Tentative Agreements

Current Tentative Agreements

(to be included in our first contract once we finish bargaining!)

Civil/Jury Duty

• Leave with pay will be granted for civil or jury duty, unless the legal action was initiated by the employee or they were named as a defendant in a private legal action.

• Employees will be granted 3 days of bereavement leave upon a death of a family member.

Corrective Action/Dismissal

• Just cause is necessary for corrective action or dismissal.

• Employees will be notified in writing that they may have a union representative present when being invited to any meeting which may result in corrective action or dismissal.

• Formal counseling will include the development of a written action plan. Final counselling will include discussion and may include revision of this plan.

• An employee will have the opportunity to argue their case at a pre-determination meeting prior to dismissal.

• Records of corrective action will be removed from a personnel file upon request, excluding that resulting from workplace violence or harrassment/discrimination/retaliation.

Domestic Violence/Stalking Leave

• Time off will be granted to employees who are victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking, as well employees who are assisting family members dealing with domestic violence/sexual assault/stalking.

Employee Rights

• Employees have the right to a union representative and an interpreter at an investigatory meeting which the employee believes may lead to corrective action.

• Employees will be granted paid release time to meet with their union steward or representative, and to attend meetings related to the grievance procedure/corrective action (see also Corrective Action/Dismissal).

• Employees will be granted paid release time to attend negotiations on mandatory subjects of bargaining and joint labor management meetings (see also Joint Union Management).

• An employee must receive supervisor approval before attending any meeting or hearing.

FMLA

• The university will follow state law; any amendments or repeals of said law will be followed.

Hours of Work

• Regular full-time schedules are 40 hours per week.

• Regular workweeks include two consecutive days off.

• Typical working hours are between 8:00am and 6:00pm.

• All of the above is flexible in order to accommodate individual scheduling needs, occasional crunches, etc.

Inclement Weather

• When faced with inclement weather, an employee may telework or take time off.

• During suspended operations, only essential employees must report to their worksite if they are unable to telework.

Information on Grants and Proposals

• Upon hire, employees will receive information concerning source(s) and duration of current and anticipated funding for a position.

• Regular updates on IHME HUB for all grants and proposals:

  • Name and topic of grant

  • PI

  • Total amount and duration

  • Funder

  • Application status

  • Timelines for decisions and effective dates

  • Teams to be funded by a grant

Joint Union Management

• The joint union-management committee will consist of 3 union representatives and 3 employer representatives, and additional employees may be granted release time to attend meetings.

• Meetings will be held during normal business hours and considered time worked.

• Topics will be limited to group (rather than individual) concerns.

Layoff, Layoff Seniority, Rehire

• Seniority categories that work for IHME and for us.

• Transparency: notice of available positions, 45 days’ notice of potential layoffs.

• At least two qualified employees in layoff pool will be interviewed for vacant positions.

• Formal rehire options:

  • Option to be rehired into the same or similar job openings at IHME

  • Rehire rights for two years

Leave for Reasons of Faith or Conscience

• Leave without pay will be granted up to 2 days annually for a reason of faith or conscience, or a religious organized activity.

Membership, Dues, Status Reports

• Union dues will be deducted from payroll semi-monthly.

• Each pay period, UW will provide the union with status reports on member compensation/deductions, appointments, changes, and vacancies.

• UW will not otherwise disclose personally identifiable wage/deduction information or union membership information unless legally required.

Military Leave

• The university will follow its existing policy, including 21 days paid military leave annually.

Miscellaneous Leave

• In addition to what is specified elsewhere in this contract, leave without pay may be granted for:

  • Child or elder care emergencies

  • Governmental service

  • Citizen volunteer or community service

  • Education

  • Formal collective bargaining

  • Leave taken voluntarily to reduce the effect of a layoff

  • Union project activities

  • To accommodate annual work schedules of employees occupying cyclic year positions

MOU: LBD Layoffs

• A formal mechanism for addressing excessive workload caused by attrition on LBD.

• Rehire rights consistent with what we’ve bargained for in the main Layoffs article.

• Health insurance through the end of October.

• A $1500 payout to LBD employees who get laid off.

Non-Discrimination

• Defines protected classes.

