1997-1999 MSUAASF Master Agreement

ARTICLE 22
LAYOFF

Section A. Procedure. In the event of a reduction of ASF Members, the following provisions shall apply.

Subd 1. Meet and Confer. The President or his/her designee shall meet and confer with the Campus Association in accordance with the provisions of Article 7, Association Rights, Section B, Subd. 2, regarding circumstances which will lead to layoffs of members of this bargaining unit. In connection with such duty to meet and confer, available information, statistics, or financial data related to any proposed layoff, including any anticipated reassignment of duties, shall be made available to the Campus Association at least ten (10) duty days prior to the meeting unless the Association agrees otherwise.

Subd. 2. Advance Notice. Written notice of layoff under the provisions of this Article shall be furnished probationary ASF Members at least three (3) months in advance of termination during the first two (2) years of employment, at least six (6) calendar months in advance of termination thereafter, and ASF Members with permanent status shall receive at least nine (9) calendar months advance notice. The Campus Association President shall receive notice of layoff of any ASF Member in the unit.

Subd. 3. Order of Layoff. After meeting and conferring with the Campus Association and pursuant to Subd. 1 hereof, the President shall determine the particular department, program or service area in which personnel reductions are to be made and the specific position or positions to be eliminated. Reductions shall then be accomplished in the following order:

(a) If the position(s) identified for elimination are occupied by fixed-term, externally funded or probationary ASF Members, no further action is necessary except to provide required notice to affected employees.

(b) If the position or positions identified for elimination are occupied by ASF Members with permanent status, and there are fixed-term, externally funded or probationary status ASF Members in the particular department, program or service area occupying positions in the same or lower salary range as the position(s) to be eliminated, that the permanent status ASF Members are qualified to fill, as determined by the President, the fixed-term, externally funded or probationary ASF Member shall be laid off and the permanent status ASF Member reassigned to the position occupied by such ASF Member.

(c) If there are not sufficient numbers of fixed-term, externally funded or probationary ASF Members in the particular department, program or service area to achieve the number of layoffs necessary, notice of layoff shall be given to the least senior permanent status ASF Member in the same or lower salary range as the position to be eliminated. The ASF Member whose position is to be eliminated will then be reassigned to the position vacated by the least senior permanent status ASF Member, if he or she is qualified as determined by the President. If more than one position is to be eliminated, notice shall be given in inverse order of seniority, and reassignment to resulting vacancies shall be made as indicated above. When such reassignment results in a demotion, it shall be treated as an involuntary downgrade under Article 12, Section G.

(d) If a permanent status ASF Member whose position is being eliminated has thirty-six (36) FTE months in another department, program or service area at a state university, he/she may choose, at the time the decision is made to eliminate the position, to exercise his/her right to move to that department in his/her current institution. Notice within that department will be given consistent with (b) and (c) above.

(e) An ASF Member who has received notice of layoff or is scheduled to be reassigned as a result of his/her position being eliminated, may, during the period between notice and actual layoff, accept, in lieu of layoff or reassignment, a comparable vacancy within the bargaining unit at that university, provided the President has determined that such vacancy is to be filled and that the ASF Member is qualified.

Subd. 4. Calculation of Seniority. For the purpose of this Article, "seniority" shall be defined as continuous employment at the university in positions within the bargaining unit. An authorized leave of absence, pursuant to Article 18 or 19 of this Agreement, shall not be deemed an interruption of continuous service. For purposes of this Section, a full-time ASF Member on a nine (9) to twelve (12) month appointment or on a .75 or greater appointment for 12 months shall be considered to have accrued one (1) year of seniority.

If two (2) or more ASF Members have equal seniority, then those with greater length of service in permanent status shall have priority for retention. Should ASF Members still be equal in seniority, then the decision of which person to retain will be made on the basis of ASF Member competence and programmatic needs of the university as determined by the President.

A seniority roster shall be posted by the President or his/her designee on or before November 1 of each year, and a copy of such rosters shall be furnished to the Campus Association President. Grievances concerning the accuracy of the roster must be filed within thirty (30) calendar days of publication of the roster and must be limited to changes made and shown on the most recent roster.

ASF Members on leave status at the time of posting of the seniority roster shall have (30) calendar days after the end of such leave within which to file a grievance. The format of the seniority roster shall be the same for each university. The rosters shall contain all relevant information necessary to implement this Article, including a notification of any department, program or service area in which the ASF Member has served at least thirty-six (36) FTE months.

Subd. 5. Sabbatical Leave. If an ASF Member had been scheduled for a sabbatical leave or a professional improvement grant, he/she shall not be deprived of the benefit because he/she is subject to layoff.

Section B. Recall. ASF Members with permanent status as defined in Article 10 laid off in accordance with this Article shall have recall rights in the same or similar position within the department, program, or service area from which he/she was terminated in accordance with the following provisions.

Subd. 1. When the vacant positions are filled, laid-off ASF Members shall be offered reemployment in inverse order of their layoff from the university. In addition, ASF members with recall rights shall be offered interviews for positions for which they apply and meet the minimum qualifications at any MnSCU institution for a period of six months from their effective date of layoff.

Subd. 2. Persons offered reemployment must accept such offer within fifteen (15) calendar days after such offer, such acceptance to take effect on a date specified by the President which will be not less than forty-five (45) calendar days from the date of the reemployment offer unless otherwise agreed to by the university and the ASF Member.

Subd. 3. Persons who decline offers of reemployment at the same or higher pay range as their previous position waive all rights of recall as established in this Article and shall have their names stricken from the recall list.

Subd. 4. All recall rights established herein shall expire at the conclusion of three (3) years from the effective date of the ASF Member's layoff.

Subd. 5. A list of all ASF Members laid off within the prior three (3) year period shall be maintained and circulated to each state university human resources office.

Subd. 6. Each university shall provide timely notice of all vacancies in this bargaining unit at the state universities within MnSCU to each laid off ASF Member.

Subd. 7. By August 1 of each year, the Employer shall provide the Association President with a list of laid-off ASF Members eligible for recall and shall provide prompt notice of changes.

Section C. Accrued Benefits. An ASF Member who is recalled in accordance with this Article shall retain all unused sick leave accumulations as well as his/her previously earned credits for sabbatical leave but shall not accrue any such benefits during the period of layoff.

Section D. Grievance Procedure. The decision to lay off shall not be considered a termination of appointment or a dismissal for cause, and an ASF Member laid off shall not be permitted to grieve that decision pursuant to the provisions of the grievance procedure. Subsequent to decision to reduce ASF Members, an affected ASF Member may grieve violations of the procedure described in this Article.

Section E. Determination of Department or Program. Departments, programs, or service areas defined as of the date of execution of this Agreement shall continue to exist unless the President redefines departments, programs, or service areas based upon the needs of the university. Such determinations of the President shall be subject to the meet and confer process specified herein, but not to the provisions of the grievance procedure. Each university shall provide the Campus Association a list of departments, programs, or service areas within sixty (60) calendar days after the execution of this Agreement.

Section F. Placement Area. The Employer, with the Association, shall select a placement consultant and provide placement services and assistance to any bargaining unit member who is given notice of layoff and who requests such service.