Labor Relations

UW Libraries & SEIU 925 Negotiations Recap for July 14 & 19, 2022

Background

This recap details the nineteenth and twentieth virtual sessions for the initial collective bargaining agreement between the UW Libraries and SEIU 925. Recaps are published online on the UW Labor Relations website. The parties agreed to ground rules for these negotiations.

Tentative Agreement

The parties tentatively agreed to language also found in the current SEIU 925 CBA in the following articles, with edits outlined below:

  • Article – Affirmative Action
    • Housekeeping edits only
  • Article – Miscellaneous Leave
    • Unpaid time off may be granted for a host of reasons including formal collective bargaining not provided in the agreement or ground rules and union activities not provided in this agreement. In instances where an Employer may need to cancel unpaid time off due to extreme circumstances, and/or inappropriate use, the Employer will consider an employee’s individual circumstances and operational needs when determining a return to work date.
  • Article – Personnel Files
    • The parties agreed that the official personnel file for each employee remain with campus Human Resources for Professional Libraries and Press employees or the Office for Academic Personnel and Faculty for Librarians. Employees would be able to access their official file upon request unless it is non disclosable based on state or federal laws. Employees would have the right to access or receive copies of their departmental file upon written request and it would be examined in the presence of the Employer representative. Employees would have the right to insert a reasonable amount of job related materials that reflects favorably upon their performance in either their official or departmental files, and may respond concisely to items in the files. Removal of records is subject to the University’s records retention policies.
  • Article – Privacy
    • The parties clarified that the purpose of the ten-day protest period after Labor Relations provides public records notification to the Union is so that the Union may seek legal remedy in accordance with the Public Records Act.
  • Article – Union Activities, Rights, and Stewards
    • Housekeeping edits only
  • Article – Sick Time Off
    • Employees with unpaid time off exceeding 80 hours in a month (prorated for part-time) will earn a monthly accrual proportionate to the number of hours in pay status. Sick leave accruals must not exceed eight hours in a month. The article acknowledges there are many ways to define family but that there would be a specific family member definition for this article.
  • Article – Civil Duty Leave and Bereavement Leave
    • In addition to bereavement time, sick time off may be requested for the use of bereavement if bereavement time is unavailable. The University offers supplemental benefits in the form of bereavement time off when an employee is qualified for Washington Paid Family and Medical Leave. The article acknowledges there are many ways to define family but that there would be a specific family member definition for this article in accordance with the law (same definition as sick time off).

Union Counter Proposals

Telework – In response to the Employer, the Union proposed language that the University would encourage and allow the use of telework arrangements and flexible scheduling. The Union proposed that if a telework request is denied, the Employer would provide the reason in writing and provide a copy of the denial to Libraries HR. The Union proposed that telework should be incorporated in the continuity of operational plans and that telework for disability would be handled through the Disabilities Services Office. The Union proposed that Libraries, Law Library and Press should establish specific departmental telework best practices and guidelines, based on University policy, and provide training for supervisors to implement the guidelines.

Vacation Time Off – In response to the Employer’s proposal, the Union maintains that unless there is an operational need requiring work, then the employee would not need to respond to work communications during their vacation. The Union maintains their position that employees would accrue 26 days of vacation time off per year regardless of service and part time accrual rates would be pro- rated. The Union’s proposal included the encouragement of maintaining balances below 288 hours but would not need approvals from HR to exceed the encouraged balance. Upon termination, employees who have completed six months of service would be paid for their unused vacation time off up to the maximum of 288 hours.

Salary Overpayment Recovery – In response to the Employer, the Union incorporated the vacation cap it proposed in the Vacation Time Off article of 288 hours for all employees (instead of current rates of 288 for librarians and 240 for former professional staff). Employees would need to be below the vacation cap to utilize vacation time off as a method of payback for salary overpayment.

Employer Counter Proposals

Performance Evaluations – In response to Union, the Employer proposed that performance evaluations would be performed annually for all employees. The Employer proposed that support for employee development may consist of but is not limited to internal or external training, mentoring and additional supervisory support. The Employer proposed a more streamlined and concise description of the job related factors upon which the evaluation would be based.  The Employer proposed that evaluators would be required to complete implicit bias training. The Employer proposed that other forms may be supplemented in the performance evaluation and that an employee could review any written materials used to prepare the evaluation upon request.

Hiring – In response to the Union, the Employer proposed to include the Union’s language stating that recruitment processes and practices would be appropriate topics for Joint Union/Management meetings. The Employer proposed that job vacancy announcements and advertisements would include references to the CBA and articulate wage and salary information in compliance with the law.

Health and Safety – In response to the Union, the Employer proposed to include the Union’s language stating that facilities and EH&S would continue to evaluate reports for air circulation problems and that building issues could be reported to facilities in an online work order request.

Next Steps

The next UW Libraries and SEIU 925 bargaining session is scheduled for August 9 and will be held virtually.