Know Your Rights
Your Protections at Work
I have a problem. What should I do?
You should contact your local Union representative or a union staff member. If you do not know who your representative is, please call the office—(203) 624-5161 or e-mail 34@yaleunions.org. Information you give to your representative or a union staff member is confidential.
What are union stewards, and how do they protect me?
Union stewards have many roles and responsibilities. Chief among them is representing and protecting workers in disputes with management. In addition to our professionally trained union staff, Local 34 has dozens of trained and certified rank-and-file stewards, who are on hand to advise workers and –if reasonable and necessary – intervene and advocate on an employee’s behalf, if conflicts with management arise.
Common Problems: Here's What the Contract Says
Am I being treated fairly?
ARTICLE V
Fair Treatment of Staff Members
1. (a) No non-probationary Staff Member may be disciplined or discharged except for just cause.
(b) Counseling of a Staff Member shall not be used to justify subsequent disciplinary action against that Staff Member.
(c) Any grievance challenging disciplinary action taken by the University involving suspension or discharge shall be filed in writing at Step 2 of the Grievance Procedure provided by this Agreement within ten (10) days after the University’s action.
(d) A Staff Member who is absent from work for five (5) or more consecutive working days without notifying his or her Supervisor shall be deemed to have voluntarily resigned his or her employment with the University, except in unusual circumstances.
(e) Discipline older than eighteen (18) months does not serve as a basis for progressive discipline, except in cases of serious misconduct, including but not limited to sexual harassment or violence in the workplace.
2. (a) Neither the University nor the Union shall discriminate against any Staff Member on account of race, religion, color, sex, marital status, national origin, veteran status, sexual orientation, union membership, union activity which does not violate this Agreement, or other individual beliefs or activities of a Staff Member which do not affect the performance of work by the Staff Member or other University personnel.
(b) Neither the University nor the Union shall discriminate against any Staff Member in violation of applicable law on account of the Staff Member’s age or disability.
(c) The University shall make reasonable accommodation for Staff Members with disabilities who are otherwise qualified to perform the required work.
3. (a) Sexual harassment is contrary to University policy, and the University will take appropriate steps in connection with any sexual harassment by any University employee or student.
(b) If a Staff Member or the Union believes that a Staff Member is experiencing sexual harassment by a University employee, the matter shall be brought to the University’s attention by either filing a grievance under the Grievance Procedure provided by this Agreement, at whatever step the Staff Member or the Union considers appropriate, by notifying the Department of Human Resources or by notifying the Director of Equal Opportunity Programs.
(c) If a Staff Member or the Union believes that a Staff Member is experiencing sexual harassment by a University student, the matter shall be brought to the University’s attention by notifying the Director of Equal Opportunity Programs. If the Staff Member or the Union does not think the Director of Equal Opportunity Programs has taken appropriate steps in the situation, the Staff Member or the Union may file a grievance under the Grievance Procedure provided by this Agreement at whatever step the Staff Member or the Union considers appropriate.
4. Neither the University nor the Union shall apply the provisions of this Agreement in an arbitrary, capricious or discriminatory manner.
What is Yale’s sick policy?
ARTICLE XX
Sick Leave
1. A non-probationary Staff Member required to be absent from work because of the Staff Member’s illness or injury shall be entitled to sick leave with pay for the straight-time hours not worked by the Staff Member due to such illness or injury to the extent of the Staff Member’s sick leave allowance.
2. A Staff Member’s sick leave allowance shall be twelve (12) days per fiscal year, except that for the fiscal year in which the Staff Member is hired, the Staff Member’s sick leave allowance shall be one (1) day for each month in which the Staff Member has worked. Sick leave unused in any fiscal year may be carried forward to succeeding fiscal years, up to a maximum accumulation of two hundred four (204) days.
3. A Staff Member required to be absent due to illness or injury must notify his or her Supervisor at the commencement of such absence and thereafter as is reasonably required by the Supervisor during the duration of the absence, unless the Staff Member’s condition prevents giving such notification.
