Labor Relations Fundamentals for Community College Districts

conditions of employment” include health and welfare benefits; leave, transfer and reassignment policies; safety conditions; class size; evaluation procedures; organizational security; grievance procedures including binding arbitration, and alternative compensation or benefits for employees adversely affected by pension limitations pursuant to Section 22316 of the Education Code. 131 The Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) has found that implementation of leave and attendance policies, to the extent they have a generalized effect on employees that is inconsistent with existing policies and/or labor agreements, is subject to the obligation to meet and negotiate in good faith. 132 It is important for districts to ensure that employees are aware of and understand applicable attendance policies. New employees should receive an orientation covering personnel and/or department rules relating to attendance and punctuality. A district should provide all new employees with a clear enunciation of work hours and attendance policies as part of the initial orientation regarding the job assignment, duties, pay period, salary schedules, and other similar matters. Proper control of employee attendance requires accurate documentation of the absences, such as supervisory file notes, and of notice to the employee that the absenteeism is a violation of district policy. A supervisor or manager who does not have proper documentation of an absenteeism problem is not armed with the information necessary to recognize and address the problem with counseling or discipline. Similarly, without proper documentation, a supervisor or manager is not armed to respond to any grievance that is filed in response to disciplinary action taken to correct an absenteeism problem. Arbitrators will look to this proper documentation of employee absences to determine if standards of progressive discipline have been satisfied and if there is “just cause” for the level of discipline imposed by the employer. Employers should distinguish between legally protected and unprotected leaves of absence. An employer may not discipline an employee for taking legally protected leave. Supervisors should work closely with Human Resources to ensure that discipline for excessive absenteeism is based solely on the use of unprotected leave. b. Insubordination There are certain essential ingredients that must be present before an employee can be disciplined for failure to obey a supervisor’s order. Normally, in order for insubordination to exist:



There must be an order given;

 The order must be lawful and not cause an unreasonable health or safety risk;

 It must be communicated clearly to the employee;

 It must be clearly communicated by someone with the proper authority;

 The employee must have understood the order;

 The employee must actually refuse to comply.

Labor Relations Fundamentals for Community College Districts © 2019 (c) Liebert Cassidy Whitmore 52