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Grievances

PER-5.03 May 2004 Grievances

  

I. POLICY STATEMENT

  

Any employee who believes that a condition of employment is unjust, inequitable or a hindrance to effective operations or performance may initiate a grievance after first attempting to resolve the problem through informal discussion with the employee's immediate supervisor.

The university encourages employees to resolve work-related disputes through open, direct communication in the airing of differences. However, when direct communication fails but parties in a dispute believe that the differences may be reconciled, the university provides impartial services to facilitate mediation. Mediation Service offers stages of guided intervention to find agreement before reaching the level of a formal grievance proceeding.

Employees who seek assistance through the Mediation Service retain full rights to pursue grievance under university policy and may file a grievance at any time during the voluntary mediation process. Filing a grievance ends the mediation process.

Participation in the Mediation Service process suspends the timeline for initiating a grievance until (1) one or more of the disputants have withdrawn from the process, (2) one of the disputants files a grievance in the case or (3) the mediator certifies in writing that the dispute remains unresolved after exhausting the stages of the mediation process. After any one of those eventualities, the disputant have 30 calendar days to file a written grievance with the immediate supervisor, with copies to the Vice President for Human Resources and the Director of Affirmative Action. The written grievance shall include a full statement indicating the basis for the grievance and the solution that the employee seeks.

To initiate the mediation process, please see mediation procedures at:
http://docushare.louisville.edu/dscgi/ds.py/Get/File-2284/Mediation040301.pdf
or call the Vice Provost for Diversity and Equal Opportunity (502) 852-6153.

  

II. STAFF GRIEVANCE OFFICER

  

The Staff Grievance Officer is available to consult with staff members in each step of the grievance process, including the initial formulation of the grievance statement. The Staff Grievance Officer cannot serve as an advocate for or representative of staff members, but may work closely with staff members, departments, and the Human Resources Department to seek equitable resolutions of all grievances. A staff member may provide copies of all grievance materials to the Staff Grievance Officer if the staff member chooses to do so.

The staff grievance officer can be found by going to the Staff Senate Web page.

 

III. GENERAL PROCEDURES

 

 If the grievance is not resolved through informal discussions with the employee's immediate supervisor, the following procedures shall be followed in pursuing the grievance (unless IV. below applies).

  1. The employee shall file a written grievance with the immediate supervisor, with copies to the Vice President for Human Resources and the Director of Affirmative Action, within 15 workdays of the incident causing the grievance. The written grievance shall include a full statement indicating the basis for the grievance and the solution that the employee seeks.

  2. The supervisor who receives the grievance shall respond to the grievance in writing within five workdays of receiving the grievance. The response shall outline the actions that will or will not be taken to resolve the grievance. Copies of the response shall be sent to the Vice President for Human Resources and the Director of Affirmative Action.

  3. If the employee is not satisfied with the supervisor's response to the grievance, the employee shall submit copies of the original grievance and the supervisor's response to the grievance to the second level of supervision and, if the employee continues to be dissatisfied with the response to the grievance, to each succeeding level of supervision, until the employee reaches the level of the Provost/vice president/dean, whose decision shall be final. If the employee reports directly to a dean, that employee who is dissatisfied with the response to the grievance may use these procedures to submit the grievance to the Provost, whose decision shall be final. If the employee reports directly to the Provost or a vice president, that employee who is dissatisfied with the response to the grievance may use these procedures to submit the grievance to the President, whose decision shall be final.

    1. In each instance, the employee shall submit the grievance and all responses to the grievance within five workdays of receipt of the response from the lower-level supervisor.

    2. If the supervisor fails to respond to the grievance within five days or fails to request an extension in the allotted time for responding, the employee may forward the grievance to the next level of supervision for necessary action (see VI. below).

    3. In every instance except the President/Provost/vice president/dean, the upper-level supervisor who receives the grievance shall provide the employee with a written reply within five workdays of receipt of the grievance materials and shall send a copy of the response to the Vice President for Human Resources and the Director of Affirmative Action.

    4. The President/Provost/vice president/dean shall provide the employee with a written reply within ten workdays of receipt of the grievance materials and shall send a copy of the response to the employee's supervisors, the Vice President for Human Resources, and the Director of Affirmative Action.

  

IV. PROCEDURES FOR GRIEVANCES OUTSIDE NORMAL REPORTING LINES

If an employee believes he or she has a grievance regarding a university-wide policy or regarding a matter that is outside the employee's normal reporting line, the employee shall attempt to resolve the grievance through informal discussion with the Vice President for Human Resources or his or her designee. As an alternative, the employee may approach his or her immediate supervisor regarding the matter; the immediate supervisor may then approach the Vice President for Human Resources or his or her designee on behalf of the employee if the supervisor chooses to do so. If the latter is not resolved through informal discussions, the following procedure shall be followed in pursuing the grievance.

  

  1. The employee shall file a written grievance with the Vice President for Human Resources, with a copy to the Director of Affirmative Action, within 15 workdays of the incident causing the grievance. The written grievance shall include a full statement indicating the basis for the grievance and the solution that the employee seeks.  The Vice President for Human Resources shall respond to the grievance in writing within ten workdays of receiving the grievance materials and shall send a copy of the response to the Director of Affimative Action.  The response of the Vice President for Human Resources shall be final.

 

V. STAFF GRIEVANCE REVIEW COMMITTEE

 

 If the grievance reaches the level of the President/Provost/vice president/dean, the employee may make a written request to the Staff Grievance Review Committee to review the grievance and to prepare a summary and recommendation to be submitted to the President/Provost/vice president/dean.

 

  1. The employee shall make any such request for review to the Vice President for Human Resources or his or her designee within five workdays of receipt of the response from the level of supervision immediately below the President/Provost/vice president/dean. The request shall be in writing and shall include copies of the grievance and all responses to the grievance. The Vice President for Human Resources or his or her designee will refer the request to the Staff Grievance Committee and notify the President/Provost/vice president/dean of the action taken.

  2. The Staff Grievance Review Committee shall submit the grievance materials, its summary of the grievance, and its recommendations to the President/Provost/vice president/dean within 15 workdays of its receipt of the request. The Staff Grievance Review Committee shall provide a copy of its summary and recommendations to the employee, the employee's supervisors, the Vice President for Human Resources, and the Director of Affirmative Action. The President/Provost/vice president/ dean shall issue a written response to the grievance within 10 workdays of receipt of the Committee's review and recommendations. The response shall be provided to the Committee, the employee, the employee's supervisors, the  Vice President for Human Resources, and the Director of Affirmative Action.

  

VI. EXTENSION OF TIME

After a grievance has been filed, any person involved in the grievance procedure may contact the Vice President for Human Resources or his or her designee and request in writing an extension of time in which to respond. The  Vice President for Human Resources or his or her designee may grant such an extension at his or her discretion and will notify all persons involved.

 

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