2021 City-wide Contract Site

ARTICLE X EVALUATIONS AND PERSONNEL FOLDERS

Section 1.

An employee shall be required to accept a copy of any evaluatory statement of the employee's work performance or conduct prepared during the term of this Agreement if such statement is to be placed in the employee's permanent personnel folder whether at the central office of the agency or in another work location. Prior to being given a copy of such evaluatory statement, the employee must sign a form, which shall indicate only that the employee was given a copy of the evaluatory statement but that the employee does not necessarily agree with its contents. The employee shall have the right to answer any such evaluatory statement filed and the answer shall be attached to the file copy. Any evaluatory statement with respect to the employee's work performance or conduct, a copy of which is not given to the employee, may not be used in any subsequent disciplinary actions against the employee. At the time disciplinary action is commenced, the Employer shall review the employee's personnel folder and remove any of the herein described material, which has not been seen by the employee.

An employee shall be permitted to view the employee's personnel folder once a year and when an adverse personnel action is initiated against the employee by the Employer. The viewing shall be in the presence of a designee of the Employer and held at such time and place as the Employer may prescribe.

Section 2.

If an employee finds in the employee's personnel folder any material relating to the employee's work performance or conduct in addition to evaluatory statements prepared after July 1, 1967 (or the date the agency came under the provisions of the Citywide Agreement, whichever is later), the employee shall have the right to answer any such material filed and the answer shall be attached to the file copy.

Table of Contents

ARTICLE XI CIVIL SERVICE, CAREER DEVELOPMENT

Section 1.

When vacancies in promotional titles covered by this Agreement are authorized to be filled by the appropriate body and the agency with such vacancies decides to fill them, a notice of such vacancies shall be posted in all relevant areas of the agency involved at least five (5) working days prior to filling except when such vacancies are to be filled on an emergency basis. Present agency agreements on this subject shall not be affected by this Section.

Section 2.

a. The duly certified union representative shall be given a copy of proposed changes in job specifications for any title certified to such union for its perusal at least seven (7) working days in advance of the final approval of such changes.

b. Notice of final revisions shall be distributed to all affected agencies and shall be posted in appropriate areas for thirty (30) days.

Section 3.

The Employer's contribution to all existing and any newly negotiated Training Fund agreements may be applied, by the agreement of the parties, to a mutually agreed upon Training Trust Fund for the purpose of establishing and administering a plan to provide opportunities for training and education for covered employees beyond those provided by the Department of Personnel. The Training Trust Fund shall plan, administer, and coordinate all training programs to be financed by the Training Fund. Such training programs shall be designed to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of employees covered by the agreement and to prepare such persons for advancement and upgrading.

The Training Trust Funds and training programs shall be subject to fiscal audit by the Comptroller of the City of New York and to prior approval and performance audit by the Department of Personnel.

All factual data necessary to evaluate the programs shall be furnished to the Department of Personnel by the Training Trust Fund. The Department of Personnel shall respond within thirty (30) days stating its objection, if any, to the proposed program.

Section 4.

After promotion, if an employee is returned to his/her former title in accordance with existing City Personnel Director's rules and regulations, the employee may request of the Employer a conference to discuss the basis for the employee's return to the former title. The Employer's decision is neither arbitrable nor reviewable under the Civil Service Law or the Rules and Regulations of the Health and Hospitals Corporation.

Section 5.

An employee on a promotion list who is on a leave of absence without pay shall be notified prior to promotions being made past the employee's list number at the last address of record on file with the City Department of Personnel or the Office of Personnel Management of the Health and Hospitals Corporation.

Section 6.

Time served by an employee in a higher assignment level of the employee's permanent title shall count towards the lock-in of the employee's salary at a lower level of that title.

Section 7.

The hiring agency or Department of Personnel, as applicable, shall notify all eligibles at least one week in advance of scheduled hiring or promotional pools or interviews from civil service lists.

Table of Contents

ARTICLE XII UNION RIGHTS

Section 1.

a. Where orientation kits are supplied to new employees, unions certified to represent such employees shall be permitted to have included in the kits union literature, provided such literature is first approved for such purpose by the Office of Labor Relations.

b. The Employer shall distribute to all newly hired employees information regarding their union administered health and security benefits, including the name and address of the fund that administers said benefits, provided such fund supplies the Employer the requisite information printed in sufficient quantities.

c. The Employer shall distribute information regarding the New York City Employee Health Benefits Program and enrollment forms to eligible employees prior to the completion of thirty (30) days of employment.

Section 2.

Each certified union shall have reasonable access to its dues check off authorization cards in the custody of the Employer.

Section 3.