• If an employee files an internal complaint (e.g. with their supervisor or HR) and a formal grievance procedure, the grievance will be suspended until the internal complaint process is complete.

• A grievance must be filed within 180 days of an alleged occurrence.

• IHME may implement an affirmative action plan.

Overtime

• Full-time schedules are assumed to be 40 hours per week.

• When overtime-exempt employees work extended hours, they will consult with supervisors to compensate for excess hours with offsetting time.

• Overtime-eligible employees (i.e. hourly employees) will be paid 1.5x their base pay for working more than 40 hours in a week.

Parental Leave

• 4-6 months (including FMLA) of leave taken after birth of child or placement of child with employee through adoption or foster care.

Performance Evaluations

• Performance evaluations will take place at least annually. Additionally, supervisors will meet with their employees at least twice annually to evaluate progress.

• Up to 4 individuals may provide feedback to the evaluator, and the employee may provide suggestions as to who might give the most relevant feedback.

• Performance reviews will be retained in the personnel file for no more than 3 years.

• Performance evaluations are grievable through Step 2 of the Grievance Procedure.

Personal Services

• It is inappropriate for employees to be required to perform personal services (e.g., making coffee, preparing lunch, picking up dry cleaning) except in cases where their job duties legitimately require them to do so.

Personnel Files

• HR will maintain a personnel file for every employee, which will contain data throughout their tenure at UW. Supervisors may create their own records, but those will only be incorporated into the personnel file as part of an official action.

• Personnel files will be kept in confidentiality; any medical files will be kept separate from all other employment files.

• An employee may review their personnel file upon request, during business hours, in the presence of an employer representative; an employee can also request a copy of their personnel file.

Privacy

• The Union will be notified of public records requests that concern its members, and be given a 10 day protest period.

Probation

• Every employee will complete a 6 month probationary period upon hire. It may be extended up to an additional 6 months.

Reasonable Accommodation

• The university will follow state law when providing accommodation for disabilities as well as pregnancy.

• Disability leave may be taken through accrued paid or unpaid time off.

Resignation and Abandonment

• Employees are encouraged to give 2 weeks’ notice, and may withdraw a resignation within 24 hours of submission.

• An employee who misses 3 consecutive scheduled workdays is deemed to have resigned.

Salary Overpayment Recovery

• Outlines procedures by which the UW can recoup money from employees in the event of overpayment.

Shared Leave

• The leave sharing program allows employees to donate their time off to other state employees, per state law.

Sick Leave

• Full-time employees regularly accrue 8 hours of sick leave per month (prorated for part-time employees).

• Employees may use sick leave because of personal illness, exposure to contagious disease, caretaking responsibilities for family members, emergency childcare, and medical/dental/vision appointments.

Subordination/Savings Clause

• If any one part of this contract is determined to be unlawful or invalid, the rest will remain as agreed upon. Upon request, a negotiating committee will convene within 30 days to bargain on a substitute provision.

Tuition Exemption

• In keeping with state law and UW policy, IHME employees have access to the UW’s Tuition Exemption program.

• Courses taken through the Tuition Exemption program are not required to directly benefit IHME.

Union Activities and Stewards

• SEIU 925 staff will be allowed access to bargaining unit employees in order to carry out representational duties.

• Stewards will be granted reasonable release time to handle grievances or other union duties.

• The Union will be granted de minimis access to IHME facilities in order to communicate with employees; if digital bulletin boards become available, the Union and IHME/UW will meet to discuss possible union access.

Vacations

• Employees will not be disciplined for failing to respond to email while on vacation.

• Vacation requests for 5 or more consecutive days should be made in writing 2 months in advance; supervisors should respond within 5 business days.

• Remote work will be allowed the week of Thanksgiving and the final week of the calendar year.

Washington Family Medical Leave

• Employees have access to the Washington Family Medical Leave Program as outlined in RCW 50A.04.

Workplace Behavior

• Outlines basic expectations for professionalism and respect.

• Bullying is defined as “unprofessional behavior that misuses power to control or harm others,” and it will not be tolerated.

Work-Related Injury Leave

• Per state law, employees sustaining work-related injury or illness will be granted disability leave.