ARTICLE VII
Negotiations, Grievances and Arbitrations
SECTION 1. The Company and the Union recognize the mutual benefits of working toward a prompt resolution of disputes which may arise from time to time out of this Agreement.
The Company recognizes the right of the Union to designate a steward. The steward has authority to investigate and present grievances in accordance with the provisions of this collective bargaining agreement. The steward has no authority to take action that will interrupt the Company's business.
The steward recognizes the obligation to notify his/her supervisor before conducting Union business on Company time. The supervisor will be notified of the nature and purpose of the matter. The Company will not be arbitrary or unreasonable in restricting the steward in the exercising of his/her duties under this Agreement.
SECTION 2. The Union shall appoint a Negotiating Committee not to exceed seven (7) members for the purpose of negotiating changes in this Agreement.
SECTION 3. Should any difference arise between the Company and its employees covered by this Agreement as to the meaning and application of this Agreement with respect to rates of pay, wages, hours of employment and other conditions of employment, the procedure of settlement shall be in the following manner:
a. Step One. An employee who claims he/she has a grievance shall, with his/her steward or in his/her absence, the Chief Steward, meet with the supervisor to discuss the nature of the dispute. If the grievance is not resolved at this meeting, the employee shall put his/her grievance in writing on a form supplied by the Company, the original of which is to be dated and signed by the employee and the steward. The grievance and any replies from both the Company and the Union will be handwritten or typed on a Grievance Reply Form. Two (2) originals of each documented Step will be initialed in blue ink and dated by the responding party. One (1) original will be retained and one forwarded to the other party. The Union will give one (1) original grievance to the supervisor to forward to Human Resources. Such grievance shall be submitted in writing within fifteen (15) working days after the event giving rise to same has occurred, or shall be deemed waived.
b. Step Two. The Company will schedule a meeting to discuss the merits of the grievance within fifteen working days of receipt of the grievance by Human Resources, unless an extension is requested. The Company will contact the Chief Steward or his designee to determine who will represent the Union at the Step Two meeting. The Company will give the supervisors of the Union Grievance Committee notice in advance of the meeting to allow for scheduling of work.
Both the Union and the Company may each bring up to five (5) representatives to all grievance meetings for the purpose of expediting a resolution.
After the Step Two meeting, the Company will note on a Grievance Reply Form the proposed disposition of the matter within fifteen (15) working days, and provide a signed dated Reply to the Union. The Union will designate either "Satisfactorily Resolved" or "Not Satisfactorily Resolved", and may state a reason and return the signed, dated Reply to the Company.
c. Step Three. The Union will submit this Reply to the Company within fifteen (15) working days of receipt of the Company's Reply, for the purpose of determining whether an additional meeting could expedite a possible resolution of the matter. If the Company or the Union have additional information or an alternate proposal for settlement, either party may request a Step Three meeting within fifteen (15) working days to discuss the matter, using the same notification and reply procedure as in Step Two above.
d. Arbitration. In the event the dispute shall not have been satisfactorily settled in the steps outlined above, either party may at any time, but no later than thirty (30) days after the last step, request that the issue be submitted to arbitration. Such request will be made in writing, setting forth the subject in dispute. The thirty (30) day period may be extended for a like period by notifying the other party that the matter is pending further consideration, but the request for an extension must be made before the thirtieth (30th) day. A third arbitrator, who shall act as Chairman of the Arbitration board, shall be selected by the parties from a list of arbitrators recommended from the American Arbitration Association or, if both the Company and the Union agree, the case can be submitted to the Connecticut State Board of Mediation and Arbitration. Each party shall designate its representative to the arbitration board prior to the hearing.
On a schedule to be determined at the hearing, the parties shall submit briefs to the third party arbitrator. After receipt of the briefs, the third party will provide a draft opinion to the arbitration panel and schedule a meeting with the panel to discuss the draft. After the meeting, and within thirty (30) days of the hearing, the third party will render a written decision, from which either the Company or Union representative may dissent.
The decision of the arbitration panel shall be final and binding on both parties to this Agreement. The Company and the Union shall each bear the expense of its own representative and the expense of the third party shall be borne equally by the Company and the Union.
The arbitration panel may not add to, subtract from, or modify the terms of the Agreement in any way.
e. The steps in the grievance procedure described above are for the purpose of expediting the grievance. If the Company or the Union causes an unreasonable delay in the process, the other party has the option to proceed to the next step.
f. All grievances shall be processed from the first step of the grievance to arbitration in no more than three (3) months' time. Both parties recognize the impact of vacation periods and contract negotiations and accept resulting delays.
g. None of the provisions of the grievance procedure shall restrict an employee and his/her supervisor from discussing matters of mutual concern.