Search

4]
42
43
44
45
46
44

Earred Time o..... ccc ccc ccccccscccssessseseceeesceeecceeeeecseecsseesseesssesseessesssessssesssessseessees 31

Individualized Sick Leave Pools ..........ccccccccccccesscecesseneeeeceneeeeeeessseeeccesaeeeeeseseeeescaaeees 33
Professional Affiliations/Licemsing .......0...cccccceccccceccceeeeceeceessseeeeceeeeeeessseeeescneeteeneaaes 34
Safety Committees 00... ccc ccccecceeeeneceeecnsneeeeeeneeeeeensaaeeeceeeeeeeenensaaeescenseeesenenieeeess
Union Business Leave

Working out of Classification ..........ccccccccecccccescsceecceeeeeeeessseeeecneeeeeesnssseeeseneeeeenesaas 34
Duration of Agreement... ccc cece cceeneceeeennneeeeceneeeeeenesaeeeccneeeeeeeesssseeeseneeeeeneaas 35

Article 1
Agreement

AGREEMENT, made and entered into as of the day of

, by and between The City of Nashua, New Hampshire (hereinafter
called the “City ») and the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural
Implement Workers of America (UAW) and its Local # 2322, United Automobile, Aerospace
and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW), Professional Unit, (hereinafter called
the “Union’).

Article 2
Recognition

The City hereby recognizes the Union as the sole and exclusive representative of the professional
emp loy ees as certified by the PELRB of New Hampshire as per Appendix A.

The City agrees that it will not discriminate against, intimidate, or coerce any employee in the
exercise of their rights to bargain collectively through the Union on account of membership in or
activities on behalf of the Union. The City agrees that it will deal with the Union for the purposes
of bargaining with respect to wages, hours of duty and working conditions of members of the
Bargaining Unit.

Should there be a dispute between an employee and the Union over the matter of an employ ee's
Union membership, the Union agrees to hold the City harmless in any such dispute.

Article 3
Discrimination

It is agreed that the City will not discriminate on the basis of sex, race, color, national origin,
religion, lawful political or employee's organization affiliation, age, marital status, sexual
preference, or non-disqualify ing disability , or on any basis prohibited by law.

Article 4
Union Dues

As a condition of employment, an employee shall pay cither Union Dues or Agency Fees. An
employ ee holding a Union position may execute a written authorization providing that a portion
of their salary representing monthly Union Dues or Agency Fees be withheld weekly and
forwarded to the Union. Upon receiving a properly executed Authorization and Assignment
Form from an employee, the Local 2322 shall notify the Human Resources/Pay roll Department
to deduct from salary due, the amount authorized, and a copy of said form acceptable to Human
Resources Department shall be furnished thereto in advance of said deduction. A copy of said
form is attached as Appendix B.

Each month, a check for the amount of all Union Dues and Agency Fees deducted, along with a
current list of members from whose salary Union Dues and Agency Fees deductions have been
made, shall be transmitted to the Treasurer of the Union.

An employee may elect to change deductions during the term of the agreement, between Union
Dues and Agency Fees. An employee who executes an authorization form shall continue to have
such deductions made from their salary during the term of the Agreement or until the Human
Resource/Pay roll Department, with a copy to the Union, are notified that the Authorization and
Assessment Form is being revoked, and the employee thus withdraws the authority for the
deduction of Union Dues or Agency Fees. Union Dues and Agency Fees deductions shall be
made without cost to the employ ce or the Union.

Union Dues and Agency Fees deductions shall be subordinate to deductions required by law and
other deductions. No deductions shall be made if an employee has insufficient salary in any pay
period. The City of Nashua shall not be responsible for deducting any arrearage in Union Dues
or Agency Fees owed to the Union by a member, or any special or other assessment by the
Union, with the exception of the deduction of initiations fees if expressly authorized on the form
noted above.

Deductions shall automatically terminate upon the occurrence of any of the following events:

Termination of employ ment;

Transfer out of the bargaining unit;

Lay -off;

Revocation by the employee of Union Dues or Agency Fees Authorization.

FPYeNpP

The Unit shall indemnify and save harmless The City of Nashua in and on account of any and all
claims, suits and damages arising out of, or in relation to, such dues deductions.

Article 4A

Agency Fees
An employee who elects not to pay Union Dues shall pay Agency Fees for services rendered by
the Union commensurate with the employ ce’s fair share apportionment for the cost of collective

bargaining, contract administration, and grievance adjustment. The City agrees to collect
Agency Fees in the same method and manner as the collection of Union Dues.

