Discipline Procedure Question

Crout

One of our Supervisors conducted a discipline meeting for an employee, and without my knowledge levied two disciplines for two offenses at the meeting. The Union rep in attendance objected, but went along with the meeting. Now the Union is asking that one of the disciplines be rescinded because the employee’s rights were violated when two disciplines were levied at one meeting. My argument is that when the Union rep went along with the meeting it was consent. Any thoughts? Thanks.

Don D

Well, my first thought is that a union rep, although granted a right, if requested by the employee, to attend a meeting that may result in discipline, has no right to object or argue the case, only to attend the meeting and ask for certain clarifications. I've never heard of a disciplinary meeting having some magic number of actions that could be taken during the meeting, union or no. A rep in a meeting has no expectation to consent or dissent, whether or not he does either. And the absence of either or both has no bearing on the meeting's outcome. Do you ask them if they concur with the discipline before you adjourn. I've always largely ignored their presence while understanding their legal right to be sitting there in the chair. I certainly have never asked for their concurrence or opinion.

WT

If you have a union grievance procedure ending with binding arbitration, then the union always has the right to object to any discipline. However, unless your contract states that only one subject would be covered per meeting, I see no valid reason for the union to object. They still have the right to grieve but there must be some substance to their grievance, i.e. the person did not do the wrong behavior or the discipline was not suitable to the crime (just cause). Otherwise, stand by your discipline.

rad

What does the contract say? If they did not negotiate the number of disciplines in any given meeting, then I'd say you're fine.

Whatever

Depends on what your contract says. Here, the union rep. has the right to be at every disciplinary meeting. It is (and cannot be) interpreted as meaning that rep. went along with the meeting. The union has the right to file a grievance. We have on occasion disciplined for two offenses.

Crout

There's nothing in the contract that governs this. This is a protocol that I inherited, and really was just an honest mistake by the supervisor, but I can't see this as a rationale for rescinding a discipline. I just wanted to make sure that there's no NLRB ruling governing this.