4. In cases of suspected malingering the University may require evidence of a Staff Member’s illness or injury or a medical examination by the University before payment for sick leave is given.
5. The University may require, at its expense, evidence of a Staff Member’s health status or a medical examination of the Staff Member by the University prior to a Staff Member’s return to work from major surgery, contagious infection, or protracted or serious illness or injury.
6. Sick leave may be used in hours or days. A day, for purposes of this Article, is the number of hours determined by dividing the Staff Member’s scheduled hours of straight-time work in a normal two (2) week period by ten (10).
7. A Staff Member shall be advised in writing at least once annually of the Staff Member’s unused accumulated sick leave days.
8. If a Staff Member with a least one (1) year of service dies while on the active payroll of the University, the Staff Member’s beneficiary designated to receive the payment provided by Article XXII (Life Insurance) shall be paid any unused accumulated sick leave pay which would have been payable to the Staff Member if the death had not occurred.
9. Retirement. A Staff Member retiring on or after November 1, 2003 will be paid out 25% of the Staff Member’s accumulated sick time at retirement and the 75% balance will be applied toward the Staff Member’s years of service as specified below. Any Staff Member retiring on or after January 20, 2008 will be paid out 50% of the Staff Member’s accumulated sick time at retirement and the 50% balance will be applied toward the Staff Member’s years of service as specified below. Such retiring Staff Member shall receive additional pension service credit for the amount of calendar time covered by working days equal to the balance of accumulated unused sick leave days that the Staff Member may have. A Staff Member who terminates while vested and begins immediately to collect a pension benefit from Yale may either retire earlier than otherwise by an amount of time equal to the sick leave credit provided in this paragraph, and begin immediately to collect a pension in the same amount that the Employee would otherwise have received if retiring at the scheduled time, or may retire at the scheduled time and receive additional service credit based upon the additional credit provided by this paragraph. Although no pay will be received for the amount of additional credit provided by this paragraph, the Employee’s pension amount will not be reduced because this period of additional credit is unpaid.
How is my health protected on the job?
ARTICLE III
Health and Safety on the Job
1. (a) The University agrees to provide a place of employment which shall be safe and healthy for Staff Members. The University shall furnish and use safety devices and safeguards, and shall adopt and use methods and processes adequate to render such place of employment safe, and do every other thing necessary to protect the life, health, and safety of Staff Members. The University shall repair and maintain every place of employment so as to make it safe. The term "safe" or "safety" as applied to any employment or place of employment shall include personal security and shall include conditions and methods of sanitation and hygiene necessary for the protection of the life, health, and safety of Staff Members.
(b) If the University requires that a Staff Member wear safety clothing or use safety equipment, the University shall provide such clothing and/or equipment.
(c) Staff Members shall observe all safety rules and requirements. Staff Members shall report as soon as practicable to their Supervisors any job-related accident, injury, or illness; this requirement shall not, however, be construed to limit in any way a Staff Member’s rights under the Worker’s Compensation Law, provided the Staff Member does give the University any notice required by such law.
2. A joint Health and Safety Committee [link to Health and Safety page]shall be established composed of no more than eight (8) University-selected members and eight (8) Union-selected Staff Members. The Committee shall be chaired by the Director of Environmental Health and Safety (or his/her designee). One of the Union-selected members shall be designated by the Union as Chief Union Safety Steward for Local 34 and one Union-selected member shall be designated by Local 35 as Chief Union Safety Steward for Local 35, for the purpose of serving as a focal point for communications and coordination of activities addressed by this Article. This committee will meet monthly, or at a schedule determined by the Committee, to review, discuss, and make recommendations related to health and safety issues at the University. By mutual agreement, the Local 34 and Local 35 portions of the Committee may meet separately with University-selected members of the committee in lieu of the regular monthly meeting. The two Chief Union Safety Stewards shall meet with the Director in advance of the meetings to discuss the agenda. Committee meetings shall normally be held during working hours including a one (1) hour period prior to the meeting and Staff Members serving on this Committee will be paid by the University for any of their work time spent at meetings of such Committee, or carrying out functions authorized by the Committee during their normally scheduled work hours.
