§8 Additional Grievance
Procedure Rules
§8.1 Publication of Hearing Decisions, Rulings, and Related Court Opinions
EDR will publish rulings and hearing decisions on its Web site in a manner that seeks to preserve privacy. EDR may also publish related court opinions in full. See also EDR's Publication Policy on its Web site, at “Publications.”
§8.2 Documentation Relating to a Grievance
Absent just cause, all documents relating to the actions grieved shall be made available, upon request from a party to the grievance, by the opposing party. (Once a grievance has been initiated, an employee’s request for documents relating to his grievance, pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”), shall also be treated by the agency as a request for documents under the grievance procedure.)
Upon receipt of such a request, a party shall have a duty to search its records to ensure that, absent just cause, all such relevant documents are provided. All such documents must be provided within 5 workdays of receipt of the request. If it is not possible to provide the requested documents within the 5 workday period, the party must, within 5 workdays of receiving the request, explain in writing why such a response is not possible, and produce the documents no later than 10 work days from the receipt of the document request. If responsive documents are withheld due to a claim of irrelevance and/or “just cause,” the withholding party must provide the requesting party with a written explanation of each claim, no later than 10 workdays from the receipt of the document request. The party requesting the documents has the option of demanding, in writing, that the grievance process temporarily halt until the documents are provided. (An employee's demand shall be presented to the agency's Human Resources Office.)
Documents pertaining to non-parties that are relevant to the grievance shall be produced in such a manner as to preserve the privacy of the individuals not personally involved in the grievance. A party shall not be required to create a document if the document does not exist. The party requesting the documents may be charged the actual cost to retrieve and duplicate the documents.
If a document request is denied prior to the appointment of a hearing officer, then the requesting party may seek relief from EDR pursuant to the rules for Party Noncompliance. See, “Party Noncompliance,” §6.3. After a hearing officer is appointed, relief should be sought from the hearing officer. See “Authority of the Hearing Officer,” §5.7.
In computing any period of time required by this
procedure, the day of the event from which the designated period
of time begins to run shall not be included.
Example: If a step-respondent receives the grievance “Form
A” from an employee on Tuesday, then Wednesday is considered
the first of the 5 workdays in which the step-respondent must respond
to the grievance. Assuming a normal workweek (Monday through Friday),
then Wednesday is counted as day 1 and the response from the step-respondent
will be due on the following Tuesday, day 5.
Upon mutual agreement, parties to a grievance may extend all pre-qualification time limits including, but not limited to, the 30 calendar day grievance initiation requirement. After a hearing officer is assigned, a request for postponement of the hearing must be directed to the hearing officer. To be enforceable, ALL EXTENSION AGREEMENTS BETWEEN THE PARTIES MUST BE IN WRITING.
§8.5 Consolidation of Grievances for Hearing
Prior to the appointment of a hearing officer, multiple grievances may be treated by the parties in a joint manner, without a ruling from EDR. For instance, the parties could agree to address two or more grievances at any given management step after which the step-respondent could issue a single response that addresses the issues and relief raised in each of the grievances. However, only EDR can consolidate multiple grievances for a single hearing. Accordingly, if more than one grievance is pending involving the same: (1) factual background, and (2) issues or policies, either party may request consolidation for hearing purposes. EDR strongly favors consolidation and will grant consolidation for hearing purposes unless there is a persuasive reason to process the grievances individually. EDR may consolidate grievances for hearing without a request from either party. After a hearing officer has been appointed, EDR will not accept requests for consolidation for hearing except under extraordinary circumstances.
Employees are to be granted administrative leave to consult with EDR, to serve as a representative for an employee within the agency, and to appear as a witness in a grievance matter. Employees are also granted administrative leave to participate in the steps of the grievance process. Agencies may grant the employee reasonable time to prepare for the presentation of the grievance.
Reasonable costs for transportation, meals, and lodging are to be reimbursed in accordance with state travel regulations.
§8.7 Reasonable Accommodations for Disabled Persons
The agency must provide reasonable accommodations for disabled persons participating in the grievance process.
§8.8 Use of Agency Office Equipment
Grievances are official business. Therefore, in processing grievances, parties and state employee representatives of parties may make reasonable use of agency office equipment including computers, copiers, fax machines, and telephones.
§8.9 Identifying Step Respondents and Agency Heads
Each agency has designated individuals to serve as
respondents in the resolution steps. These designations are available
at the agency's Human Resources Office and from EDR.
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Revised August 30, 2004