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S. In order to fill vacancies in the rank of Superintendent or Fire
Marshall a test will be given. Employees who are currently Assistant
Superintendents in that division will be considered eligible to take the test. In the
event that there are no Assistant Superintendents, no Assistant Superintendents
pass the exam, or no Assistant Superintendents choose to test, then current Third
Ranking Specialists in that division will be eligible to take a test for the position.
In the event that no Third Ranking Specialists exist, no Third Ranking Specialists
pass the exam, or no Third Ranking Specialists choose to test, then all members of
Nashua Fire Rescue who have completed one (1) year of service will be eligible to
take a test for the position. However, for vacancies in the Fire Marshal Division,
as of January 1, 2021, to be eligible to take the exam, members must have their
Fire Inspector I and Fire Investigator certifications. Eligibility will be determined
as of the date the vacancy occurs. Ifsubsequent tests are, in fact, needed after the
initial test due to no candidates having passed the test, then, Assistant
Superintendents and Third Ranking Specialists from the division will remain
eligible to take those exams as they occur. If one (1) Assistant Superintendent
passes the examination on the first attempt, he/she will be given the appomtment.
If more than one employee passes an exam for the Superintendent position, the
current promotional policy will be used to promote one of the candidates.

Ifa Third Ranking Specialist takes and passes a test during this process, and
he is the only Third Ranking Specialist in the division, then he/she shall be
promoted to Assistant Superintendent if there is an opening in that position as a
result of this process.

S.1. For purposes of clarification in R and S above, “divisions” will include:
Traiming/Safety, Fire Alarm, Mechanical, and Fire Marshals. Additionally, the
rank of Superintendent will include the highest ranking position in the division,
Assistant Superintendent will include the 2" highest ranking position in the
division, and Third Ranking Specialist will include the 3" highest ranking position
in the division.

T. The Department will give good faith consideration pursuant to
previous arbitration decisions to the candidates presented pursuant to Paragraphs C
through J above. If all of the candidates presented are shown not to be qualified for
promotion, then the examinations may be given by the Fire Commissioners to
persons inside or outside the Department. Absolute preference under this paragraph
shall be given to those in the ranks in accordance with this Article 18 unless those
from the ranks are shown not to be qualified.

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U. — Any person demoted shall be notified in writing within twenty-four
hours as to the reasons for the demotion. Such notice shall first be given to the
employee involved and to the Union.

V. A job description will be completed for the position of Dispatch
Supervisor. When a vacancy arises in this classification, the posting for the
position will include the job description and the testing for the vacancy will be
based on the requirements of the position as described therein. Individuals
promoted to this position must meet all the position requirements within six (6)
months to fill the position.

W. The Fire Prevention Bureau shall be known as the Fire Marshall's
Office. The Superintendent of Fire Prevention shall be known as the Fire Marshall.
The Assistant Superintendents shall be known as Inspector/Investigators. The
Public Education Officer shall be known as Inspector/Public Education Officer.
The purpose of this paragraph is to reflect the title changes only and all other
conditions relating to these positions remain unchanged.

X. Non-fire suppression divisional employees, who have passed the
current fire fighter exam written and physical, shall be given preference by
seniority for interdivisional transfers to fire suppression in the event that a vacancy
occurs. All bargaining unit employees shall be given preference in the filling of
any interdivisional vacancy that may occur in any other division when the position
does not require an examination. Members tn all cases pertaining to this section
shall have otherwise met the then current qualifications for said position as
established by the City of Nashua’s Board of Fire Commissioners, Fire Standard
and Traming Commissioners, and the New Hampshire Retirement System.

Y. In order to be eligible to be promoted to any rank or position,
employees must take a test for that position regardless of the number of employees
competing for the position.

Z. Oncea test has been posted, the promotional process that was in effect
on the date of the posting shall be the process that is used until the subsequent
promotional list expires or the eligible candidates on that list are exhausted.

AA. Upon signing of this contract, the union and the administration shall
establish a joint labor management committee to review the current promotional
processes. This committee shall have four (4) members from the union, (4)
members from admmistration and one (1) mutually agreed upon full voting

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member, whois not affiliated with either organization. The committee shall review
this Article 18, and propose changes to this Article to the Board of Fire
Commissioners and the Union. This committee shall be formed within 60 days of
signing and shall have a report for members to vote on by September 1, 2021.

Article 19 - GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE

A. _ Itshall be the purpose of this grievance procedure to settle grievances
between the City and the Union as expeditiously and fairly as possible. Any
difference as to the interpretation of this Agreement in tts application to a
particular situation, or as to whether it has been observed and performed, shall be a
grievance under this Agreement and the parties shall observe the following
procedure for the adjustment and settlement of such grievance.