Among other things, the Committee shall:
(i) Make recommendations for the correction of potentially unsafe or harmful conditions and the elimination of potentially unsafe or harmful work practices. Make recommendations regarding safety and security in parking areas and the areas Staff Members use to and from such parking areas.
(ii) Review and analyze all reports of occupational injury and illness to Staff Members.
(iii) Recommend rules and procedures for the prevention of accidents and illness and for the promotion of the health and safety of Staff Members.
(iv) Recommend topics for health and safety training of Supervisors, Union Stewards, and Staff Members.
(v) Distribute information to Staff Members designed to educate and inform Staff Members with regard to their health and safety while at work for the University.
The University shall, within a reasonable time after the Committee makes a recommendation, advise the Committee that it intends to accept the recommendation in full or in part, and on what timetable; or that it does not intend to accept the recommendation in full or in part, and the reason(s) for that decision not to accept; or that it needs more time to consider the recommendation.
3. Upon request, the University shall provide the Union available, relevant information regarding substances in the work place or equipment design.
4. Upon request, and except to the extent limited by applicable law or regulations with the force of law, the University shall provide the Union available, relevant University records on accidents, test results, and safety records maintained by the Office of Environmental Health and Safety, except that no personal medical records or information regarding any Staff Member or other University employee will be provided without the Staff Member’s or employee’s written consent, unless required by law.
5. When a Staff Member is interviewed for a job vacancy, the University will advise the Staff Member in writing of the apparent potential health and safety hazards associated with the work, and of any known dangerous substances to which the Staff Member may be exposed in the job.
6. No Staff Member shall be required by the University to work alone (i.e., without some other individual, whether or not a Staff Member, reasonably near the Staff Member) between midnight and 7:00 a.m.
7. No Staff Member will be subject to discipline for refusing to perform work which a reasonable Staff Member in a similar situation would consider unsafe. The question of any pay for the time of such refusal should be handled on a case by case basis.
8. A Staff Member shall first bring matters concerning health and safety to the attention of his or her supervisor. If the health or safety matter is not resolved satisfactorily, the Staff Member may request the presence of the appropriate Chief Union Safety Steward. That Chief Union Safety Steward or his or her designee who shall be a member of the Union’s Safety Committee may discuss the matter and possible solutions with area supervision and/or the Director, at a mutually agreeable time, and the matter may be referred for discussion at meetings of the Committee.
The appropriate Chief Union Safety Representative, or a Union member of the Committee if the Chief Union Safety Representative is not available, will be advised promptly of any incident that could reasonably lead to endangering the health and safety of Staff Members. The appropriate Chief Union Safety Representative, or Union member of the Committee, may accompany the Director or his or her designee in a review of the accident/incident.
If the Staff Member has reasonable grounds to conclude that the performance of a work assignment, such as, but not limited to, the performance of a task without the proper safety equipment, may pose a serious and substantial threat to the Staff Member’s health and safety, the Staff Member shall have the right to consult promptly with the appropriate Chief Union Safety Steward or his or her designee. If the presence of the Chief Union Safety Steward is necessary, he or she may be excused from work without loss of pay for purposes contemplated by this Section in accordance with the following:
(a) The Union shall notify the University of the names of the Chief Union Safety Stewards and their designees.
(b) Requests for time off shall be made to the immediate Supervisor.
(c) Time off without loss of pay shall be contingent on legitimate operational needs. Authorization for such time will not be unreasonably denied.
(d) The time off requested and/or authorized shall be reasonable in duration, consistent with the needs of the situation.
(e) Time off without loss of pay will be requested and authorized only in situations that:
(i) are of significant magnitude and/or;
(ii) affect significant numbers of bargaining unit Staff Members and/or;
(iii) pose the potential for serious health risk and/or;
(iv) pose the potential for major misunderstandings and misinformation.
9. The University shall make reasonable efforts to advise each Employee, through health and safety training and/or through advice on specific occasions as needed, of health and safety risks which the Employee is likely to encounter in the course of the Employee’s assigned work.
10. Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed to dilute the University’s authority and responsibility described in Section 1 of this Article, nor shall anything in the Agreement be construed to limit the right of Staff Members or the Union to file grievances concerning health and safety. Whenever possible, health and safety-related grievances will be filed by the Union Stewards of the Joint Health and Safety Committee. In no case shall a grievance citing this Article proceed to a second Step Meeting without notification to such stewards.
11. The rights and privileges granted to the Union committee members under this Section shall be exercised with due consideration given to the operating needs of their work units and they shall request authorization to leave the work place from their Supervisors, and this authorization shall not be unreasonably denied.
12.The Unit Safety Committee Pilot Program will be implemented by the Office of Environmental Health and Safety, giving good faith consideration to the suggestions and guidance of the Joint Health and Safety Committee, in conjunction with the departments or units involved. After a successful pilot, the program will be expanded campus-wide at a reasonable pace of expansion, consistent with available resources giving highest priority to those departments or units with the highest accident or injury rates.
13. The parties agree to form a Workers’ Compensation Committee to study the procedures and processes surrounding workers’ compensation claims in the interest of effectively and fairly managing/reducing workplace injuries, reducing cost through prevention and the return of Employees to productive work whenever practical. The committee will review the entire claims processing procedure, including any systemic issues about approvals, denials and other aspects of the process. Accident data will be reviewed to determine if preventative measures can be identified. Suggestions for safety improvement will be referred to the Joint Health and Safety Committee for their consideration. The committee will be comprised of one representative from Local 34, one representative from Local 35 and two representatives from the University.
The existence of the Workers’ Compensation Committee will not preclude other union representatives from supporting their members in their individual claims processing with the Yale Benefits Office.
What is the grievance procedure?
ARTICLE XXXVI
Grievance and Arbitration Procedure
1. A grievance, for purposes of this Article, is a claim that the University has violated this Agreement.
Step 1:
In recognition of the desirability of resolving grievances informally between the Staff Member and the Supervisor, the Staff Member affected shall discuss the grievance with his or her immediate Supervisor within five (5) working days of the occurrence of the facts causing the grievance or after the Staff Member reasonably should have known of such facts. At his or her option the Staff Member may have his or her Union Steward present and the Supervisor may have another representative from the Supervisor’s department present. The Supervisor shall give his or her answer to the grievance within three (3) working days of the meeting. Any agreements made at Step 1 shall not be regarded as precedent setting.
Step 2:
(i) If the Staff Member is dissatisfied with the response to the Step 1 grievance, the Staff Member may file a written grievance. The written grievance shall be filed with the Department of Human Resources and shall be filed within twenty-one (21) days after receipt of the Step 1 response. The written grievance should contain the name and job title of the grievant, the date of the incident complained of, the Section of the Agreement allegedly violated, the facts which constitute the wrong complained of, and the relief sought.
(ii) A Department of Human Resources representative and the Staff Member’s Supervisor shall meet with the Union’s Steward and/or Department Steward and the Grievant within twenty-one (21) days after the date the written grievance is received by the Department of Human Resources.
(iii) The Department of Human Resources shall give a written answer to the grievance within seven (7) days after the meeting to discuss the grievance.
Step 3:
If the grievance is not resolved in Step 2, the Union may appeal the grievance to Step 3, by giving a written notice of such appeal to the University’s Vice President for Finance and Administration or his designee within fourteen (14) days after the receipt of the University’s Department of Human Resources’ written answer to the grievance. The Vice President for Finance and Administration or his designee shall meet with the Union’s Steward, Department Steward, Chief Steward, and the grievant(s) to discuss the grievance within fourteen (14) days after receipt of the Union’s appeal to Step 3 and shall give the Union a written answer to the grievance within fourteen (14) days after such meeting.
Step 4:
If the grievance is not resolved in Step 3, the Union may appeal the grievance to arbitration by giving written notice of such appeal to the University’s Vice President for Finance and Administration or his designee within twenty-one (21) days after receipt of the University’s Step 3 answer to the grievance.