Article 5
Employ ce Rights
It is agreed that neither the City nor its Departments will:
A. Dominate or interfere in the formation and administration of the Union;

B. Discriminate in the hire, tenure, or the terms and conditions of employ ment of emp loy ces or

potential emp loy ces, for the purpose of encouraging or discouraging membership inthe
Union;

Discharge, suspend, discipline, or otherwise discriminate against any employee because the
employee has filed a complaint, affidavit, or petition, or given information or testimony on
a grievance, as set forthinRSA 273-A;

Restrain, coerce, or otherwise interfere withthe Union in theexercise of rights granted by
statute.

It is the intention of all the parties that this article provides that the Union shall enjoy all the
rights secured by RSA 273-A.

Article 6
Management Rights

Except as otherwise provided for in this agreement, the City of Nashua, its respective Boards or
Commissions and officers, shall have, whether exercised or not, all the rights, powers, and
authority vested in it by virtue of the Statutes of the State of New Hampshire and the Nashua
City Charter and Ordinances, now or hereinafter enacted including, but not limited to, the rights

to:

A.

B.

Control the management and administration of the City of Nashua;

Hire, promote from within, transfer, assign, retain, layoff, and direct employees within
the City of Nashua;

Suspend, demote, discharge and take other disciplinary actions against employees for just
cause;

Issue, modify, and enforce Rules and Regulations which do not expressly violate the
terms of this Agreement.

Determine the methods, means, and personnel by which the City of Nashua’s operation is
to be conducted, as well as to determine those operations and to assign duties, hours, and
responsibilities to its employ ees accordingly ;

Exercise control and discretion over the City of Nashua, it organization, and the
technology or lack thereof of performing its work;

Determine the standards of selection for employment and the standards of service to be
offered by the City of Nashua;

Assign Union employees to work in any job classification as needed, in the judgment of
the appropriate supervisor or manager.

I. Exercise managerial policy, as set forth in RSA 273-A;
J. Schedule the hours and days of work whether for emergency purposes or not.

The foregoing Management rights are set out for purposes of illustration and not limitation; the
City of Nashua retains all such rights, powers, and authority, whether exercised or not, conferred
upon it by law.

Article 7
Strikes and Work Stoppages

The Union shall not instigate, sponsor, or encourage any activity or action in contravention of
the provisions or intent of the Agreement.

No employee shall, alone or in concert, engage in, initiate, sponsor, support or direct a strike,
work stoppage, or refuse in the course of employ ment to perform assigned duties; or withhold,
curtail or restrict services or otherwise interfere with the operations of the City of Nashua or
encourage others to do so; or engage, or participate in any other formof job action.

Article 8
Work Week and Work Schedule

A. The work week shall consist of seven (7) consecutive twenty -four (24) hour periods
and shall stay consistent with current practice.

B. The normal work schedule shall consist of five (5) consecutive eight (8) hour work
day s.

C. Employ ces engaged in continuous operations such as BPW, and other jobs where
emp loy ees are ordered on call at any hour of the day, shall have regular working hours
and regular work weeks to suit specific jobs in these continuous operations as
practiced as of the date of execution.

D. The City may establish working hours for jobs having other than normal requirements.

E. Any change in the regular work schedule hours shall be the subject of discussions
between the Union and the City before being implemented. This subsection shall not be
construed to reduce or impair managements authority pursuant to the article entitled
"Management Rights" supra.

Article 9
Overtime

Overtime may be required of all employees. Compensation therefore shall be paid as required by
the Fair Labor Standard Act and other pertinent law. Nonexempt employees called in from home

to work shall receive a minimum of three (3) hours pay therefore at the applicable rate.
Employ ees who are "on call" or subject to the provisions of a written procedure established by
management requiring periodic work outside their regularly scheduled hours shall be paid
any additional pay provided for in such procedures. Inspectors in the Community Develop ment
Division shall receive a minimum of three (3) hours pay at the applicable rate for scheduled work
on Saturday or Sunday or between the hours of 9:00 p.m. and 5 am.

For any employee in the Public Works Division, time and one half the employ ce’s regular hourly
pay shall be paid for work assigned and performed in excess of eight (8) hours in a work day, or
in excess of forty (40) hours in a work week. Paid Earned Time, paid holidays, military active
duty for training, jury duty, bereavement leave, or other excusable reasons of similar urgency,
shall be considered as time worked for the purpose of computing overtime pay.

When Park Department foremen go on permanent night shift assignment, all overtime for these
emp loy ees in the Park Department will be based on the premium rate of pay (base pay plus shift
differential) for all overtime work performed.

