employees / Senate Handbook / 2.060 Grievance Policy And Procedure

2.060 Grievance Policy And Procedure

NOTE: The Senate Grievance Policy and Procedure is intended for Assembly members’ work-related disputes between two parties of Assembly members, the grievant and the grievee, that can be adjusted through specific action by the College.  Disagreements that are of a personal nature should be resolved in a different forum.

Grievants should be aware that in cases involving possible discrimination, they also have access to the Grievance/Complaint Procedure for Equal Opportunity/Equity Concerns (see the Procedures Manual).  Grievants may file under either policy but not both.  If a grievance involves possible discrimination, Assembly members are advised to consult with the Senate President, the Equity Officer, or the Human Resources Office in deciding which procedure to use.

Any person using the procedures outlined below should be aware that if a grievance involves an issue of unlawful discrimination, there are time limits set by law for filing a complaint with the Michigan Department of Civil Rights (MDCR) or the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), or for filing a complaint in state or federal court.  Grievants should consult their own legal counsel regarding filing requirements in effect at the time.

  1. Preliminaries
    1. Any grievance a member of the Assembly or a group of Assembly members (hereafter called the grievant) may have in relation to workload, compensation, promotion procedure, other working conditions at Delta, or arising directly from an application or interpretation of the Senate Handbook, will be adjusted as stated in this procedure. Unlawful discrimination with regard to any of these issues is grievable under this procedure. Any adjustment must be consistent with the policies of the Senate Handbook and of the College.  The Senate President manages the Grievance process.  In the case of a conflict of interest, the Senate President will designate either the Senate Vice President or a past Senate President, not previously involved in the action, to manage the process.  That person will stand in for the Senate President wherever “Senate President” is mentioned in this policy and procedure.
    2. Nothing in this procedure will prevent informal consultation and adjustment of any grievance between an Assembly member and the appropriate supervisor or other representative(s) of the administration immediately involved (the preferred process). Either party may seek the aid of other appropriate individuals, such as the Equity Officer or the Director of Human Resources, in arriving at an informal settlement of the grievance.  However, both parties need to abide by the Grievance Policy and Procedure timeline(s), adjusting them as allowed under step I. C. if necessary.  Any step or steps of this Grievance Policy and Procedure may be waived by written mutual consent of the parties concerned.  Any person named as a grievee in any notice of grievance will be informed by the Senate President of the receipt of a notice of grievance and the specific allegations against that grievee within five days after the required initiation notice is filed.
    3. In computing any time limit specified under these procedures other than the initial time limit of ninety calendar days for filing the grievance (see III. A.), Saturdays, Sundays, official school closings, and holidays will be excluded. While these time limits may be adjusted by written mutual consent of the parties concerned, the Senate President also has the authority to adjust timelines as s/he deems necessary because of extraordinary circumstances.  The Senate President will have the responsibility of giving written notice to all parties of such adjustments of timelines.  These adjustments should remain in accord with the spirit and goals of the Grievance Policy and Procedure.  All parties should become familiar with all of the time limits of this process.  Failure of those responsible on the part of the College to abide by the specified time limits (or adjusted time limits) in procedural Steps Two or Three (see III. B.), would constitute a judgment in favor of the grievant. Failure of the grievant to abide by these time limits (or adjusted time limits), would constitute a judgment against the grievant.  (A diagram of this timeline is included at the end of the Grievance Policy and Procedure.)
    4. All parties may have a College employee who is not an attorney serve as their advisor or advocate during any proceeding under this policy, and that employee may take an active role in the proceedings. Neither party may have an attorney present. All parties to the grievance have the right at all levels of this policy to present evidence and to examine and question the evidence of the other. The Senate President will, in a manner consistent with the spirit of the Grievance Policy and Procedure, take all reasonable actions necessary so that all proceedings occur in a fair and objective manner.
    5. A decision in writing will be given to all parties at each step by the Senate President. A copy of all documents and a written summary of any communications and rationale used in decision making will be given to all parties upon completion of each step of the procedure outlined in III. B.  The College’s administration will ensure that all parties involved in the grievance, including members of the Senate Grievance Committee, have time allotted from regular duties to fulfill obligations incurred in this process.  All written material will be served by certified mail, College electronic mail, or by hand delivery to the parties.  The written notice of the grievance, final decisions, supporting documents, and written summaries of communications and rationale used in decision making will be kept in the Senate Office permanently.  The written final decision (see III. B. 2. d.) will be made available to any Assembly member upon request.  All other case-related information will be made available to Assembly members upon written permission of all parties.
    6. Grievance decisions will be presented in writing by the Senate President, and if the grievance is adjusted to the satisfaction of both parties at Steps One, Two, or Three (see III. B.), the agreement will be reduced to writing by the Senate President and signed by all parties. Decisions will provide for adjustments and procedure for implementation as well as time limits.
    7. Any disagreement with the interpretation or application of this procedure by the Senate President or others responsible for administering the Grievance Policy and Procedure, and any question of conflict of interest on the part of the Senate President, will be decided by the Senate Executive Board upon written application to the Senate Office by a party to a grievance. The Senate Executive Board will establish procedures for hearing appeals. These procedures will be filed with the Senate Office and will be available for public inspection.  Any issues brought to the Senate Executive Board must be resolved in time to permit a decision on the grievance by the Grievance Committee within the timelines of this procedure.  The Senate Executive Board cannot decide on the grievance itself.
    8. All parties and all participants in a grievance proceeding at any step will maintain strict confidentiality and will share information only with those whose position or assignments with the College require them to be informed (except as provided in Section E). A breach of this obligation of confidentiality may be grievable and may result in disciplinary action.
