UNIVERSITY GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE

UNIVERSITY GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE

A. PURPOSE

To clearly delineate the responsibilities of the University Grievance Committee (“Committee”) and to define the Grievance Procedure for all employees of the University other than faculty.

B. GENERAL

If an employee of the University other than a faculty member has a good faith belief that he/she has been unfairly treated regarding the interpretation or application of an existing University policy or procedure, he/she may file a petition with the Grievance Committee. The petition shall contain all facts and information relevant to the alleged unfair treatment. The Grievance Procedure does not apply to disputes concerning rates of pay. It does apply to employment termination decisions on the condition that a petition to the Grievance Committee is filed by a former employee within ten (10) calendar days of the employment termination date.

The Grievance Committee shall investigate issues involved with the parties named in the grievance petition and make recommendation to the President.

C. ELIGIBILITY

All employees (excluding temporaries) of Creighton University other than faculty members are eligible to file a petition stating a grievance under this Procedure with the Grievance Committee.

D. DEFINITIONS

1. Petition: A written request by an eligible University employee to the Grievance Committee for consideration as a formal grievance under this Procedure.

2. Grievant: An eligible employee filer of a petition stating a grievance under this Procedure.

3. Grievance: A good faith and objective determination by the Grievance Committee that a petition sets forth a valid issue of dispute involving the interpretation or application of an existing University policy and/or procedure to a set of facts involving the grievant.

4. Grievance Date: The date the Grievance Committee records as the date of its good faith and objective decision that a petition sets forth a valid grievance.

5. Respondent: Any employee of the University named by a grievant in a grievance petition whose behavior contributes to the filing by the grievant.

E. PROCEDURE ADMINISTRATION & INTERPRETATION

The Grievance Procedure is authored by the Staff Advisory Council and is administered by the Grievance Committee at the direction of the Staff Advisory Council. The Chair of the Grievance Committee shall report directly to the President of the University. Any questions regarding interpretation or administration of this Procedure shall first be addressed to the Chair of the Grievance Committee, who will seek the advice of University General Counsel when necessary or helpful. Changes to this Procedure may be proposed by the Staff Advisory Council to the President for consideration or may be made by the President at his discretion. The Staff Advisory Council requires mediation/problem resolution training for all Grievance Committee members to help them deal fairly and objectively with petitions.

F. GRIEVANCE COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP

1. The Staff Advisory Council shall conduct an election from its membership for three members of the Grievance Committee from job classifications E-M. Of the three members, one must be from Health Sciences, one from Academic Affairs, and one from the support service areas (Administration, Finance, Student Services, and Information Technology).

2. Two members from job classifications B-D shall be appointed by the President (excluding employees from Human Resources).

3. The Grievance Committee members shall elect for a two-year term the Chair of the Grievance Committee from the five members appointed in 1 and 2 above.

4. Membership on the Grievance Committee shall be for a term of three years. Members may be reelected by the Staff Advisory Council one time, for a total of six years. Members who have served a total of six years may apply for reelection by the Council after being off the Grievance Committee for one full term (three years).

All former members of the Grievance Committee may be called back by the Chair to serve on the Grievance Committee to substitute for a current member in the instance of excused service, illness, or other inability of a member to serve.

The Staff Advisory Council shall review the objectivity and the effectiveness of the Grievance Committee and this Procedure for resolving employee disputes on an annual basis and shall make a written report to the President.

7. Any member of the Grievance Committee who has an ongoing professional or personal relationship with any party to the grievance or who otherwise believes in good faith that his/her objectivity may be compromised shall excuse herself/himself at the earliest possible time in the grievance process. The Chair will contact former members of the Grievance Committee to find a replacement member for an excused member if necessary to achieve a quorum for Grievance Committee meetings.

G. GRIEVANCE COMMITTEE MEETINGS

Any meeting of the Grievance Committee requires the attendance of a quorum of two-thirds of the full Grievance Committee membership, including the Chair.

2. All meetings of the Grievance Committee regarding a grievance petition shall be recorded as minutes of an official meeting of the Grievance Committee and shall be kept confidential. A member violating any confidentiality requirement in this Procedure shall be removed by the Staff Advisory Council and a successor shall be appointed to fill the remainder of the term.

Once the members at a meeting with a quorum present agree to accept a petition as a grievance, all members of the Grievance Committee are required to attend any/all further meetings regarding the grievance unless excused by the Chair in advance of the meeting.

H. GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE: FIRST STEPS

As a condition to an employee’s eligibility to file a petition stating a grievance, he/she must contact any member of the Grievance Committee no later than thirty (30) calendar days after the most recent incident which is the subject of the employee’s grievance, except for employment terminations as set out in Section B. above. A list of current Grievance Committee members may be obtained from the Staff Advisory Council.

At the time of contact by the grievant, the Grievance Committee member will provide the grievant with a written copy of this Procedure and any appropriate forms developed by the Grievance Committee.

The Grievance Committee members will document all contact with the grievant, with University employees and with University administrators regarding the grievance and will provide the Chair with a copy of the documentation.