Overtime shall be allocated within a department on a rotating basis within the classification that
normally performs the work, starting with the most senior qualified employee. The next round
of overtime shall begin with the next senior employee within the classification that normally
performs the work, not previously contacted for overtime. Once the list is at the bottom (least
senior employee within the classification that normally performs the work) the list will start
again with the most senior. All qualified bargaining unit members in the division shall be
offered overtime before members of other units.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, overtime in emergency situations shall be assigned as determined
by management in order to best address the emergency. In this event, employees required to
work overtime for the emergency will be skipped over the next time they would be
eligible for non- emergency overtime.

For the purposes of this section, seniority shall be calculated on the same basis as Job
Posting/Lay - offs and Recall.

The City and the Union will jointly maintain an updated overtime rotation list. The Union will
provide the City with any changes in contact information. These changes will be made to the list
as soon as they are received from the Union. Any errors in allocating overtime will be corrected
immediately by placing the missed individual at the top of the overtime list and giving him or her
the next overtime opportunity. This subsequent opportunity will be offered for the same number
of hours as the missed opportunity. The employce’s original position on the overtime list will
not change with this action. Corrections of errors in allocating overtime shall be handled in this
manner not more than once per individual employ ce per fiscal y ear.

Emp loy ees who agree to be “on call” shall be compensated one (1) hour of overtime rate (time and
a half) per day. The emp loy ee will be issued a pager or cell phone and resp ond to it if paged_or
called.

Overtime op portunities for street foremen shall be as follows:
List A: Street Foremen
List B: Other Street Department Foremen
List C: Other qualified UAW emp loy ces in the Street Department
List D: Park Department Foremen
List E: All other qualified UAW emp loy ees

Snow overtime op portunities for street foremen shall be as follows:
List A: Street Foremen
List B: Other Street Department Foremen
List C: Other Snow Route Foremen, not in the Street Department
List D: Other qualified UAW emp loy ces in the Street Department
List E: Park Department Foremen
List F: All other qualified UAW employ ees

In the event that no one volunteers for duties relative to snow operations, any new UAW employee
hired or promoted on or after June 2, 2003 is required to be available for snow-related overtime
and will be assigned by reverse seniority on a rotating basis.

Any one who is on Earned Time Leave or who is under medical restrictions or who has reasonable
justification for not being available shall not be required to accept overtime assignments.

The City shall provide the Union with the qualifications necessary to assume, on a temporary
basis, the duties of a snow route foreman, and once an employee has been determined to
have these qualifications, the employ ce shall be included in List F.

The City shall provide any necessary training to allow employees to become qualified for
these snow operations.

Article 10
Seniority

Seniority shall be defined as the continuous length of service with the City of Nashua. Forthe
purpose of Lay -offs, Recall and Job Postings seniority shall be in accordance with the following:

Three points [3] shall be awarded for each completed year an employee works in a
specific department.

Two points [2] shall be awarded for each completed year an employee works in a specific
division, and out of the department.

One point [1] shall be awarded for each completed y car an employee works for the City and out
of the division, and out of the department.

Seniority shall be based on the total number of points an emp loy ee has accumulated.

For an examp le an emp loy ee with eleven y ears withthe City in continuous service, and as follows:

department division city
5 3 3

would have 24 points [5x3+3x2+3x]1].

The City shall furnish the Union Chairperson with an up-to-date Seniority List on a monthly basis.
The City will also furnish the names of all new hires, promotions, layoffs and terminations on
a weckly basis.

Seniority shall be broken for the following reasons:
a) If the employ ce quits or retires.
b) If the employ ce is discharged for just cause.
Cc) If the employ ee is laid off for a period of time greater than two (2) y ears.

Until an employee has served the probationary period, the employee has no seniority status and
may be discharged or laid off without cause. Upon successful comp letionof the probationary period,
semority will accrue retroactively to the date of hire.

The emp loy ee shall accumulate seniority while on an authorized leave of absence.

Article 11
Grievance Procedure

In the event that differences arise with respect to any provision of this Agreement, an earnest
effort shall be made to settle such differences promptly in the following order and manner:

StepI An employee shall present an oral grievance with or without the assistance of
the Union to the employ ce’s immediate supervisor. The supervisor shall resp ond
to the grievance within five (5) working day s. If the grievance is not settled at this
step, the grievance may proceed to the next step. The employ ce will be paid at the
employ ee’s regular rate of pay for time spent presenting the oral grievance, if during
work hours. Any resolution of the grievance shall not be inconsistent with the
terms of this agreement. The Union shall be notified of the resolution of the
grievance.

Step Il The grievance shall be set forth in writing on the formas provided in Appendix C.
The grievance must be signed by the aggrieved employee and Union

Representative, and presented to the employ ce’s Department Head within five (5)
working days after receipt of the supervisor’s decision in step I.