When an employee transfers from one agency to another, but remains in the same bargaining unit, the employee shall continue to be covered by the same dues check off authorization card and not be required to sign another authorization card. The agency where the employee was formerly employed shall transfer the check off authorization card to the employee's new agency.

The Employer will issue an appropriate administrative instruction to all agencies to insure compliance with this Section.

Section 4.

When an employee is promoted or reclassified to another title certified to the same union as the employee's former title, the dues check off shall continue uninterrupted. The Employer will issue an appropriate administrative instruction to all agencies to insure compliance with this Section.

Section 5.

When an employee returns from an approved leave of absence without pay, is re-appointed or temporarily appointed from a preferred list to the same agency in the same title or in another title represented by the ame certified union, any dues check off authorization in effect prior to the approved leave or the layoff shall be reactivated. The Employer will issue an appropriate administrative instruction to all agencies to insure compliance with this Section.

Section 6.

The Employer shall furnish to a certified union, once a year between March 15 and July 1, a listing of employees by Job Title Code, home address when available, Social Security Number and Department Code Number, as of December 31st of the preceding year. This information shall be furnished to a certified union through the Municipal Labor Committee.

Section 7.

a. District Council 37 or any other certified union presented by D.C. 37 for the purposes of this Agreement which elects to participate in a separate segregated fund established pursuant to applicable law, including Title 2 USC, Section 441b, to receive contributions to be used for the support of candidates for federal office shall have the exclusive right in conformance with applicable law to the check off for such political purposes in a manner as described in a supplemental agreement hereby incorporated by reference into this Agreement.

b. Any eligible employee covered by this Agreement may voluntarily authorize in writing the deduction of such contributions from the employee's wages for such purpose in an authorization form acceptable to the employer which bears the signature of the employee.

c. A copy of the Summary Annual Report to the Federal Elections Commission ("FEC") of each fund shall be submitted by the appropriate participating union to the Comptroller and OLR at the time of its submission to the FEC.

Table of Contents

ARTICLE XIII WELFARE FUNDS

Section 1.

a. Welfare fund contributions shall remain uniform for those employees whose respective certified unions have elected to receive the uniform contributions provided by this Article. Upon the execution of an election, welfare fund contributions shall be made uniform for those employees whose respective certified unions have not heretofore elected the uniform contributions. Under such election, welfare fund contributions shall be permanently reserved for citywide bargaining.This shall not, however, preclude the right of any certified union to bargain for welfare fund coverage for groups of employees not now included in welfare fund agreements.

b. Effective January 1, 1979, District Council 37 or any of its affiliated locals or any other certified union which elects to be covered by this Section, shall be entitled to receive such separate contributions as may be provided in this Agreement for welfare, training and legal services benefits, as a single contribution. This contribution shall be paid by the Employer into a trusteed administrative Benefits Fund Trust and shall be held by the trustees of that fund for the exclusive purpose of providing, through other trusteed funds, welfare, training and legal service benefits for the employees so covered as well as any other benefits as the Employer and the certified union may agree upon. Such administrative Benefits Fund Trust contribution by the Employer shall be subject to a separate agreement between the Employer and the union. Such agreement shall include among its provisions that the Employer shall continue to have the right to review and approve the distribution of funds to and the level of benefits provided by the individual funds. The individual funds shall also continue to be subject to a separate agreement between the Employer and the union.
In those instances where the contributions for welfare, training and legal service benefits derive from more than one unit agreement and those unit agreements are not uniform as to each other with respect to the aforesaid contributions, the Employer shall have no obligation to comply with the immediately above paragraph unless and until each particular unit agreement contains a provision agreeing to waive the relevant contribution provided for in the unit agreement in question.

Section 2.Full-Time Employees:

a. For those full-time employees who are in a welfare fund whose certified union has elected the uniform contribution rates pursuant to Section 1 of this Article XIII, the Employer shall contribute in the pro-rata annual amounts set forth below, effective the dates indicated below, per full-time employee for remittance to the Welfare Fund subject to a signed separate trusted fund agreement between the Employer and the union.

Effective Date Amount

                                                     July 1, 1995                          $1,125¹

                                                     July 1, 1996                          $1,125

                                                March 1, 1998²                          $1,200

                                                   June 1, 1999³                         $1,275

¹The contribution paid to each applicable welfare fund on behalf of full-time per annum employees shall be reduced by a one-time amount of one hundred dollars ($100) for each such full-time per annum employee who was eligible for welfare fund benefits on July 1, 1995.

²For employees covered by Unit Agreements with a commencement date of January 1, 1995 the effective date shall be December 1, 1997.

