19.01 Standard

No bargaining unit member shall be reduced in pay or position, suspended or removed except for just cause.  Any employee who, as a result of the action of any court, loses his or her certification and/or ability to carry a firearm, may be charged with serious misconduct and terminated without progressive discipline.  An employee who is subsequently convicted of or pleads to a felony will be subject to disciplinary action, up to termination, irrespective of any previous discipline received for the same or related conduct; and such discipline shall be deemed to satisfy the standards of just cause and shall not be grievable.  An Employer representative shall not use the knowledge of an event giving rise to the imposition of discipline to intimidate, harass, or coerce an employee.

19.02 Administrative Leave

Upon verbal notification followed within seventy-two (72) hours by written delineation of the reasons, an employee may be placed upon administrative leave with pay at regular rate.  The employees will not lose any pay, fringe benefits or seniority as the result of administrative leave. Administrative leave may be instituted as the result of the Employer's reasonable belief that the employee participated in an event or was in a condition of significant consequence to the Employer, the employee, or the public. Such administrative leave with pay shall be for the purpose of investigating the event or the condition. Administrative leave with pay shall not be considered discipline and is not subject to the grievance procedure as long as no loss of pay or benefits is incurred by the employee.

19.03 Length of Suspensions

No suspension without pay of more than ninety (90) calendar days may be given to an employee.

19.04 Pre-suspension or Pre-termination Meeting

When the Employer initiates disciplinary action which is covered by this Section, written notice of a pre-disciplinary meeting shall be given to the employee who is the subject of the pending discipline. Written notice shall include a statement of the charges, recommended disciplinary action, a summary of the evidence being brought against the employee and the date, time and place of the meeting. The meeting will be held at a location determined by the Employer. The representative of the Employer at this meeting shall be a member of the Division Staff or Facility Staff, as appointed by the director of the respective agencies or his/her designee, who is impartial and detached: i.e., not having been involved in the incident or investigation giving rise to the discipline. The employee may waive this meeting. The meeting shall be scheduled no earlier than three (3) working days following the notice to the employee. Absent any extenuating circumstances, failure to appear at the meeting will result in a waiver of the right to a meeting. Where the affected employee is on disability, or applying for disability, and is unable or unwilling to attend the meeting, he/she shall be offered the right to participate by telephone. The call shall be initiated via speakerphone in the presence of the associate and Employer representative or designee. Failure of the employee to respond to the offer or phone call shall result in the meeting proceeding without his/her presence. Any action resulting from said meeting shall not be challengeable on the basis of the employee’s absence or lack of participation.  A member who is charged, or his/her representative, may make a written request for a one-time continuance of up to forty-eight (48) hours. Such continuance shall not be unreasonably requested nor denied. A continuance may be longer than forty-eight (48) hours if mutually agreed by the parties, but in no case longer than sixty (60) days. There shall be no transcript or recording made at this meeting by either party.  The employee has the right to have a representative of his/her choice present at the meeting. The employee or his/her representative and the Employer's representative have the right to cross-examine any witnesses at the meeting or have voluntary witnesses present at the meeting to offer testimony, provided however, that the Employer maintains the right to limit the witnesses' testimony to matters relevant to the proposed suspension or termination and to limit redundant testimony. The Employer shall first present the reasons for the proposed disciplinary action. The employee may, but is not required to give testimony. After having considered all evidence and testimony presented at the meeting, the Employer's representative shall, within twenty (20) working days of the conclusion of the meeting, submit a written recommendation to the Employer, the employee and the Labor Council representative involved.  The parties understand that this meeting is informal and not a substitute for the grievance and arbitration procedure.  The Employer shall render a decision within a reasonable period of time to accept, reject, or modify the recommendations.  The employee and the Labor Council representative shall be notified by the Employer of the final disposition of the statement of charges.

19.05 Progressive Discipline

The Employer will follow the principles of progressive discipline. Disciplinary action shall be commensurate with the offense. At the Employer’s discretion, disciplinary action shall include:

1. Verbal Reprimand (with appropriate notation in employee's file);

2. Written Reprimand;

3. One or more fines in an amount of one (1) to five (5) days pay for any form of discipline. The first time fine for an employee shall not exceed three (3) days pay;

4. Suspension;

5. Leave reduction of one or more day(s);

6. Working suspension;

7. Demotion;

8. Termination.  However, more severe discipline may be imposed at any point if the infraction or violation merits the more severe action.  The Employer, at its discretion, is also free to impose less severe discipline in situations which so warrant.  The deduction of fines from an employee's wages shall not require the employee's authorization for the withholding of fines from the employee's wages.

19.06 Suspension Options and Implementation Procedure

If a bargaining unit employee receives discipline which includes lost wages or fines, the Employer, at its discretion, may offer the following forms of corrective action:

1. Actually having the employee serve the designated number of days suspended without pay; or pay the designated fine; or

2. Having the employee deplete his/her accrued personal leave, vacation, or compensatory  leave banks of hours, or a combination of any of these banks under such terms as may be mutually agreed to between the Employer, employee, and Union.