Back to Tidbits   Local 12 Weekly Update The names identified are Local 12 Representatives who volunteer to represent you, Local 12 Bargaining Unit employees, in these issues. They are the foundation of this Union! Want to get involved? Please contact the Union Office, 476-4334.   Bargaining Tobacco Instruction: Don Iosty and John King just completed clarifying discussions on the new Shipyard tobacco instruction. The new instruction calls for smoking in designated smoking areas (DSA’s) only. There is some concern that the “policing” of the instruction is left to the employees. I urge our smoking members to police themselves. And I urge our non-smoking members to keep their distance from the DSA’s if they have issues with second hand smoke. We are living in a climate of increasing antagonism toward the second hand smoke issue. Recent attempts in Tacoma to go smokeless in public places, the commercials dedicated to drumming up public sympathy for employees working in smoking environments, and a Navy medical policy that favors the non-smoker if the issue is raised indicate the possibility of a non-smoking installation some day. I’m hoping respectful use and avoidance of the DSA’s will forestall that day. Grievance  Hostile Work Environment: A grievable issue was successfully handled in the problem solving first step. The issue involved a manager losing his temper with an employee, thereby creating a hostile work environment. The employee and his first-line supervisor were able to negotiate a satisfactory remedy.  From The Contract In the past, a lot of employee issues were usually remedied for the employee in the first step of the grievance process, and a formal grievance seemed a little like overkill. Under the new contract, the issue is not considered a grievance unless a first step collaborative problem solving meeting with the employee’s supervisor is unsuccessful. It is at the second step that the issue is formally grieved. The second step involves either an alternative dispute resolution process or a hearing with the employee’s department head. §1909 Collaborative Problem Solving. Once a problem report has been received, the supervisor shall schedule and complete a collaborative problem solving session (including written response) within 10 workdays of receipt. The attendees shall include the employee, the supervisor, the UNION representative, the HRO representative, and other parties as necessary. Employee participation in the collaborative problem solving session is highly recommended, but is not required. When the parties involved reach resolution, an agreement shall be recorded in writing, signed by all parties, and considered binding to the extent not inconsistent with government wide regulations or law. If collaborative problem solving is unsuccessful or untimely, the problem may be pursued through the grievance procedure using either the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) process or Department Head Adjudication. Other Rumor Control – Time for Lunch: The new contract did NOT increase the length of our bargaining unit’s lunch break. Prior to the new contract, there was a required 42-minute lunch. However, then, as now, different supervisors allowed different lunch periods. For the new contract, Local 12 negotiated a 20 or 30 minute minimum to a 60 minute maximum range in favor of the 42-minute lunch depending on the employee’s choice of work schedule. For the flexitour schedule in which the employee starts before 7:20 a.m., the lunch period is not less than 30 or greater than 60 minutes. For start times between 7:20 a.m. and 8:20 a.m., the lunch periods can range between 20 and 60 minutes. The time can be increased in 6-minute increments in both the 20 to 60 and 30 to 60 ranges. For the compressed work schedule, the employee can select a fixed lunch period of 30 to 60 minutes (in 6 minute increments). A 20-minute lunch may be requested for any sift beginning at 7:20 a.m. or later. Night Differential Pay: From the 2005 Federal Employees Almanac, p. 31 GS employees receive a night shift differential of ten percent of their hourly base pay when they perform regularly scheduled night work between the hours of 6:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. GS employees are eligible for this night differential even when excused from work on a holiday or other non-workday and for hours spent on duty while traveling. For GS employees, night differentials are paid in addition to overtime, Sunday, or holiday pay, but are not included in the rate of base pay used to compute these premium payments. Employees regularly assigned to a night sift on a full-time basis may be paid a night differential during periods of a paid absence (both annual and sick leave). However, a GS employee is entitled to night pay differential for a period of paid leave only when the total amount of leave in a pay period, including both day and night hours, is less than eight hours.  Substance Abuse Training: Local 12 Reps, Beth Bachtel, Steve Hatzenbihler, Kurt Nordberg, and I will be attending weekly substance abuse training with Shipyard management. A concern for Local 12 is a Shipyard policy that protects our employee’s due process rights in the event they are accused of substance abuse. Are we allowed to know who are accuser is? What kind of notice and hearing will we have? It is in the best interest of all of our employees to keep the workplace substance abuse free; however, it can ruin your entire week and your relationship with your management if you are falsely accused. We want to mitigate the damage this can cause. Bob Steinmetz, President 479-2463 Elaine Wrightson, Office Manager 476-4334 Katy McKinney, Chief Rep 476-4862 Have a safety question or issue? Contact Safety VP, Don Iosty Have a parking question or issue? Contact Parking POC, Mike Dunn Back to Tidbits