³For employees covered by Unit Agreements with a commencement date of January 1, 1995 the effective date shall be March 1. 1999.

b. Effective July 31, 1999 the Employer shall make a one hundred dollar ($100) one-time payment to each Welfare Fund on behalf of each full-time per annum employee who, pursuant to Paragraph 2(a), is receiving benefits on July 31, 1999.

Section 3.

For each part-time per annum, hourly, per diem, per session and seasonal employee who is covered by a welfare fund whose certified union has elected the uniform contribution rates pursuant to Article XIII, Section 1 of the City of the Citywide Agreement, and who works on a regular basis at least one half the regular hours of full-time employees in the same title¹ and who is not covered otherwise eligible for a welfare fund contribution in said employees' behalf, the Employer shall contribute in the pro-rata annual amounts set forth below, effective the dates indicated below, per employee for remittance to the Welfare Fund, subject to a signed agreement between the Employer and the Union.

                                  Effective Date:            Amount

                                  July 1, 1995              $642.86¹

                                  July 1, 1996              $642.86

                                  March 1, 1998²            $685.71

                                  June 1, 1999³             $728.57

¹The contribution paid to each applicable welfare fund on behalf of part-time per annum, hourly, per diem, per session and seasonal employees shall be reduced by a one-time amount of $57.14 for each such part-time per annum, hourly, per diem, per session and seasonal employee who was eligible for welfare benefits on July 1, 1995.

²For employees covered by the Unit Agreements with a commencement date of January 1, 1995 the effective date shall be December 1, 1997.

³For employees covered by Unit Agreements with a commencement date of
January 1, 1995 the effective date shall be March 1, 1999.

b. Effective July 31, 1999, the Employer shall make a fifty-seven dollar and fourteen cents ($57.14) one-time payment to each Welfare Fund on behalf of each part-time per annum, hourly, per diem, per session and seasonal employee who, pursuant to Section 3(a), is receiving benefits on July 31, 1999.

c. If no full time equivalent title exists, then the minimum number of hours required to be eligible to receive a contribution pursuant to this Section shall be based on the nature of employment as follows:

White Collar Employment	17 1/2 hours per week
Blue Collar Employment	20 hours per week

Section 4.

Employees who have been separated from service subsequent to June 30, 1970 and who were in a welfare fund subject to the provisions of the above Section 2 and 3 at the time of such separation, the Employer shall, subject to a signed separate agreement between the Employer and the union, contribute to the Welfare Fund on the same contributory basis as incumbent employees.

Section 5.

For those employees who are covered by any other welfare fund and whose certified union elects the uniform contributions provided in this Article, the Employer shall make an equal contribution for remittance to such welfare fund subject to a separate agreement between the Employer and such Union.

Section 6.

a. District Council 37 and certified unions which elect to be covered by the uniform contributions provided for in this Article shall make every reasonable effort to publicize and disseminate to all employees covered under their respective welfare funds, whether members of the Union or not, full and complete information concerning the provisions thereof, including but not limited to, the following matters:

i. benefits provided and eligibility requirements

ii. procedures including the filing of applications, and

iii. where and when information may be obtained concerning such benefits.

b. District Council 37 and the other certified unions which elect to be covered by this Article shall furnish information and applications readily and expeditiously to all covered employees on an equal basis.

Section 7.

District Council 37 or a certified union which elects to be covered by this Article may allow the welfare fund to utilize an amount not to exceed ten dollars ($10) per employee per year from welfare fund contributions to help defray the costs of health insurance and pension counseling for such employees.

Section 8.

a. When a title not previously covered by any welfare fund becomes certified to a union, welfare fund payments shall be made to the appropriate union welfare fund pursuant to the terms of this Article effective the January 1st or July 1st next following the date of petition for certification.

b. When a title or titles previously covered by the same welfare fund are reclassified, broad handed, or consolidated into new title(s), welfare fund payments shall continue to be made to said welfare fund pursuant to to the terms of this Article pending the final decision of the Board of Certification as to the bargaining status of the new title(s)

c. When there is certification dispute involving a title not previously covered by any welfare fund or titles previously covered by different welfare funds which have been reclassified, broad handed, or consolidated into new tile(s), such title(s) shall be covered by the Management Benefits Fund pending the final decision of the Board of Certification as to the bargaining status of the title(s).

d. When a title has been covered by the Management Benefits Fund or a different union welfare fund prior to becoming certified to a union, welfare fund payments shall be made to the appropriate union welfare fund pursuant to the terms of this Article effective the first day of the month (60) days subsequent to the date of actual certification.

Section 9.