Step I:
Within thirty (30) days of when the grievant knew or should have known of the act
or condition on which the grievance is based, the grievance shall be reduced to
writing, signed by the employee and the Union, and presented to the Deputy Chief
or Division Supervisor. Ifthe grievance is not settled within seven (7) workdays of
its receipt by the Deputy Chief or division supervisor, then

Step I:
The Union may take the matter up with the Chief by submitting to him a written
copy of the grievance together with such other evidence as it wishes him to
consider. The Chief shall have fourteen (14) calendar days within which to render
a written decision to the Union. If the Union does not receive a reply from the
Chief within fourteen (14) calendar days or if it is not satisfied with the decision of
the Chief, the Union may file a written request with the Chief, receipt required, to
have the grievance considered by the Fire Commission. Once the request 1s filed,
authorized Union personnel and members of the Commission may communicate
with each other about the grievance both outside of and at the regularly scheduled
Commission meeting. All requests received no later than 5:00 PM on the
Wednesday next preceding a regularly scheduled meeting of the Commission,
together with a copy of the grievance, a copy of any written evidence submitted by
the Union, and a copy of the Chief's decision, will be included on the agenda of the
Commission for that meeting. All requests recetved subsequent to 5:00 PM of the
Wednesday next preceding a regularly scheduled meeting of the Commission will
be included, with the above additional information, on the agenda for the next

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regularly scheduled meeting. Once the request is placed on the agenda for a
regularly scheduled meeting of the Commission, then

Step HI:
The Fire Commission shall, at their next regularly scheduled meeting, consider the
grievance and within ten (10) working days of the said meeting, notify the Union
in writing of their disposition of the grievance. In the event the employee and the
Union are not in accord with the disposition by the Commission, then

Step IV:

Within thirty (30) days of the documented receipt of the Commissioners ruling by
the Union, either the Union or the City will have the option of submitting any
remaining disagreement over the interpretation or application of a specific
provision of this Agreement, settled by arbitration. The parties agree to submit
such grievances to the Public Employee Labor Relations Board and to abide by the
rules and procedures set forth by said Board, or may submit them to a different
arbitrator agreed by the parties. Determinations and decisions set forth by said
arbitrator shall be final and binding upon the parties. Each party to the arbitration
shall assume its own expenses and an equal share of the expenses of the arbitrator.
The Demand for Arbitration must be postmarked within thirty (30) days of the
documented receipt of the Commissioners ruling by the Union.

B. — The times for taking action stated above may be extended by mutual
consent in writing, but all the steps of this procedure shall be handled as
expeditiously as possible with a view to promoting and maintaining complete
harmony. Request of either party for extensions of time shall not be unreasonably
denied.

C. No decision under this grievance procedure by a bargaining unit
member acting as a hearing officer because of his or her position as Division
Supervisor shall be binding on the City.

Article 20 - PAID HOLIDAYS

A. | Employees on or off duty who qualify shall be paid one-fourth (1/4)
of the qualified employee’s weekly pay. The paid holidays are as follows:

New Year's Day Martin Luther King Day

Presidents Day The fourth Monday tn April
Memorial Day Flag Day

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Independence Day Labor Day
Columbus Day Veteran’s Daty
Thanksgiving Day Christmas Day

Employees shall not receive an additional day off on account of a holiday
whether or not they are scheduled to work on the paid holiday.

B. | Employees will be eligible for and will receive pay at their straight
time rate for holidays after the first thirty (30) calendar days of employment.

C. In order to qualify for holiday pay, employees who are off duty on the
day of the holiday must work the last scheduled duty day prior to the holiday and
the first scheduled duty day subsequent to the holiday or have been absent on
authorized sick leave on either or both of these days. Employees on disciplinary
leave are not eligible for holiday pay for holidays occurring during those leaves.

D. _ If one of the above paid holidays falls during an eligible employee's
vacation period, he/she will receive holiday pay.

E. In the case of specialists working four ten hour days, on a week in
which a paid holiday falls, schedule will be arranged by mutual agreement:

a. All specialists shall take the holiday on the day it falls.
Article 21 - PAID VACATIONS
A. | Employees covered by this agreement who have been employed by

the City for at least one (1) year on an uninterrupted basis except by reason of
layoff or approved leave of absence, shall recetve vacation with pay as follows:

After one (1) year of service ------------ Two weeks
After four (4) years of service ---------- Three weeks
After nine (9) years of service ---------- Four weeks
After fifteen (15) years of service ------ Five weeks

Effective January 1, 2017 all employees shall receive their vacation accrual
per past practice, and as set forth above, which time shall be considered earned and
available for use.

