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| Human
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Rules
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| Personnel
Rules and Regulations |
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RULE
14B - EMPLOYEE GRIEVANCE PROCEDURES - GENERAL EMPLOYEES
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14B.1
Purpose:
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To
provide permanent full-time employees with an effective
procedure whereby grievable matters may be resolved in
a fair, equitable and timely manner.
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14B.2
- Responsibility:
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It is the responsibility of the City of Sarasota to unilaterally
determine the purpose of each of its constituent agencies,
set standards of services to be offered to the public
and exercise control and discretion over its organization
and operations. In so doing, the City of Sarasota has
the right and responsibility to direct its employees,
take disciplinary action for proper reason and relieve
its employees from duty because of lack of work or for
other legitimate reasons in accordance with the Personnel
Rules and Regulations.
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14B.3
Definition of a Grievance:
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A
grievance is a problem or disagreement of a permanent,
full-time employee in regard to the interpretation or
application of the Personnel Rules and Regulations.
A grievance must relate to a specific issue that has occurred
which is alleged to be in violation of the Personnel Rules
and Regulations. The grievance must be submitted on the
designated Employee Grievance Form and must state the
specific date of occurrence and the Personnel Rules and
Regulations which have allegedly been violated.
A grievance must be clearly stated, or it will be rejected
for insufficient information and returned to the grievant
as set forward in this Rule.
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14B.4
Items Excluded from the Grievance Process:
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The
following areas are excluded from consideration under
this procedure: sexual harassment (see Rule 2.18), discrimination
(see Rule 2.19), demotion, suspension, dismissal, layoff
(general employees, see Rule 7.19 and Police, see Rule
7.20), performance evaluation (see Rule 13) and the establishment
and approval of levels of compensation.
Other items such as job-related concerns that are covered
under the Problem Solving Procedure are excluded from
consideration under this Rule (see Rule 20). The Problem
Solving Procedure has been established in order to provide
employees and management with an effective procedure whereby
job-related problems may be freely discussed between the
employee and management in a fair, equitable and timely
manner.
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14B.5
Procedure - First Step (Supervisory):
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A
grievance shall be submitted in writing (see Rule 14B.7
through 14B.9, Employee Grievance Form) to the employee's
immediate supervisor for discussion and consideration
within seven (7) working days.
The grievance must be clearly stated specifying the date
of occurrence and the Personnel Rule(s) or Regulation(s)
involved or it shall be rejected by the employee's supervisor
with the approval of the Department of Human Resources.
If a grievance is rejected, the employee shall be given
an additional three (3) working days to resubmit the grievance.
Supervisors are encouraged to consult with their Department
Heads to give them relevant information or assistance
in considering the employee's grievance.
Within seven (7) working days after receipt of the written
grievance, the supervisor shall give the employee a written
answer to the grievance. The supervisor's answer shall
clearly state his or her decision or proposed resolution
with reasons for the decision. However, the supervisor
should consult with his or her Department Head prior to
finalizing a response to the grievance.
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14B.6
Procedure - Second Step (Department Head):
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If
the employee is not satisfied with his or her supervisor's
decision, within three (3) working days after receipt
of the supervisor's decision, he or she may request, in
writing to his or her Department Head, an appointment
with the Department Head for discussion and consideration
of his or her grievance. Within seven (7) working days
of receipt of the request, the Department Head shall schedule
an appointment and meet with the employee.
The employee will be responsible for providing the Department
Head with all material which he or she believes is relevant
for a proper consideration of his or her grievance.
Department Heads are encouraged to consult with their
supervisors in order to acquire relevant information or
assistance in considering the employee's grievance.
Within ten (10) working days after hearing the employee's
presentation, the Department Head shall give the employee
a written answer to the grievance. The Department Head's
answer shall clearly state his or her decision or proposed
resolution with reasons for the decision.