District Council 37 or a certified union which elects to be covered by this Article may, pursuant to a separate agreement between the Employer and the certified union, utilize a portion of its welfare fund contributions to provide pre paid legal services for employees.

Section 10.

a. Training trust funds and welfare funds shall be audited by a certified public accountant to be selected by the trustees of such fund and at the expense of the respective fund. The results of such audits shall be submitted promptly to the Comptroller of the City of New York and such funds shall be subject to further audit by the Comptroller.

b. In lieu of the annual report to the Comptroller required by the separate welfare fund agreement between the Employer and the certified union, the welfare fund may submit a copy of its ERISA filing.

Section 11.

Where an employee is suspended without pay for disciplinary reasons and is subsequently restored to full pay status as of the effective date of the suspension, the employer shall make any necessary contributions to the welfare fund covering such employee to permit said employee to receive full welfare fund and New York City Employee Health Benefits Program Insurance coverage for the period of the suspension.

Section 12.

The Unions have agreed to provide welfare fund benefits to domestic partners of covered employees in the same manner as those benefits are provided to spouses of married covered employees.

Table of Contents

ARTICLE XIV OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH

Section 1.

The Employer shall establish a Citywide Occupational Safety and Health Committee, the members of which shall be appointed by the Mayor and shall include union representation. The Director of the Citywide Office on Safety and Health shall serve, ex officio, as Chairperson of this Committee.
The Citywide Occupational Safety and Health Committee shall recommend citywide employee safety and health policy to the Mayor and shall assume the duties and responsibilities of the Occupational Safety and Health Planning Task Force created by Mayor's Executive Order No. 58, dated May 6, 1976, and shall also assume the citywide safety responsibilities of the City Director of Personnel contained in Mayor's Executive Order No. 109, dated August 28, 1969. In addition, this Committee shall act as the City's liaison with Federal and State Agencies, in efforts to obtain grants to finance City employee safety and health programs and shall perform any additional tasks assigned by the Mayor.

Section 2.

a. Adequate, clean, structurally safe and sanitary working facilities shall be provided for all employees.

b. Motor vehicles and power equipment which are in compliance with minimum standards of applicable law shall be provided to employees who are required to use such devices.

c. Where necessary, first aid chests, adequately marked and stocked, shall be provided by the Employer in sufficient quantity for the number of employees likely to need them and such chests shall be reasonably accessible to the employees.

d. A Labor Management Health and Safety Committee shall be established in each agency. Each committee shall be composed of not less than three nor more than five labor representatives designated by the Union and not more than an equivalent number of management representatives designated by the agency. The appropriate number of such representatives shall be determined jointly. If agreement on the number cannot be reached such number shall be determined by the Commissioner of Labor Relations.
The Committee shall meet at least quarterly and shall meet at the written request of the labor or the management representatives for the purpose of discussing health and safety problems in the agency and making recommendations for their resolution to the agency head. The written request for such a meeting shall indicate the specific condition for which the meeting is called.
In addition to the above-described committee, sub committees may be established on an ad hoc basis upon agreement of the parties.

e. The sole remedy for alleged violations of this Section shall be a grievance pursuant to Article XV of this Agreement. Any employee who withholds services as a means of redressing or otherwise protesting alleged violations of this Section shall be docked pay for any unauthorized non performance of work and may be subject to any appropriate disciplinary action.

f. In construing this Section, an arbitrator shall initially have the power only to decide whether the subject facilities meet the standards of subsection (a) of this Section 2 but may not affirmatively direct how the Employer should comply with this Section. If the arbitrator determines that the Employer is in violation of this Section, the Employer shall take appropriate steps to remedy the violation. If in the opinion of the Union the Employer does not achieve compliance within a reasonable period of time, the Union may reassert its claim to the arbitrator. Upon such second submission, if the arbitrator finds that the Employer has had a reasonable time to comply with the terms of this Section and has failed to do so, then and only then, the arbitrator may order the Employer to follow a particular course of action which will effectuate compliance with the terms of this Section. However, such remedy shall not exceed appropriations available in the current budget allocation for the involved agency for such purposes.

g. In any enclosed facility where employees are assigned to work, the Employer shall make reasonable efforts to provide for the personal security of employees while they are working.

h. When the Employer becomes aware of a safety hazard which the Employer considers an imminent physical danger to employees at a work site, the Employer shall remove the employees from the affected area.

i. The Employer shall provide to the Municipal Labor Committee a copy of the results of environmental testing by the City of a City work site and statistics resulting from special medical testing of employees.

Table of Contents

ARTICLE XV ADJUSTMENT OF DISPUTES

Section 1.

