It is the desire of the City to provide for the prompt adjustment of disputes in a fair and reasonable manner, with a minimum amount of interruption of work schedules. Every reasonable effort shall be made by the City and the aggrieved staff members to effect resolution of disputes at the earliest step possible.
A dispute shall mean any difference which arises between the City and any staff member below the Executive or Senior Administrative Staff Level covered by this Personnel Policy regarding the meaning or application of the provisions of this Personnel Policy or work rules. The dispute settlement procedure under this Personnel Policy shall take the place of any appeal to the State Personnel Board of Review. Disputes shall be processed in the following manner:
STEP 1: The staff member shall first present the dispute orally with that staff member’s Department Head, Division Head or his/her designee. If a satisfactory settlement is not achieved within five working days, the staff member shall reduce the dispute to writing and present it to the Human Resources Manager within five additional working days.
STEP 2: Within ten working days of when the dispute is reduced to writing and referred to Step 2, the staff member with a dispute shall meet with the Human Resources Manager or his/her designee and the Department or Division Head, or his/her designee. The City will provide the staff member with its answer in writing within five working days of the date of the Step 2 meeting.
STEP 3: If appealed to Step 3 by the staff member within five working days of when the City gives its Step 2 answer, within an additional ten working days the staff member with a dispute and a personal representative of the staff member, who shall be a staff member of the City, shall meet with the Mayor or the Mayor’s designee, the City Administrator, the Human Resources Manager, and such other City officials as the Mayor or the Mayor’s designee deems appropriate. The City will provide the staff member with its final answer in writing within five working days of the date of the Step 3 meeting. The City’s final answer shall be final and binding upon the staff member with a dispute and all other affected staff members.
(Ord. 10-2021. Passed 2-16-21.)
STEP 4: (EDITOR’S NOTE: Former Step 4 was repealed by Ordinance 10-2021, passed February 16, 2021.)