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14B.7
Procedure - Third Step (Grievance Review Panel):
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If
the employee is not satisfied with his or her Department
Head's decision, within three (3) working days after receipt
of the Department Head's decision, he or she may request,
in writing to the Department of Human Resources, a hearing
with a Grievance Review Panel for their discussion and
consideration of his or her grievance.
At the time the employee initiates the request for a Grievance
Review Panel, the employee shall select his or her panel
representative and present a written summary of the grievance
to the Department of Human Resources.
The office of the Department of Human Resources will review
the hearing request to insure that its subject matter
and content is in accordance with Rule 14B.3. If it is
not, the employee shall be given notice of deficiency
and shall be given an additional three (3) working days
thereafter to amend the request for a hearing.
The Grievance Review Panel will consist of one (1) City
employee representative selected by the Grievant and one
(1) City employee representative selected by the employee's
Department Head and a chairperson who is a City employee
chosen by the first two representatives. No employee will
be required to serve on the panel without his or her consent
and approval of his or her Department Head.
The Department of Human Resources shall coordinate the
selection of the Department Head's representative within
three (3) working days after receiving the name of the
representative selected by the Grievant. Within three
(3) working days after the first two representatives have
been notified of their selection, they shall select a
chairperson for the Grievance Review Panel. In the event
the two representatives cannot agree on the selection
of the chairperson, the Director of Human Resources or
his or her designee, shall appoint the chairperson. The
chairperson shall convene the Grievance Review Panel and
hear the employee's grievance within seven (7) working
days after his or her appointment.
Within ten (10) working days after the conclusion of the
grievance hearing, the Grievance Review Panel shall submit to the City Manager or City Auditor and Clerk, for their
respective employees, a report setting forth the facts
of the grievance and the Panel's recommendations.
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14B.8
Procedure - Fourth Step (City Manager or City Auditor and
Clerk):
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Prior
to making his or her final decision, the City Manager
or City Auditor and Clerk, for their respective employees,
may elect to have the Grievant or City Department make
a presentation to him or her in regard to the grievance
and he or she shall have the discretion to require additional
facts or information. The decision of the City Manager
or City Auditor and Clerk, for their respective employees,
shall be final and binding upon all of the parties and
he or she shall advise the Grievant in writing of his
or her decision as soon as practicable after receipt of
the Grievance Review Panel's report.
The City Manager, City Auditor and Clerk, for their respective
employees, or the Director of Human Resources or his or
her designee shall have the right to extend any time period
set forth in Rule 14B.
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14B.9
Timeliness:
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Time
is of the essence in this procedure. Failure of the Grievant
to comply with the time requirements set forth in Rule
14B shall be sufficient cause for the rejection of the
grievance by the Department of Human Resources. Failure
of a Supervisor or Department Head to comply with the
time periods set forth in Rule 14B shall permit the grievance
to proceed to the next procedural step in the Grievance
Review process. No time periods set forth in Rule 14B,
shall be extended without the written approval of the
City Manager or City Auditor and Clerk, for their respective
employees, except Rule 14B.8 (step #4).
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14B.10
Procedural Guidelines for Grievance Review Panel:
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A. |
Roles:
The role of the Grievance Review Panel is to hear an employee's
grievance and to submit a report setting forth their findings
of facts and recommendations to the City Manager or City
Auditor and Clerk, for their respective employees. The
Grievance Review Panel is authorized to attempt to resolve
the grievance by encouraging the Grievant and the Department
Head to compromise and settle the matter. Any settlement
shall be reduced to writing and, upon acceptance by the
Grievant and the Department Head, the grievance shall
be deemed to have been withdrawn by the Grievant and the
Grievance Review Panel shall dismiss the grievance.
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B. |
Notification:
The Grievance Review Panel shall provide reasonable notice
of each of their hearings and meetings. Such notice shall
contain the date, time, place and subject of the hearing
or meeting. A copy of the notice of hearing or meeting
shall be provided to the Grievant, the Grievant's Supervisor(s)
and Department Head, the City Manager, the City Auditor
and Clerk, for their respective employees, the Director
of Human Resources and the members of the Grievance Review
Panel.