The term "grievance" shall mean a dispute concerning the application or interpretation of the terms of this Agreement.

Section 2.

The grievance procedure shall be as follows:

Step I The employee and/or the Union shall present the grievance in writing to the person designated by the agency head for such purpose, not later than one hundred twenty (120) days after the date on which the grievance arose. The employee may also request an appointment to discuss the grievance. The person designated to hear the grievance shall take any steps necessary to a proper disposition of the grievance and shall reply in writing by the end of the third work day, following the date of submission.

Step II An appeal from an unsatisfactory determination at Step I shall be presented in writing to the agency head or the agency head's designated representative, who shall not be the same person designated in Step I. The appeal must be made within five (5) working days of the receipt of the Step I determination. The agency head or the agency head's designated representative if any, shall meet with the employee and/or the Union for review of the grievance and shall issue a written determination by the end of the tenth work day following the date on which the appeal was filed.

Step III An appeal from an unsatisfactory determination at Step II shall be presented by the employee and/or the Union to the Commissioner of Labor Relations in writing, within ten (10) working days of the receipt of the Step II determination. Copies of such appeals shall be sent to the agency head. The Commissioner of Labor Relations, or the Commissioners' designee shall review all such appeals from Step II determinations and shall make and issue a written determination within fifteen (15) working days following the date on which the appeal was filed.

Step IV An appeal from an unsatisfactory determination at Step III may be brought solely by the Union to the Office of Collective Bargaining for impartial arbitration within fifteen (15) working days of receipt of the Step III determination. In addition, the Employer shall have the right to bring directly to arbitration any dispute between the parties concerning any matter defined herein as a "grievance." The Employer shall commence such arbitration by submitting a written request therefor to the Office of Collective Bargaining. A copy of the notice requesting impartial arbitration shall be forwarded to the opposing party. The arbitration shall be conducted in accordance with the Title 61 of the Rules of the City Of New York (formerly referred to as the Consolidated Rules of the Office of Collective Bargaining). The costs and fees of such arbitration shall be borne equally by the Union and the Employer.

A transcript of all arbitration hearings shall be taken unless the taking of a transcript is waived by both parties. The cost of one copy of the transcript for each party and for the arbitrator shall be borne equally by the parties.

Both the Employer and the Union will request the arbitrator to make every reasonable effort to issue the decision within thirty (30) days. The arbitrator's decision, order or award shall be limited to the application and interpretation of this Agreement, and the arbitrator shall not add to, subtract from or modify this Agreement. The arbitrator's award shall be final and binding and enforceable in any appropriate tribunal in accordance with Article 75 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules. An arbitrator may provide for and direct such relief as the arbitrator deems necessary and proper, subject to the limitations set forth above and any applicable limitations of law.

Section 3.

As a condition to the right of a Union to invoke impartial arbitration set forth in this Article, the employee or employees and the Union shall be required to file with the Director of the Office of Collective Bargaining a written waiver of the right, if any, of the employee or employees and the Union to submit the underlying dispute to any other administrative or judicial tribunal except for the purpose of enforcing the arbitrator's award.

Section 4.

Any grievance of a general nature affecting a large group of employees and which concerns the claimed misinterpretation, inequitable application, violation or failure to comply with the provisions of this Agreement shall be filed at the option of the Union at Step III of the grievance procedure, without resort to previous steps.

Section 5.

If a decision satisfactory to the Union at any level of the grievance procedure is not implemented within a reasonable time, the Union may reinstitute the original grievance at Step III of the grievance procedure; or if a satisfactory Step III determination has not been so implemented, the Union may institute a grievance concerning such failure to implement at Step IV of the grievance procedure.

Section 6.

If the Employer exceeds any time limit prescribed at any step in the grievance procedure, the grievant and/or the Union may invoke the next step of the procedure, except, however, that only the Union may invoke impartial arbitration under Step IV.

Section 7.

The Employer shall notify the Union in writing of all grievances filed by employees, all grievance hearings, and all determinations. The Union or a public employee organization which has been designated by the Union to represent the grievant or grievants shall have the right to have a representative present at any grievance hearing and shall be given forty eight (48) hours' notice of all grievance hearings.

Section 8.

Each of the steps in the grievance procedure, as well as time limits prescribed at each step of this grievance procedure, may be waived by mutual agreement of the parties.

Section 9.

The grievance and arbitration procedure contained in this agreement shall be the exclusive remedy for the resolution of disputes defined as "grievances" herein. This shall not be interpreted to preclude either party from enforcing the arbitrator's award in court. This Section shall not be construed in any manner to limit the statutory rights and obligations of the Employer under Article XIV of the Civil Service Law.