10

Step Il

Step IV

Step V

The Department Head will be given five (5) working days after the receipt of
the grievance to have a meeting with the aggrieved party and communicate a
decision in writing to the Union. If the grievance is not settled to the satisfaction of
the emp loy ee and the Union, or if no reply is communicated after the five (5)
working days, the grievance may proceed to Step III.

The city and the union may agree to proceed directly from Step Ito Step HI in an
effort to expedite the grievance process.

The Union will inform the Division Director and Human Resources M anager of
the grievance, in writing and within five (5) working days of the Department
Head’s decision or lack thereof. The Union shall provide the Division Director and
Human Resources M anager with copies of all prior communications. The Division
Director and/or the Human Resources M anager will be given ten (10) working day s
to jointly meet with the union representative and aggrieved emp loy ee and
communicate a written decision to the Union.

If the grievance is not settled to the satisfaction of the employ ce and the Union, or
if no reply has been communicated after the ten (10) working day s, the grievance
may proceed to Step IV for positions governed by an established Board of
Commissioners (Fire, BPW, etc.) and to Step V for all others.

The Union will inform the Board of Commissioners of the grievance, in writing
and within five (5) working day s of the Division Director’s decision or lack thereof.
The Union shall provide the Board with copies of all prior communications. The
Board of Commissioners will be given twenty (20) working day s to meet with the
union representative, with or without the aggrieved party , and communicate a
written decision to the Union. If the grievance is not settled to the satisfaction of
the employ ee and the Union, or if no reply has been communicated after the twenty
(20) working days, the grievance may proceed to Step V.

Within twenty (20) working day s of the Division Director's and/or Human
Resources M anager’s, or applicable Board of Commissioners decision, or
expiration of the decision period, the Union will have the option of submitting
the grievance to arbitration. The Union shall inform the Human Resources
Manager in writing of its decision to arbitrate.

The choice of Arbitrator shall be by agreement of the two parties. However, if
no such agreement has been reached within ten (10) working days notice of
intent to arbitrate, the grievance may be referred to the Public Employ ce Labor
Relations Board for the selection of the arbitrator in accordance with the procedures
then obtaining All decisions of the arbitrator shall be binding. The arbitrator shall
have no authority to award a monetary remedy hereunder other than for lost
compensation which would have been otherwise received pursuant to the terms of
this agreement.

The operation of this grievance and arbitration agreement shall be subject to
the provisions of Chapter 542 of the New Hampshire Revised Statutes Annotated.

11

Time Limitations

The city and the union may waive steps or extend the time for any action stated above 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 harmony. Request of either party for extensions of
time shall not be unreasonably denied.

Failure at any step of this procedure by the City to communicate a decision in writing on a
grievance within the time specified shall permit an appeal of the grievance to the next step. Failure
at any step of this procedure to appeal a grievance to the next step within the specified time
limits shall be deemed to be acceptance of the decision rendered at the step.

No grievance will be considered unless it is presented in Step I within 15 days of the date that the
emp loy ee and/or union became aware that a contract violation may have occurred.

Right to Withdraw
The aggrieved party has the right to withdraw the grievance at any time during the proceedings.

Union Representation

The City will allow the grieved party reasonable time to meet with Union representatives for
the purpose of discussing and presenting the grievance. Whenever possible, the Union
representative will notify their immediate supervisor when they are meeting with the grieved party .

Fees
The fees and expenses charged by the arbitrator shall be shared equally by the City and the Union.

Mediation

Grievance Mediation may take place, at no cost to either party, in the grievance procedure at
any time if agreed by both parties. Either party may submit a request to the other requesting
Grievance Mediation. The partics may use any mediator or service, including the Federal
Mediation and Conciliation Service or may agree to mediate without a third party.

Article 12
Job Posting/Lay -Offs/Recall

Each position shall be defined by a Job Description. All Job Descriptions shall be reviewed and
evaluated and assigned a grade. The Union shall have input in the Job Description process and
shall be notified when any Job Description is being created, under review, being reevaluated or
has been requested to be reevaluated.

Effective upon the ratification of this agreement, the City and the Union agree to meet and
discuss the criteria for use in determining upgrades for positions and the procedures by which
emp loy ees may request to have their Job Descriptions reviewed for possible up grade.

Eligibility: All vacancies in positions within the bargaining unit will be subject to the
posting procedures specified in this Article. When filling vacancies for positions covered by this
Agreement, current regular full-time and part-time UAW bargaining unit employees who
have completed their probationary period are eligible to apply for a vacant position.

12