Office of Collective Bargaining > Labor Agreements > OCSEA > OCSEA Contract Table of Contents >
ARTICLE 3 - UNION RIGHTS
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This
is a labor agreement with annotations by the Office of Collective
Bargaining.
PLEASE NOTE:Language that is in bold typeface and underlined was added with this Agreement. Language that is Language in Italics are annotations added by the Office of Collective Bargaining. |
It is agreed that the Agencies covered by this Agreement shall grant reasonable access to stewards, professional union representatives and chapter officers, defined to include President and Vice President, for the purpose of administering this Agreement. The Employer may provide a representative to accompany a non-employee union representative where security or treatment considerations do not allow non-employee access.
The Union shall furnish to the Employer in writing the names of the union representatives and their respective jurisdictional areas as soon as they are designated. Any changes shall be forwarded to the Employer by the Union as soon as changes are made.
The Employer agrees to recognize a reasonable number of local stewards as designated by the Union. Stewards and chapter officers as defined above shall be allowed a reasonable amount of time away from their regular duties to administer the Agreement at the facility where they work only within their own Agency unless the Agencies involved agree to representation across agency lines. In situations where there are only a few employees of one Agency working at the facility of another Agency, agreement to such representation shall not be unreasonably withheld. In situations where there are only a few employees of one Agency in a county, the Employer agrees that the right of stewards from one Agency to represent bargaining unit employees from other Agencies shall not be unreasonably denied. The Employer recognizes that to ensure adequate union representation, in occasional or unusual circumstances limited travel time for stewards may be necessary. The Union will notify the Agency in writing of the stewards designated prior to the steward assuming any duties.
It is understood that the release of stewards is for contract administration purposes. Reasonable diligence will be exercised by stewards in performing their duties so that they do not interfere with the operational needs of the Employer. Stewards and/or union representatives requiring release time for contract administration purposes, shall follow procedures outlined in Section 25.06 of the Agreement before leaving their work location. Stewards shall contact the supervisor or designee of an area to be visited and shall secure the signature of that supervisor or designee.
There shall be no cross-agency representation except as follows: a chapter president shall be allowed to cross Agency lines to represent employees covered by this Agreement in other Agencies when those Agencies' stewards are not available. The Agencies must be housed in the same building or facility ("facility" as used in this Article is defined to mean an institution or a complex of buildings in close physical proximity to one another). Agreement to such representation shall not be unreasonably denied.
Employees who are members of a Labor-Management Committee, Health and Safety Committee or other committees established in this Agreement shall, after giving reasonable notice to their supervisor, be permitted to attend such meetings. Unless mutually agreed otherwise, such meetings will be held during normal working hours. Time off shall include any time needed to travel to the committee meeting except that no overtime will be paid if the travel time extends beyond the normal work day. Reasonable time, not to exceed one (1) hour, shall be allowed during work hours of members of any committee established by this Agreement to caucus immediately before the meeting. Employee participation in grievance meetings shall be pursuant to Article 25.
The Union may request use of State property to hold meetings. Where feasible, the Employer will provide such space. Such meetings will not interrupt state work and will not involve employees who are working. Such requests will not be unreasonably denied.
The Employer shall provide a reasonable number of bulletin boards for the use of the Union. When a bulletin board exists in a State owned trailer the Union will be provided space on the bulletin board. In locations where locked bulletin boards exist, the Union shall be responsible for the key. In Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Corrections locked bulletin boards shall be provided in the institutions. The items posted shall not be political, partisan or defamatory. The Employer shall not remove materials from union bulletin boards.
The Union shall be permitted to use the State inter and intra-office paper mail system. This usage shall be limited to matters that involve the Union and the Employer. It is not to be used for the purpose of mass mailings to membership and/or bargaining unit employees. The Employer agrees not to open employee union mail when clearly marked as such. Where security is of concern, the mail shall be opened in the presence of the addressee.
When feasible, and where equipment is currently available, Union stewards and/or officers may utilize electronic mail and/or facsimile equipment solely for contract enforcement and interpretation and grievance processing matters. Such transmissions will be primarily to expedite communication regarding such matters, will be reasonable with respect to time and volume, and limited to communications with the grievant, if any, appropriate supervisors and employee’s staff representatives. Long distance charges which may be incurred must be approved prior to transmission.
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Explanation: |
This language clarifies the use of certain technologies for the purpose of conducting Union business in the area of contract administration and grievance processing matters. |
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Attention: |
Staff Representatives, Union Officials; Agency Labor Relations Officers. |
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Instructions: |
Please note that the use of these technologies is limited to Stewards and Officers for the purpose of contract enforcement, interpretation and grievance processing. The language change in this Section is made for the specific purpose of ensuring that grievances are not solicited. Any use that deviates from the limitations of this Article are prohibited. |
Where the Employer has a structured employee
orientation program, the Union shall be permitted to make a presentation
not to exceed fifteen
(15) thirty (30)
minutes in duration regarding the Union. The Employer will notify the Union
of newly hired employees at reasonable intervals, but no later than before
a scheduled orientation session.