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Effective January 15, 2017 and on the 15" of each month thereafter, the

monthly accruals set forth below shall be credited to each employee.

Vacation accrual for 2184 personnel

After one (1) year of service ------------ Two weeks (8 hours monthly)
After four (4) years of service --------- Three weeks (12 hours monthly)
After nine (9) years of service ---------- Four weeks (16 hours monthly)

After fifteen (15) years of service ------ Five weeks (20 hours monthly)

Vacation accrual for 2080 personnel

After one (1) year of service ------- Two weeks (6.6666 hours monthly )

After four (4) years of service ------ Three weeks (10 hours monthly)
After nine (9) years of service ---Four weeks (13.3333 hours monthly)
After fifteen (15) years of service- Five weeks (16.6666 hours monthly)

Effective 1/1/2000:

After eighteen (18) years of service----------- One duty shift per year up to a
total of four additional duty shifts.
Effective January 15, 2017:

After eighteen (18) years of service----------- One duty shift per year up to a
total of four additional duty shifts. Additional duty shifts will be added in as “1
shift” on January 15'" preceding the employee’s anniversary date.

No member shall have more than two (2) times their yearly accrual on their
anniversary date.

B.

Vacation periods will be set up on a work cycle or daily basis.

Employees shall have the option of:

1.

Splitting their first two weeks of vacation, choosing the first week

with their first selection opportunity and their second week with their second
selection opportunity, as per Paragraph C, below. The total number of hours
absent under this option shall not exceed 96 hours.

2.

Selecting their first two weeks together additional weeks shall be

chosen one at a time, as per Paragraph C, below.

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3. Selecting vacation on a daily basis.

C. Platoon seniority shall be the ruling factor in the choice of vacation
dates, and the following shall apply as of April 1, annually:

1. | No more than 11 (eleven) Fire Privates from each platoon may be on
vacation at any one time.

2. No more than 4 (four) Fire Officers from each platoon may be on
vacation at any one time.

3. These limitations include employees taking day-at-a-time vacation.
However day-at-a-time vacation is to be allowed on a “first come first serve"
basis.

D. Chosen vacation dates will not be changed unless agreed to by the
employee involved. Employees transferred to different shift or division shall
declare their vacation schedule with valid dates to the new schedule.

E. Vacation payment will not be made to any employee whose
resignation or discharge from the Department is effective prior to his/her scheduled
vacation accrual date (the day after his anniversary date after one year of service).

F. In the event of an employee's death while in service, his/her
accumulated vacation pay pro-rated to the date of death shall be paid to the
surviving spouse. If no spouse survives the employee, this payment shall be paid to
the surviving children through the legal admmistrator of the estate of the deceased.
If no spouse or children survive, the vacation pay will be paid to the surviving
children through the legal administration of the estate of the deceased.

G. An employee may be permitted to borrow leave against upcoming
accrual within the same calendar year for purposes of being able to take scheduled
weekly vacations only. The maximum amount that may be borrowed is not to
exceed the maximum annual accrual as set forth above. The employee's leave
balance shall be charged at time of accrual, or at any other time that a positive
balance is present, until the borrowed leave is repaid. In the event of the
employee's resignation, discharge, retirement or death, any funds owed to the
employees or to be paid on his account, shall be decreased by the value of
borrowed vacation leave that is yet to be repaid.

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H. | Employees who earn leave may utilize such leave on a "day at a time"
basis, subject to the following requirements:

1. Employees assigned to Specialist Divisions, Dispatchers, and
employees assigned to the Training/Safety Division request the use of a "day
at a time" leave from the Deputy Chief or Division Supervisor at least one
hour before the start of his/her scheduled work shift. Fire Line employees,
shall request the use of “day at a time” leave from the Deputy Chief by 0700
hrs on the date they wish to use the leave. The Deputy Chief or Division
Supervisor shall grant such day-at-a-time leave requests up to the maximum
number of employees permitted to be on vacation as set forth in subsection
C, above. This cap may be exceeded with the approval of the Chief or
Assistant Chief in their sole discretion, and without obligation to consent.
The City may require the use of slips or other devices in order to facilitate
administration of "day at a time" leave and employees shall cooperate in the
use thereof.

2. "Day at a time" leave shall not be taken on the following shifts:

July 4 — day or night;
December 24 — day or night;
December 25 — day or night;
Thanksgiving — day or night;
December 31 — night.