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C. |
Grievance
Review Panel Hearings and Meetings:
Grievance Review Panel hearings and meetings are subject
to the Government in the Sunshine Law. Therefore, the
hearings shall be open to the public and shall be held
in an appropriate City office or conference room. The
Grievance Review Panel shall take reasonable measures
to ensure that the facilities where the hearing or meeting
is to be held is sufficient to accommodate the number
of persons expected to attend the hearing or meeting.
In addition, the Grievance Review Panel shall provide
the City Auditor and Clerk’s Office with a public
notice that a public grievance hearing is scheduled at
location, date and time. The City Auditor and Clerk will
approve the notice for posting on the City Hall bulletin
board. The notice should be posted at least two (2) work
days prior to the scheduled hearing.
The Grievant and the Department Head shall be afforded
the opportunity to make presentations in regard to the
written grievance and to submit relevant documents or
other relevant evidence. The Grievance Review Panel is
responsible for ensuring that the hearing or meeting is
conducted in an efficient and impartial manner. Toward
that end, the Grievance Review Panel may adopt reasonable
rules and policies for the orderly conduct of its hearings
and meetings so long as such rules and policies do not
unreasonably restrict the opportunity for the Grievant
and the Department Head to submit evidence.
Prior to the date of a Grievance Review Panel's hearing
or meeting, the Grievant and the Department Head may submit relevant documents for consideration by the Grievance
Review Panel. To the extent that such documents are relevant,
they will become part of the record of the Grievance Review
Panel.
One member of the Grievance Review Panel is required to
contact the Department of Human Resources for use of a
tape recorder and tapes to record the hearing or meeting.
This action should be completed as soon as the grievance
is scheduled.
Minutes of all hearings and meetings of the Grievance
Review Panel shall be taken by a person from among the
Grievance Review Panel. A tape recording of the meeting
is preferred and recommended. The minutes shall set forth
a summary of all matters presented to the Grievance Review
Panel and shall reflect all of the actions taken by the
Grievance Review Panel at its hearings or meetings. All
hearings and meetings may be recorded at the discretion
of the Grievance Review Panel.
The Grievance Review Panel may, in its discretion, require
the Grievant and the Department Head to submit a list
of their witnesses along with a brief summary of the relevancy
of the witness' testimony. Witnesses may be called at
the discretion of the Grievance Review Panel, and, if
called, they shall be questioned by the Grievance Review
Panel. However, the Grievance Review Panel may, in its
discretion, allow the Grievant and the Department Head
to question witnesses called by the Grievance Review Panel.
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D. |
Evidence
and Counsel:
The technical rules of evidence shall not apply to Grievance
Review Panel hearings and meetings. In its discretion,
the Grievance Review Panel may admit hearsay evidence.
Redundant or irrelevant evidence may be excluded. However,
the minutes shall reflect the nature of the evidence excluded.
The Grievance Review Panel shall not permit or tolerate
disruptive or outrageous behavior and is authorized to
take any actions necessary, including termination of a
hearing or meeting or dismissal of a grievance when the
circumstances warrant. Final deliberations, and preparation
of the Grievance Review Panel's final report to the City
Manager or City Auditor and Clerk, for their respective
employees, shall be conducted at a properly noticed public
meeting.
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14B.11
Role of the Department of Human Resources:
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The
Director of Human Resources or his or her designated representative,
will serve as a coordinator between the Grievant, the
Department Head, the Department of Human Resources, and
the City Manager or City Auditor and Clerk, for their
respective employees. The Director of Human Resources
or his or her designee will be responsible for ensuring
that the Grievance Review process is conducted in a fair
and a timely manner. The Director of Human Resources,
or the designated representative, shall be impartial throughout
the grievance process.
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14B.12
Decision of City Manager/City Auditor and Clerk for their
Respective Employees:
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The
decision of the City Manager or City Auditor and Clerk,
for their respective employees in regard to an employee's
grievance shall be final and binding upon all parties.
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