Labor Relations

UW – Teamsters 117 Negotiations Recap for May 5

Background

This recap details the third virtual session for the May 5 collective bargaining agreement between the UW and Teamsters 117. Recaps are published online on the UW Labor Relations website.

Teamsters Initial Proposals

Employee files – The Union proposed to reduce the length of time before Records of Suspension may be removed from an employee’s file from five years to three, and the length of time before Reprimands, corrective action counseling, and internal investigations may be removed from all departmental files from three years to one.

Internal investigations – The Union proposed that employees participating in an investigatory meeting would be provided with the initial list of questions at least 48 hours prior to the meeting. The union also proposed that when an employee uses deadly force that results in the injury or death of a person, the employee would not be required to make a formal written or recorded statement for 72 hours after the incident, extending the timeframe from the current 48 hours.

Layoff Notification – The Union proposed to extend the minimum notice before layoff from 30 to 60 days.

Overtime – The Union proposed that pre-scheduled overtime and voluntary overtime would be assigned by seniority, and that the notice required for “pre-scheduled” mandatory overtime would be increased from 72 hours to 7 days.

Shift change – The Union proposed to extend the minimum notice before a shift change from seven to fourteen days.

Shop Steward Seminar – The Union proposed that the Shop Steward Seminar would not count against the allotted 32 hours of paid time available annually for Shop Stewards to attend Union training seminars.

Teamsters Retirees Healthcare Trust – The Union proposed a new article, stating the parties would re-open negotiations upon request by the Union for the purpose of negotiating procedures and policies for employees to participate in the Teamsters Retirees Healthcare Trust, should employees vote on participating in the trust.

On the following articles, the Union proposed to maintain current contract language:

  • Article 1 – Preamble
  • Article 2 – Nondiscrimination
  • Article 3 – Management Rights and Responsibilities
  • Article 4 – Join Labor Management Committee
  • Article 5 – Union Recognition, Union Security, and Dues Deduction
  • Article 6 – Union Business/Representatives
  • Article 18 – Grievance Procedure
  • Article 21 – Contracting Out
  • Article 24 – Severability
  • Article 26 – Resignation and Abandonment
  • Article 28 – Democrat, Republican, Independent Voter Education

The union proposed to strike the following out-of-date MOUs:

  • Across the Board Increases Contingent Upon State Funding
  • Uniform Portfolio

UW Initial Proposals

Employee files – To reflect current law, the Employer added an exception to records that may be removed from an employee file, for those related to sexual misconduct. The Employer also proposed cleanup of language surrounding notification of public records requests to reflect the current practice of union notification.

Grievance procedure – The Employer proposed to establish a permanent panel of arbitrators that would be assigned cases on a rotating basis, thereby expediting the arbitration process.

Nondiscrimination – To reflect current law, the Employer added immigration status and citizenship as basis for discrimination against which employees are protected.

Union dues – The Employer proposed a web-based system through which the Union would submit dues authorization, thereby eliminating manual entry.

Next Steps

The next UW and Teamsters 117 bargaining session is scheduled for May 12 and will be held virtually.