to act in the place of the City Manager. The decision of the City Manager shall be final and binding on the parties. The action taken by the City Manager shall be reduced to writing, and copies shall be sent to the employee, the immediate supervisor and the department head within ten working days of the City Manager's decision.
(Ord. 2453. Passed 4-10-95; Ord. 3263. Passed 11-25-19.)