3.08 - Information Provided to the Union
The Employer will provide to the Union monthly a listing of all approved personnel actions involving bargaining unit employees.
The Employer will provide the Union with a list of employees who have paid union dues and fair share fees. The list will accompany the transmittal of money.
The Employer will furnish tables of organization as prepared from time to time by the agencies covered by this Agreement.
The parties will mutually share the cost of printing this Agreement.
A reasonable number of local union representatives
at any one time shall be allowed time off without pay for union business
such as for state or area-wide meetings called by OCSEA,
AFSCME Local 11 or its affiliates or state conventions or conferences called
by OCSEA, AFSCME Local 11 or AFSCME and the state AFL-CIO annual convention
or AFSCME international conventions, provided such representative shall
give reasonable notice to his/her supervisor prior to such absence. However,
with regard to state or area-wide meetings, leave requests may be limited
for up to two (2) local union representatives from the same office, institution
or division within a county. Leave requests shall not be unreasonably denied.
If there is a denial, OCB shall promptly, at the earliest possible occasion,
provide the Union with a written rational for the denial. The Union
shall provide five (5) calendar days advance written notice to the Office
of Collective Bargaining for state conventions or conferences or state
AFL-CIO annual convention or AFSCME international conventions. The Union
shall provide seven (7) calendar days advance written notice to the Office
of Collective Bargaining for all other of such absences pursuant to this section, except where
circumstances make such notice impossible, in which case the Union shall
provide as much advance notice as practicable. Any grievance under this Section shall be filed at Step 5 to be arbitrated as
soon as possible.
The President of OCSEA, AFSCME Local 11, may be placed on administrative leave pay to conduct union business. The Union shall reimburse the Employer for all costs associated with placing him/her on administrative leave with pay. Further, members of the Union's executive board, not to exceed twenty-eight (28) employees, shall be placed on administrative leave with pay for one (1) meeting every other month, not to exceed eight (8) hours. The Union shall reimburse the Employer for all costs associated with placing the employees on administrative leave with pay.
Employees on approved leave of five (5) consecutive days or less shall receive leave accruals and other benefits as if they were in an active pay status.
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Explanation: |
Changes to this Section further clarify when Union representatives may receive time off without pay for union business. Any grievances over denial of union release time shall be filed directly with the Office of Collective Bargaining and immediately advanced to Step 5 – Arbitration. Examples of “Office, institution, division within the county” include the following: |
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1. Offices: Three (3) ODOT sites in Madison County – each site is an office. |
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2. Institution: The Warren Correctional Institution and Lebanon Correctional Institution are considered separate institutions. Leave requests shall take into account shifts, classifications and work areas. |
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3. Division: Division of Parks in Franklin County at the Department of Natural Resources. |
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The “Office, institution or division within the county” distinction is subject to a reasonableness standard. |
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Attention: |
Agency Labor Relations and Payroll Officers; Staff Representatives, Union Officials. |
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Instructions: |
Union release time for state or area-wide meetings under Section 3.10 is limited as follows: |
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1. Requests for the release of more than two (2) representatives may be denied; however, approval may be limited to two (2) or less local union representatives. |
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2. The Employer shall use a “reasonableness” standard when considering all leave requests. |
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3. The Union must provide seven (7) days’ notice prior to leave for state or area-wide meetings. This is an increase from the previous five days’ notice. The Union must continue to provide five (5) days’ notice for state conventions or conferences, for state AFL-CIO annual convention or for AFSCME international convention. All requests under this Article will continue to be made through OCB by the Union. The information will be forwarded to the agency labor relations department. Payroll Officers should continue to code leave requests for five (5) days or less so leave accrual is not interrupted. |
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Effective Date: |
March 1, 2003 – February 28, 2006 |
3.11 – Union Requests for Time Off
All requests for any form of time off from work pursuant to this Article must be made by completing a form or log provided by the Employer. No employee will be granted any time off pursuant to this Article, without completing the form or log prior to the utilization of such time, and securing of permission to utilize such time. The employee shall enter on the form the time the leave commences, and upon returning the employee shall enter the return time. Employees who do not return to their worksite prior to the end of the employees’ workday shall complete the form at the beginning of the employees’ next workday. Employees who normally work out of the office, will work out an acceptable alternative union leave request procedure with their supervisor. In the absence of a mutually agreed to form the employee shall use state leave forms.
The Union shall provide a list of attendees and the hours released for relevant release time requested pursuant to Section 3.10 and Article 43. However, this requirement is not applicable to joint committee meetings with labor and management attendees; e.g., RWAC, Benefits Trust, Workforce Development and JHCC.
Where the Union currently has designated offices in any facilities or institutions, such practice will continue during the term of this Agreement. No new or additional union offices will be provided to the Union at any other state facilities.
At those facilities at which the Union does not currently have an office, the Employer will provide space for a lockable filing cabinet for the use of the Union. When available, the Union shall have access to a private area to process grievances.