Section 10. FLSA Dispute Procedure

a. Any dispute, controversy or claim concerning or arising out of the application or interpretation of the Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA Controversy") shall be submitted by a claimant in accordance with this section.

b. Any FLSA Controversy must be presented in writing and in the form prescribed by the FLSA Panel no later than sixty days after the date on which such FLSA Controversy arose.

c. i. Any FLSA Controversy arising out of a claimed wrongful computation of benefits shall be submitted by an employee in writing to the applicable agency head or designee for review and resolution. A copy shall also be submitted to the Office of Labor Relations and to the Union. The agency shall have thirty days to resolve the matter and issue a written decision; such period may be extended by mutual agreement of the parties.

ii. If the matter is not satisfactorily resolved at the agency level, the claimant may, within two weeks after receipt of the agency determination, appeal the matter to the FLSA Panel in writing.

d. The FLSA Panel shall consist of a representative designated by the Municipal Labor Committee and a representative designated by the Commissioner of the Office of Labor Relations of the City of New York.The FLSA Panel shall establish appropriate forms and procedures to promptly review and resolve all FLSA Controversies submitted to it.

e. Any FLSA Controversy arising out of the classification of a position or group of positions as exempt or non exempt from the FLSA shall be submitted by an employee in writing to the FLSA Panel.
A copy of any FLSA Controversy concerning a HHC title which is submitted to the FLSA Panel pursuant to this Section 10(e) shall be forwarded immediately by the Panel to the HHC's Office of Vice President for Human Resources. If the Panel deems it necessary to the proper resolution of said FLSA Controversy, it shall consult with HHC prior to issuance of its determination.
The Panel shall take any steps necessary for a proper disposition of any FLSA Controversy and shall issue a written determination within sixty days following the date of submission thereof. The FLSA Panels' time may be extended by mutual agreement of the parties. The decision of the Panel shall be final.

f. Notwithstanding the provisions of this Section 10, the submission of a dispute by an employee under this procedure shall not constitute a waiver of the employee's rights under the FLSA.

Section 11. VDT Operators Dispute Procedure

For purposes of this Section 11, the term "grievance" shall mean a dispute concerning the application or misinterpretation of Article XVII. Employees may at any time informally discuss with their supervisors a matter, which may become a dispute. If the results of such a discussion are unsatisfactory, the Union may present the grievance at Step I.

STEP I The Union shall present the grievance in the form of a memorandum to the person designated for such purpose by the Commissioner of Labor Relations no later than 120 days after the date on which the dispute arose except a dispute concerning employees of the Health and Hospitals Corporation shall be filed directly at STEP I(a) of this dispute procedure. The Commissioner of Labor Relations or the Commissioners' designee shall investigate the grievance and shall issue a determination within thirty (30) work days of the receipt of the grievance, except, a determination involving a dispute arising pursuant to subsections 5(f) and 5(g) of Article XVII or an appeal from STEP I(a) shall be issued within fifteen (15) work days following the date of its receipt.

STEP I(a) Health and Hospitals Corporation Only:

The Union shall present the grievance in the form of a memorandum to the person designated for such purpose by the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation's Vice President for Human Resources no later than 120 days after the date on which the dispute arose. The Vice President for Human Resources or the Vice President's designee shall investigate the grievance and shall issue a determination within thirty (30) workdays of the receipt of the grievance. An appeal from an unsatisfactory determination at STEP I(a) shall be presented in writing to the Commissioner of Labor Relations or the Commissioners' designee within ten (10) work days of the receipt of the STEP I(a) determination.

STEP II An appeal from an unsatisfactory determination at STEP I may be brought by the Union to the Office of Collective Bargaining for impartial arbitration within fifteen (15) work days of receipt of the STEP I determination. In addition, the Employer shall have the right to bring directly to arbitration any dispute between the parties concerning any matter defined herein as a "grievance". The Employer shall commence such arbitration by submitting a written request therefore to the Office of Collective Bargaining. A copy of the notice requesting impartial arbitration shall be forwarded to the opposing party. The arbitration shall be conducted in accordance with the Consolidated Rules of the Office of Collective Bargaining. The costs and fees of such arbitration shall be borne equally by the Union and the Employer.

Both the Employer and the Union will request the arbitrator to make every reasonable effort to issue the decision within thirty (30) days. The arbitrator's decision, order or award (if any) shall be limited to the application and interpretation of the Article XVII and the arbitrator shall not add to, subtract from or modify said Article. The arbitrator's award shall be final and binding and enforceable in any appropriate tribunal in accordance with Article 75 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules. The arbitrator may provide for and direct such relief as the arbitrator deems necessary and proper, subject to the limitations set forth above and any applicable limitations of law.

