APPENDIX D:

• Jurisdiction: United States

APPENDIX D:

Employment Arbitration Example—Cornell University¹

Employee Complaint and Grievance Procedure

Purpose:

To establish a procedure for the fair, orderly, and speedy resolution of disputes that sometimes arise between supervisors and employees. This shall serve as the exclusive University procedure for the resolution of job-related complaints and grievances.

Applies To:

All regular exempt and nonexempt, nonacademic Cornell University employees except:

? members of a collective bargaining unit,

? student employees,

? unclassified employees, and

? employees in Puerto Rico or the Cornell University Medical College.

Probationary employees will have access to this procedure, except for matters involving termination and extension of the probationary period.

Usage:

An employee may utilize this procedure to review an alleged violation or misapplication of University policies or rules pertaining to employment in the department involved, or applicable laws or regulations including antidiscrimination laws or regulations which directly and adversely affect the employee.

Informal Resolution of Complaints:

Regular and forthright communication between employees and supervisors reduces the likelihood of the need for more formal review and is in the mutual best interest of both the University and employees.

Therefore, employees should bring to the attention of their supervisors any work-related problems as soon as possible after they arise, and discuss the concern with the objective of resolving it.

Supervisors should discuss with the employee his or her concerns in a timely fashion in an effort to resolve the matter.

Should informal attempts at resolution not be satisfactory, an employee may then utilize the formal grievance procedure.

Employee Relations Assistance:

The Employee Relations section of University Personnel Services is available for assistance in the informal resolution of such matters. Employee Relations representatives may be contacted for informal counseling if the employee believes he/she cannot approach the supervisor with the problem. These representatives will meet with the employee, the supervisor, or both as may be appropriate, to assist in amicably resolving their differences. Representatives of Employee Relations will also provide advice on:

? matters of policy interpretation,

? rights of employees and supervisors,

? information concerning the formal grievance procedure.

Other University offices available for assisting employees with the informal resolution of such matters are the Office of the Ombudsman, the Office of Environmental Health in matters involving health and safety issues, and, in cases involving...