The grievant and/or the Union shall orally raise the grievance with the grievant's supervisor who is outside of the bargaining unit.

The supervisor shall be informed that this discussion constitutes the first step of the grievance procedure.

All grievances must be presented not later than ten (10) working days from the date the grievant became or reasonably should have become aware

of the occurrence giving rise to the grievance not to exceed a total of thirty (30) days after the event.

If being on approved paid leave prevents a grievant from having knowledge of an occurrence, then the time lines shall be extended by the number

of days the employee was on such leave except that in no case will the extension exceed sixty (60) days after the event.

The immediate supervisor shall render an oral response to the grievance within three (3) working days after the grievance is presented.

If the oral grievance is not resolved at Step One (1), the immediate supervisor shall prepare and sign a written statement acknowledging

discussion of the grievance, and provide a copy to the Union and the grievant.

In the event the grievance is not resolved at Step One (1), a legible copy of the grievance form shall be presented in writing by the Union to the

intermediate administrator or his/her designee within five (5) days of the receipt of the Step One (1) answer or the date such answer was due whichever is earlier.

The written grievance shall contain a statement of the grievant's complaint, the section(s) of the Agreement allegedly violated, if applicable, the date of the

alleged violation and the relief sought. The form shall be signed and dated by the grievant. Within seven (7) days after the grievance is presented at Step Two (2),

the intermediate administrator shall discuss the grievance with the Union and the grievant. The intermediate administrator shall render a written answer to the grievance

within eight (8) days after such a discussion is held and provide a copy of such answer and return a legible copy of the grievance form to the grievant and a copy to one

representative designated by the Union.

If the grievance is still unresolved, a legible copy of the grievance form shall be presented by the Union to the Agency Head or designee in writing within

ten (10) days after receipt of the Step Two (2) response or after the date such response was due, whichever is earlier. Within fifteen (15) days after the receipt of the

 written grievance, the parties shall meet in an attempt to resolve the grievance unless the parties mutually agree otherwise. By mutual agreement of the parties, agencies

may schedule Step Three (3) meetings on a monthly basis, by geographic areas, so that all grievances that have been newly filed, that have been advanced to Step Three (3)

or that have been continued since the previous month, can be heard on a regular basis.

At the Step Three (3) meeting the grievance may be settled or withdrawn, or a response shall be prepared and issued by the Agency Head or designee, within thirty-five (35) days

of the meeting. The response will include a description of the events giving rise to the grievance, and the rationale upon which the decision is rendered. The Agency may grant,

modify or deny the remedy requested by the Union. Any grievances resolved at Step Three (3) or at earlier steps shall not be precedent setting at other institutions or agencies

unless otherwise agreed to in the settlement. The response shall be forwarded to the grievant and a copy will be provided to the Union representative who was at the meeting

or one who is designated by the Local Chapter. Additionally, a copy of the answer will be forwarded to the Union's Central Office. This response shall be accompanied by

 a legible copy of the grievance form.

If the Agency is untimely with its response to the grievance at Step Three (3), absent a mutually agreed to time extension, the Union may appeal the grievance to

Step Four (4) requesting a meeting by filing a written appeal and a legible copy of the grievance form to the Deputy Director of the Office of Collective Bargaining within

 fifteen (15) days of the date of the due date of the Step Three (3) answer. Upon receipt of a grievance, as a result of a failure to meet time limits by the agency, OCB

shall schedule a meeting with the Staff representative and a Chapter representative within thirty (30) days of receipt of the grievance appeal in an attempt to resolve the

grievance unless the parties mutually agree otherwise. Within thirty-five (35) days of the OCB meeting, OCB shall provide a written response which may grant, modify or deny the

 remedy being sought by the Union. The response will include the rationale upon which the decision is rendered and will be forwarded to the grievant, the Union's Step Three (3)

 representative(s) who attend the meeting and the OCSEA Central Office. If the grievance is not resolved at Step Three (3), or if the Agency is untimely with its response to the

grievance at Step Three (3), absent any mutually agreed to time extension, the Union may appeal the grievance to mediation by filing a written appeal and a legible copy of the grievance

form to the Deputy Director of the Office of Collective Bargaining within fifteen (15) days of the receipt of the answer at Step Three (3) or the due date of the answer if no answer was

 given, whichever is earlier. OCB shall have sole management authority to grant, modify or deny the grievance at Steps Four (4) and Five (5).

Either the Office of Collective Bargaining or the Union may advance a grievance directly from Step Four (4) to Step Five (5) if that party believes that mediation would not be useful

in resolving the dispute.

The parties shall mutually agree to a panel of at least five (5) persons to serve in the capacity of grievance mediators. The procedure for selecting this panel shall be the same

as set forth in Section 25.04 for the selection of arbitrators. No mediator/arbitrator shall hear a case at both mediation and arbitration. The fees and expenses of the mediator

shall be shared equally by the parties. The mediator(s) may employ all of the techniques commonly associated with mediation, including private caucuses with the parties.

The taking of oaths and the examination of witnesses shall not be permitted and no verbatim record of the proceeding shall be taken. The purpose of the mediation is to reach

a mutually agreeable resolution of the dispute where possible and there will be no procedural constraints regarding the review of facts and arguments. Written material presented

to the mediator will be returned to the party at the conclusion of the mediation meeting. The comments and opinions of the mediator, and any settlement offers put forth

by either party shall not be admissible in subsequent arbitration of the grievance nor be introduced in any future arbitration proceedings. If a grievance remains unresolved at the

end of the mediation meeting, the mediator will provide an oral statement regarding how he/she would rule in the case based on the facts presented to him/her.

The disposition of grievances discussed during the mediation meeting will be listed by the representative from the Office of Collective Bargaining on a form mutually agreed to by the

 parties. A copy of the summary shall be provided to the Union within five (5) days. The parties will consolidate cases for mediation and, whenever possible, schedule the mediation

 meetings at decentralized locations. A Union staff representative, grievant and a steward or chapter president as designated by the Union may be present at the mediation of a

 grievance. No more than two (2) of the Union representatives present including the grievant may be on paid leave by the Employer. Each party may have no more than three (3)

representatives present at the mediation of a grievance.

Home