President's Message

Mitch Silverman

One of the most important areas that UFF/USF represents faculty rights deal with filing grievances on behalf of faculty when they have been wronged as a result of the violation of the collective bargaining contract. In order for the union to file a grievance several important conditions must be met. If these conditions are not met then the grievance will have no merit.

First, there is often confusion on exactly what the unions role is in filing a grievance. Many faculty assume that the union’s function is to protect them for any perceived wrong that they have against the departmental, college, and university administrations. In fact the union’s responsibility is not to the individual faculty member but centers on the protection of the collective bargaining agreement and the articles by which it is comprised. Therefore, the union’s job is to make sure that no part of the contract has been violated. If there is not a violation of the contract the faculty member does not have a grievable complaint in terms of union involvement.

Second, There is an important timeline that must be maintained when grievance is filed. The person filing the grievance must do so within thirty days of their knowledge that they may be the subjects of a grievable violation of the contract. Once the thirty days expires potential grievants lose their right to grieve. The importance of this time constraint on the grievance process can not be over emphasized. In certain cases where the grievance is a continuous violation of the contract that recurs overtime a grievance can be filed even though the thirty-day limit has expired on the initial complaint. In any case check with the UFF/USF grievance officer for clarification.

Third, while the union is mandated to represent all individuals in the collective bargaining unit in contract disputes, there is one important difference between UFF members and none members in the process. All grievants receive free representation during the initial stage of the process. During this informal phase an attempt is made to negotiate a resolution of the grievance using informal discussions between the involved parties. If resolution can not be achieved during the informal hearing then the grievance proceeds to a step one hearing. At this stage of the process non-UFF members are charged a fee of 100 dollars for preparation of the step one materials. Since the step one is run by and for the administration grievances are rarely resolved at his level. If the grievance is not resolved a decision is made, based on its merit, to proceed or not proceed to a step two hearing. At this time a UFF grievance officer is assigned by the state office to represent the grievant. If the grievant is a non-UFF member the individual filling the grievance incurs a charge of 200 dollars. The Board of Regents administers the step two hearing. If the grievance is turned down at step two it may be submitted to arbitration for resolution. The submission of a grievance to arbitration is not automatic. Only those cases that UFF feel have a reasonable chance of being won and which have significant implications for maintaining the integrity of the contract are considered for arbitration. If the case of a non-UFF member is chosen for arbitration a fee of 2500 dollars is charged to the person submitting the grievance.

Last, it is critical that members and non-members know and understand those parts in the collective bargaining agreement that deal with grievance procedures. Article 20 is the primary source of information that define the conditions, procedures, and processes concerning grievances. In addition, Appendix H deals with an exclusive assignment dispute resolution procedure that has different time restrictions than other grievances. This appendix should be looked at carefully along with Article 9.

In any situation where the faculty member feels that they have a grievance they should contact the UFF office at 974-2428. Their complaint will then be evaluated and if appropriate a grievance will be filed on their behalf. Remember the importance of the time line discussed above so that your grievance will not be dismissed for failure to file it in a prompt manner.

Why No News Doesn't Necessarily Mean Good News

Mark Klisch, Grievance Representative

At every UFF-USF chapter meeting, I present a brief summary of the grievances currently in process. On those few occasions when I don’t have much new to report, it could be taken as evidence that labor-management relationships are great at USF. Instead, think about this in another way. Grievances should be considered normal, healthy phenomena in academic life. An absence of grievances does not indicate high morale, adult professional attitude, or a lack of problems. Rather, such an absence may very likely signal a situation of faculty intimidation, resentment, fear, apathy, lack of responsibility, or dependency. When adult professionals work together, inevitably disagreements and complaints arise. Good administrations will want to work with the chapter in settling them in a non-paternalistic, adult manner.

If collective bargaining is to work, administrators must adhere to the contract they have signed. Often they will; sometimes they will not. For example, an administration official may test UFF by sanctioning a minor contract violation. A college or university president, dean, or department chairperson who is convinced that the union has limited power may obstinately refuse to follow clear contractual requirements. Even where a president closely observes both the letter and the spirit of the contract, his/her provosts or deans may attempt to sabotage it on their own. Other employees functioning in an administrative or supervisory capacity may unwittingly violate the contract because they have never read it carefully, and its implications have never been explained to them.

When the administration, either by design, ignorance of contract provisions, or administrative ineptitude, violates the contract, UFF files grievances to force management to do what has already been agreed to. At other times, the contract may lack clarity, and the union may process a grievance to clarify the meaning of the contract. That’s why UFF has always maintained that the grievance procedure is the heart of the Collective Bargaining Agreement. Contact your UFF grievance representatives if you have any questions or concerns.

Announcements

Chapter Meetings. This academic year, the chapter meetings will be on each payday Friday, from noon to somewhat after one, in SOC 351. Lunch is sandwiches and soda pop, for a buck. Come and join the movement.