    9. Retaliation against anyone filing a grievance or cooperating in a grievance proceeding is prohibited, may be grievable, and may result in disciplinary action.
  2. The Senate Grievance Committee
    The Senate Grievance Committee is an elected committee of the Senate Assembly composed of ten Faculty members, six Administrative/Professional Staff members, and four Support Staff members.  Members will be elected by their constituency for a two-year term beginning in January, except that once a grievance has been initiated, the membership of the committee for that grievance will remain unchanged until that grievance has been settled.
  3. Procedure
    1. A grievant initiates a grievance by serving a written notice of it on his or her direct supervisor, or if the supervisor is the grievee, the next level up, with a copy to the appropriate first level administrator (those College officers who are administrative members of the Executive Council), and with copies to the Senate President, Human Resources, and the General Counsel. A grievance must be filed within ninety calendar days from the time the grievant becomes aware or should have become aware of the event which gave rise to the grievance.  A grievance cannot be filed on a decision that has not yet been formally made, although the lack of a decision may be grievable.
    2. The notice of the grievance will concisely state the alleged facts upon which the grievance is based (such as the section/part of Senate policy violated, the dates, and people involved) and specify the relief sought, within one 8 ½ by 11 inch document using 12 point font, not exceeding two pages in length.  Any change in the relief or remedy sought requires the filing of a new grievance.  If not initiated within ninety calendar days, the grievance cannot be accepted. Once the grievance is filed, the commencement of the process may, if helpful, be delayed by mutual consent of both parties to a date certain for starting the process (see I. C.).
      1. Step One: After the timely filing of an initiation notice, the appropriate supervisor (see III. A.) will discuss the grievance with the grievant and grievee(s) and attempt to resolve the dispute.  This step will be completed within ten days after the required initiation notice is filed.
      2. Step Two: If the grievance is not adjusted in the time specified in Step One, the grievant may request (within fifteen days from the date of receipt of the initiation notice in the Senate Office, or if the timelines have been adjusted under I.C., within five days from the end of Step One) in writing to the Senate President that the grievance be referred to the Senate Grievance Committee. The Senate President will review the grievance and notify the grievant in writing within five days of receipt of the request whether the grievance is acceptable or not under the conditions of this process.
        1. A grievance can be judged unacceptable by the Senate President only if:
          1. The grievance does not involve an issue which is grievable under this policy;
          2. The grievance cannot be adjusted through specific action of the College;
          3. The grievance does not clearly state what is being grieved or does not clearly state the relief or remedy sought; or
          4. The grievance was not filed within the time requirements specified above.
        2. A decision not to accept a grievance can be appealed to the Senate Executive Board in accordance with the appeal procedures established by the Senate Executive Board.
        3. If judged acceptable by the Senate President, the grievance will be heard by seven members selected from the Senate Grievance Committee in the following fashion:
          1. Eleven members will be drawn at random by the Senate President. They will be contacted by the Senate President to confirm that they are available to participate in Step Two of the process and that they can consider the grievance impartially.
          2. Each party to the grievance will have the option of removing any two of the members drawn.
          3. The top remaining seven members (in order of their selection) will constitute the committee.
          4. The committee members will select a chair and secretary from within the committee membership.  The chair will conduct the hearing according to the hearing guidelines on file in the Senate office.
          5. The Senate President is responsible for providing a copy of the written hearing guidelines to the parties.
          6. In the event that a committee of seven members cannot be seated, the Senate President can, with the mutual consent of the parties, arrange that the grievance be heard by a committee of five members.
        4. The grievant, the grievee(s), and the appropriate supervisor (the “parties”) will present their views regarding the grievance to the committee, along with witnesses and/or other supporting evidence. Each party shall have the right to be present throughout the presentation of evidence or questioning of any witness and at any time the other parties are present.  The proceedings may be closed at the request of either party.  The decision of the committee will be based strictly on the evidence presented to the committee and will be made by a majority vote of the total committee membership.  The Senate President will take reasonable steps to assure that an accurate record of the proceedings of the committee is made.
          The Chair of the committee will inform the Senate President in writing of the committee's vote and the rationale used in decision making (“the written final decision”).  Step Two must be completed within twenty days of the acceptance of the grievance.
      3. Step Three: If any of the parties to the grievance is not satisfied with the decision of the Senate Grievance Committee, s/he may request within five days of receipt of the decision a review of the grievance by the College President or a representative designated by the College President. If what was being grieved is an action taken by the College President, this review will be conducted by a member of the Board of Trustees selected by the Chair of the Board of Trustees (since the Board makes decisions as a body, however, the Board will have to approve the selected member’s findings). The request must be in writing and filed with the Senate Office.  The review will be based on an examination of the record of the proceedings of the Senate Grievance Committee and a discussion of the grievance with the parties involved.  This review will be completed within ten days of the receipt of the request.  The decision of the College President/designee/Board of Trustees will be final and binding on the parties within the College.

Grievance policy and procedure timeline

90 days

Initiation notice

Step one

10 days

Discussion/resolution with direct supervisor, or if the supervisor is the grievee, the next level up

5 days

Request referral to Senate Grievance Committee

Acceptance of grievance by Senate President

Step two

20 days

Senate Grievance Committee

5 days

Request Referral to College President/designee for review

Step three

10 days

Review (final)

 *Except for the initial time limit of 90 calendar days for filing the grievance, all day references will exclude Saturdays, Sundays, office school closings, and holidays (see I.C.).

 

Board Action 4833 – August 10, 2010
Board Action 4253 – September 11, 2001
Board Action 3397 – April 13, 1993