3. "Day at a time" leave requests will be considered on a first come, first
serve basis, providing that any employee who requests a "day at a time"
leave at least fourteen (14) days in advance of the time to be taken, may not
have that leave day superseded by any other grant of leave within that
fourteen (14) day period. Prior to such fourteen (14) day period, a "day at a
time" leave request may be superseded by a request for a vacation by the
week. Any provision in this Agreement pertinent to seniority, time and
service preferences or rank shall not pertain to otherwise eligible "day at a
time" leave requests.

I. No vacation may be taken or scheduled, either "day at a time" or
regular, on December 24 or 25.

J. In the Specialists division, the following shall apply:

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1. At no time in any division shall the division supervisor and the senior
assistant to the division supervisor take the same vacation period without the
permission of the Chief of the Department.

2. In the Mechanical, Traming Divisions, and Fire Alarm only one
employee shall be eligible for each vacation period.

3. In the Fire Marshall's Office, only two employees shall be eligible for
each vacation period.

4. In the Dispatchers Division only two (2) dispatchers in any vacation
period.

K. | Upon the retirement or death of an employee he/she shall be paid all
accumulated vacation leave including a pro-rata accrual on a monthly basis for
time worked past his/her anniversary date. The employee must work until at least
the 15" of the month in question to be included in the pro-rata calculation.

Article 22 - PAID SICK AND INJURY LEAVE

A. — Sick leave will be accrued at the rate of ten (10) hours per month up to
a maximum accrual of seven hundred twenty (720) hours allowed. Sick leave does
not accrue during disciplinary suspension. Sick leave taken shall be charged
against hours accumulated on the basis of the actual number of hours the employee
is absent during scheduled duty hours. Effective upon signing of this Agreement,
sick leave will no longer have a maximum accrual of seven hundred twenty (720)
hours. However, payment of sick leave upon retirement or death as described in
Article 22, I and J will never exceed seven hundred twenty (720) hours; any

remaining sick leave hours over that amount upon retirement or death will go into
the sick leave bank described in Article 22, K.

B. In the event of a prolonged absence because of illness in excess of
thirty (30) calendar days, sick leave accumulation will be allowed only for the first
thirty (30) days of such an absence. There will be no accumulation of sick leave
during absences covered by the Sick Bank.

C. Sick leave will be used only for the personal injury or illness of the
employees, not contracted in the line of duty, provided such sickness or mjury 1s

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not incurred as the result of day-off work in which case no sick leave will be paid.
In the case of sickness or injury incurred as the result of working for another
employer, the employee shall receive no sick leave with pay.

C.1. An employee may usea maximum of 80.64 hours per year for the care
of the illness of a family member who resides in the immediate household. The
usage of sick leave in this instance may not necessarily be covered by the Family
Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Employees utilizing sick leave under this paragraph
who are unable to perform their duties for more than two (2) consecutive duty
shifts shall furnish to the Chief of the Department a certificate from a physician
stating that the nature of the family member’s illness required the employee’s
absence from work.

At the discretion of the Chief or designee, an employee who meets the
criteria set forth in the Family Medical Leave Act of 1993 may use all of his/her
accrued sick leave while on FMLA.

D. Any employee not able to report to work because of illness must
notify the Deputy Chief on duty at least one (1) hour before scheduled to report for
work. Any member of the Department classified as a Fire Private, Fire Lieutenant
or Fire Captain, who is unable to perform his/her duties because of illness for more
than two (2) duty shifts, and members of the Department classified as Dispatchers,
Assistant Superintendents, Superintendents, Fire Marshall, Inspector/ Investigator,
Inspector/P ublic Education Officer and third ranking specialists who are unable to
perform their duties because of illness for more than two (2) duty shifts shall
furnish to the Chief of the Department a certificate from a physician stating the
nature, cause and extent of the illness and a clearance to return to work. No less
than twelve (12) hours prior to the return to duty of the members of any grade from
leaves of absence because of illness shall report such return to the Deputy Chief on
duty, by telephone or otherwise, who shall report to the Chief of the Department.

E. — Ifan employee incurs injury on the job, he/she will be sent at once to
a hospital if in the judgment of his/her immediate supervisor such action is
required to determine the extent of the injury. The injured employee who 1s sent to
a hospital, as provided above, will obtain a certificate from the doctor indicating
the extent of the injury and the date by which the employee can be expected to be
able to return to work. This certificate is to be provided to the Deputy Chief or
Superintendent, depending on work group.

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