Each of the steps in the dispute procedure, as well as the time limits prescribed at each step of this dispute procedure, may be waived by mutual agreement of the parties.

Table of Contents

ARTICLE XVI DISCIPLINARY PROCEDURE FOR PROVISIONAL EMPLOYEES

When a claimed wrongful disciplinary action has been taken against a provisional employee who has served for two years* in the same or similar title or related occupational group in the same agency, the following procedure shall govern upon service of written charges of in competency or misconduct:

STEP A Following the service of written charges, a conference with such employee shall be held with respect to such charges by the person designated by the agency head to review a grievance at STEP I of the Grievance Procedure set forth in Article XV of this Agreement. The employee may be represented at such conference by a representative of the Union. The person designated by the agency head to review the charges shall take any steps necessary to a proper disposition of the charges and shall issue a determination in writing by the end of the fifth day following the date of the conference.

STEP B(i) If the employee is not satisfied with the determination at STEP A above, then the employee may choose to proceed in accordance with the Grievance Procedure set forth in Article XV of this Agreement through STEP III. The Union, with the consent of the employee, shall have the right to proceed to binding arbitration pursuant to STEP IV of such Grievance Procedure. The period of an employee's suspension without pay pending hearing and determination of charges shall not exceed thirty (30) days.

STEP B(ii) An appeal from the determination of STEP A above shall be made to the agency head or designated representative. The appeal must be made in writing within five (5) work days of the receipt of the determination. The agency head or designated representative shall meet with the employee and the Union for review of the grievance and shall issue a determination to the employee and the Union by the end of the tenth work day following the day on which the appeal was filed. The agency head or designated representative shall have the power to impose the discipline, if any, decided upon, up to and including termination of the accused employee's employment. In the event of such termination or suspension without pay totaling more than thirty (30) days, the Union with the consent of the grievant may elect to skip STEP C of this Section and proceed directly to STEP D.

STEP C If the grievant is not satisfied with the determination of the agency head or designated representative the grievant or the Union may appeal to the Commissioner of Labor Relations in writing within ten (10) days of the determination of the agency head or designated representative. The Commissioner of Labor Relations shall issue a written reply to the grievant and the Union within fifteen (15) work days.

STEP D If the grievant is not satisfied with the determination of the Commissioner of Labor Relations, the Union with the consent of the grievant may proceed to arbitration pursuant to the procedures set forth in STEP IV of the Grievance Procedure set forth in Article XV of this Agreement.

See Article I, Section 5(e).

Table of Contents

ARTICLE XVII JOB SECURITY

Section 1. General Layoff Provisions

Where layoffs are scheduled affecting full-time per annum employees in competitive class, non-competitive class, and labor classes the following procedures shall be used:

a. Notice shall be provided by the Office of Municipal Labor Relations to the appropriate union not less than thirty (30) days before the effective dates of such projected layoffs.
Notice shall be provided by the Office of Labor Relations to the appropriate union(s) not less than thirty (30) days before the effective dates of projected layoffs. Such notification(s) shall apply to all proposed layoffs and shall include a summary by layoff unit of the number of affected positions by title (including title code number and civil service status) and shall also include in addition to the above information the name, social security number, city start date, and title start date of each affected employee.
It is understood by the parties that such notice is considered to be preliminary and is subject to change during the 30 days notice period. However, if new title(s) which were not part of the original notice are added to the proposed layoff notice or the number of employees in title(s) contained in the original notice is increased beyond the number in the original notice, an additional 30 days notice will be given to the affected union(s) covering solely such additional title(s) or numbers, except, such additional 30 days notice shall not apply to employees displaced by the "bumping" provisions mandated by the Civil Service Law or by appointments from special transfer, preferred, or other civil service lists. The parties may waive such additional notice by mutual consent.

b. Within such 30 day period designated representatives of the Employer will meet and confer with the designated representatives of the appropriate union with the objective of considering feasible alternatives to all or part of such scheduled layoffs, including but not limited to:

i. the transfer of employees to other agencies with retraining, if necessary, consistent with Civil Service law but without regard to the Civil Service title,

ii. the use of Federal and State funds whenever possible to retain or re-employ employees scheduled for layoff,

iii. the elimination or reduction of the amount of work contracted out to independent contractors, and

iv. encouragement of early retirement and the expediting of the processing of retirement applications.

c. After meeting and conferring with the designated representatives of the appropriate union, the Employer shall have the right, when necessary, to transfer any employee, in lieu of layoff, from one agency to another provided such transfer is within title (and the employee meets all the legal requirements of the new position) and is being made without loss in pay, benefits, or seniority to the affected employee.
The following procedure shall govern:

i. Volunteers in order of title seniority.

ii. Non volunteers in order of title seniority among those who would otherwise have to be laid off in the agency from which the transfer is being made.