4. The grievant is responsible for returning the completed grievance petition to the Grievance Committee within seven calendar days of receipt of a written copy of the Procedure. It is not the role of the Committee or any of its members to complete the petition or to counsel the grievant on the completion of the petition, except only to point out the requirements of this Procedure. The petition must clearly state:

a) Nature of grievance – relevant facts and circumstances

b) University policy(s) and/or procedure(s) the application or interpretation of which is (are) in issue

c) Person(s) against whom the petition is filed

d) Statement of desired outcome (should be realistic)

e) Supporting evidence for the position of the grievant

f) Names and telephone numbers of witnesses who have knowledge or information relevant to the grievance including names of witnesses desired to be called in support of the position of the grievant.

(Click here to download a "Grievant Form.")

5. The Grievance Committee shall proceed in good faith to make a timely and objective determination of whether or not a valid grievance exists. If the Grievance Committee determines that a valid grievance exists after its good faith objective review, it shall record the date of decision as the grievance date. The Grievance Committee shall then provide a copy of the grievance petition to the party or parties against whom the grievance is made (the respondent or respondents). Each respondent shall have the right (but shall not be obligated) to file a written response within seven (7) calendar days of receipt of the petition from the Committee and may include names and telephone numbers of witnesses desired to be called in support of the respondent. (Click here to download a "Grievant Response Form.")

6. A copy of any written response provided by a respondent shall be given to the grievant as soon as reasonably possible after receipt by the Grievance Committee, but not later than five (5) calendar days after receipt.

7. University holidays and weekends do not extend any affected time period since all calendar days are counted.

I. GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE: SETTLEMENT EXPLORATION

The Grievance Committee shall use its best efforts to first attempt to informally work out a resolution of the issues involved with the parties named in the grievance petition. If a resolution is not achieved, the Grievance Committee shall commence its formal investigation as set out in Section J. below.

J. GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE: INVESTIGATION

1. The Grievance Committee shall conduct a thorough and objective investigation of the facts giving rise to the grievance petition as it determines necessary to reach a conclusion on the merits of the grievance petition.

a) Absent special circumstances, the University will make available to the Grievance Committee relevant records and documents requested for use by the Grievance Committee in the investigation of the grievance. This information is confidential and can be used by the Committee and its members only for the limited purpose of investigating the grievance.

b) The Grievance Committee has the right to interview witnesses it determines necessary and/or helpful to the investigation including those recommended by a party to the grievance. All University employees are required to cooperate with the Grievance Committee and to provide relevant evidence or testimony to the Grievance Committee unless excused by the University President. The Rules of Evidence as applied in courts of law do not apply. Questions of relevance of particular evidence must however be addressed by the Committee regarding the importance accorded to it. Normally, the Committee will interview the witnesses listed by both the grievant and any respondent in support of his/her position.

c) The Grievance Committee may seek the advice of the General Counsel at any time during an investigation on any matter including, but not limited to, an interpretation or application of a policy or procedure, relevance of evidence, number and type of witnesses, etc.

2. The Grievance Committee shall make a formal written recommendation to the President outlining its reasons for the recommendation on a confidential basis. The recommendation will be made within ten (10) calendar days after the last witness is interviewed by the Committee. No person shall be given a copy of the Committee’s recommendation or informed of its nature except the President.

3. The decision of the President shall be final and shall be sent to all Committee members and to all parties after his review of the recommendation of the Committee.

K. GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE: PRESIDENT’S DECISION

The President shall, normally within thirty (30) calendar days after receipt of the recommendations, notify the Grievance Committee and all parties of his decision. The President may request a meeting with the Grievance Committee to discuss the investigation and its recommendations prior to rendering his decision. All decisions of the University President are final. The Committee and its members shall maintain strict confidentiality on all aspects of the investigation and its recommendations.

L. CHAIR RESPONSIBILITIES.

1. Keep and file the minutes of the Grievance Committee meetings.

2. Keep a file on each proposed/actual grievance, which shall include any documents received from either party to the grievance. A file is confidential and may not be accessed by anyone other than a Committee member other than as may be approved by the Committee.

3. Prepare and send letters and/or recommendations to the President regarding the status of any grievance.

4. Contact the grievant, and/or parties involved, three and six months following the date of the President’s decision to ensure implementation

5. Maintain and present an Annual Report to the President, and to the Staff Advisory Council containing a brief overview of all grievances filed in the previous twelve-month period, starting on August 20, but deleting all identifiable references to either a grievant or to a respondent.

6. Coordinate membership of the Grievance Committee with the Staff Advisory Council.

7. Notify all members of the Grievance Committee when a grievance has been filed and coordinate Grievance Committee meetings.

8. Monitor the required strict confidentiality by all Committee members of all grievance petition information, investigations, and recommendations.

9. Monitor each Committee Member’s performance for objectivity in the review of any grievance petition.

10. Arrange for appropriate conflict resolution/mediation training for the Grievance Committee members.