2. (a) A grievance which affects more than one (1) Staff Member or a class of Staff Members may initially be presented at Step 2 within twenty-one (21) days after occurrence of the facts causing the grievance, or within twenty-one (21) days after the Staff Members reasonably should have known of such facts.
(b) The Union may present any grievance at Step 2 within twenty-eight (28) days after occurrence of the facts causing the grievance.
3. The Union’s full-time staff as designated in writing by the Union may participate at any step of the grievance procedure. The Union’s full-time staff will notify the University’s Vice President for Finance and Administration or his designee if the Union’s full-time staff intends to participate in any particular grievance meeting.
4. (a) When a grievance is appealed to arbitration, promptly after the Union gives the written notice required by Step 4 above, the parties shall select a mutually acceptable arbitrator from the designated panel. If the parties do not agree on a selection, then an arbitrator will be selected from the entire panel by random drawing.
(b) A panel of fifteen (15) arbitrators mutually selected by the parties by alternately striking off from a panel from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service ("FMCS") of thirty-one (31) arbitrators who are located in the Northeast section of the United States constitute the "designated panel" referred to in this Article. In the event that additions must be made to the designated panel, the parties shall either mutually agree to any additions or employ a similar striking procedure to a panel supplied by FMCS. The parties may remove an arbitrator from the designated panel by mutual agreement.
(c) Hearings shall be held on campus at a mutually agreed time.
(d) Any briefs to be filed shall be filed within fourteen (14) days after the end of the hearing.
5. (a) Each party shall bear the expenses of its representatives and witnesses.
(b) The fees and expenses of the Arbitrator and the costs of hearing facilities shall be paid by the Union if the grievance is denied in total, by the University if the grievance is granted in total, and if the grievance is neither denied nor granted in total, by the parties as specifically allocated by the Arbitrator. The parties jointly shall advise the Arbitrator of this provision of the Agreement at the start of the hearing regarding any grievance. If the parties commence an arbitration hearing but then settle the grievance, such fees, expenses and costs shall be borne equally by the parties.
(c) Only one grievance shall be submitted to an Arbitrator at one hearing unless the parties otherwise agree in writing. It is understood, however, that where two (2) or more grievances can be presented conveniently and completely on one hearing day, the parties will agree to present such grievances to the same Arbitrator on the same hearing day.
6. (a) The Arbitrator shall have no authority to add to, subtract from, or modify any provisions of this Agreement.
(b) The Award of the arbitrator shall be final and binding on the parties.
7. (a) If either party fails to meet a time limit applicable to that party established in Steps 2, 3, or 4 of the procedure set forth in paragraph 1 of this Article, the grievance shall be considered settled in favor of the other party. Such a grievance settlement shall be without prejudice to either party’s rights regarding any other grievance and shall not be retroactive for more than twenty-one (21) days prior to the date the grievance was filed at Step 2.
(b) In view of the obligation imposed by paragraph 7(a), either party may obtain one automatic extension of the time of seven (7) days to each time limit of less than fourteen (14) days imposed upon that party in Steps 2, 3 and 4 by delivering within the stated time limit a letter to the other party advising the other party that a seven (7) day automatic extension is needed.
8. It is expected that both parties adhere to the time limits set forth above. Time limits may only be extended by mutual written consent of an authorized University representative and an authorized Union representative.
9. (a) Grievance meetings shall normally be held at times which do not unduly interfere with performance of the work of either Staff Members, Staff Member Union Stewards, or Supervisors. If such meetings are scheduled during the work time of either the Staff Member grievant(s), the Staff Member Union Stewards involved, or necessary Staff Member witnesses, such Staff Members shall be excused without loss of straight-time pay for such meetings.
(b) Staff Member Union Stewards shall not engage in the investigation of grievances during the working time of either the Staff Member Union Steward or any Staff Member involved, except by mutual consent of the University and the Union; but this language shall not be read to inhibit communication regarding the resolution of workplace problems, so long as such communication does not unduly interfere with the work of any Staff Member.
10. This Grievance and Arbitration Procedure shall not prevent any Staff Member from dealing directly with a Supervisor concerning any problem.
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