Section 2. Competitive Class Preferred Lists

a. When a layoff occurs, the Employer shall provide to the appropriate bargaining representative a list of permanent competitive class employees who are on a preferred list with the original date of appointment utilized for the purpose of such layoff.

b. A laid off employee who is returned to service in the employee's former title or in a comparable title from a competitive class preferred list, shall receive the basic salary rate that would have been received by the employee had the employee never been laid off, up to a maximum of two (2) years of general salary increases.

Section 3. Non-Competitive Class and Labor Class Layoff Procedures

a. If budgetary restrictions, consolidations or abolition of functions or other curtailment of activities result in the abolition of non-competitive class or labor class positions, the suspension among the incumbents in the same class of positions shall be made in inverse order of their original appointment to the agency in the subject class of positions.

b. The date of original appointment shall be the first date of appointment followed by continuous service up to the time of the abolition or reduction of positions.

c. An employee who had been terminated from the subject class of positions and who was re-appointed in the affected class of positions within one year thereafter shall for the purposes of this Section be deemed to have continuous service.

d. A period of an authorized leave of absence without pay or any period during which an employee is suspended from the employee's position pursuant to this Section shall not constitute an interruption of continuous service for the purposes of this Section.

e. In the case of non-competitive or labor class employees, the Employer may determine the layoff unit (agency, unit of appropriation, department, bureau, division, or other clearly identifiable subdivision). In such case, layoff shall be made from among incumbents in the same class of positions in each such layoff unit.

f. If the Employer designates a subdivision smaller than a unit of appropriation, department, bureau, or division as a non-competitive layoff unit or smaller than a unit of appropriation as a labor class layoff unit, the affected union may appeal such designation within 3 days of the receipt of the layoff notice to the City Director of Personnel who will issue a final and binding determination within 3 days of the receipt of such appeal.

g. Employees in affected titles in the layoff unit shall be laid off in the following order:

i. All employees in probationary status in the same title. Among them, layoff shall be in inverse order to date of original appointment.

ii. All employees who have satisfactorily completed their probationary periods in the same title. Among them, layoff shall be in inverse order to date of original appointment.

Section 4. Non-Competitive Class and Labor Class Recall Procedures

a. In the event of layoff the Employer shall place the names of such non-competitive or labor class employees on a recall list.

b. i. The Employer shall certify such recall list for filling non-competitive vacancies in the same class of positions in the unit of appropriation from which the suspensions were made, and for labor class vacancies in the same class of positions in the agency from which the suspensions were made, and for which the City Personnel Director determines they qualify. The parties may waive the terms contained in this paragraph by mutual consent.

ii. Effective November 26, 1999, the following subsection shall supercede 4(b)(i):

For filing non-competitive vacancies in the same class of positions from which the layoffs were made and for which the Commissioner of Citywide Administrative Services determines such laid off employees are qualified, the Employer shall certify such recall list to the agency from which the layoffs were made. For filing labor class vacancies in the same class of positions from which the layoffs were made, the Employer shall certify such recall list on a citywide basis. The parties may waive the terms in this paragraph by mutual consent.

c. Persons on the recall list shall be called for reinstatement in the order of their original date of appointment and upon the occurrence of a vacancy in an appropriate position in the recall unit shall be certified in seniority order. The eligibility for reinstatement of a person on such a recall list shall not continue for a period of four years from the date of separation.

d. No person suspended or demoted prior to completing his/her probationary term shall be certified for reinstatement until the exhaustion of all other eligibles on the recall list and shall be required to complete his/her probationary term upon reinstatement.

e. Failure or refusal to accept reinstatement from recall lists to vacancies in the same class of positions shall be deemed relinquishment of eligibility and the employee's name shall be removed from the list.

f. A person reinstated from a recall list to his/her former class of positions shall receive at least the same salary he/she was receiving at the time of suspension.

g. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Section, the Employer may disqualify for reinstatement and remove from a recall list the name of any eligible who is physically or mentally disabled for the performance of the duties of the position for which such list is established, or who has been guilty of such misconduct as would result in dismissal.

Section 4. Applicability

These procedures shall not apply in those agencies where layoff procedures already exist unless specifically agreed to by the Union and affected agencies.

Top of Page

Table of Contents

LINK TO ARTICLE XVIII THROUGH XXII

White Collar Employment