Expedited Arbitration 1. Scope
Step Four - Arbitration 1. With respect to all non-disciplinary grievances and disciplinary cases involving the discharge, suspension of three (3) days or more, or the reduction in rank, the OPBA may make a written request that the decision of the underlying grievance be submitted to binding arbitration pursuant to Step Four, hereunder. A written request for appellate arbitration must be submitted to the other party within fourteen (14) calendar days following such party’s receipt of the written decision at Step 3. In the event the decision at Step 3 is not referred to arbitration within the time limits prescribed, the decision of the Trustees or Designee shall be final and binding upon the OPBA, the member and the Township. 2. Upon receipt of a request for appellate arbitration, the Township and the OPBA shall, within fourteen (14) calendar days following the request for arbitration, jointly agree to an arbitrator or request a list of seven (7) impartial arbitrators from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS). Upon receipt of the list of seven (7) arbitrators, the parties shall meet to select an arbitrator within fourteen (14) calendar days from the date the list is received. The parties shall use the alternate strike method from the list of seven (7) arbitrators submitted to the parties by the FMCS. The party requesting the arbitration shall be the first (1st) to strike a name and alternate in this manner until one (1) name remains on the list. The remaining name shall be designated as the arbitrator to hear the dispute in question. Either party shall have the right to elect to reject the list in its entirety and to request the submission of a new seven (7) member panel, which election may only be exercised once. All procedures relative to the hearing shall be in accordance with the rules and regulations of the FMCS. The arbitrator shall hold the appellate arbitration promptly and issue a decision within a reasonable time thereafter. 3. The arbitrator shall determine the grievance in accordance with the terms of the Agreement in effect on the date of the incident giving rise to the grievance. 4. The arbitrator shall not have the authority to add to, subtract from, modify, change or alter any provision of this Agreement. The arbitrator shall be confined solely to the issues submitted for arbitration. The arbitrator shall not establish any new or different wage rates not negotiated as part of this Agreement. In cases of discharge, suspension or reduction in rank, the arbitrator shall have the authority to order modification of said discipline for the offense charged. In the event of a monetary award, the arbitrator shall limit any retroactive settlement to no earlier time than forty-five (45) calendar days prior to the date the grievance was presented to the Township in Step One of the Grievance Procedure. 5. The question of arbitrability of a grievance may be raised by either party before the arbitration hearing of the grievance, on the grounds that the matter is non- arbitrable or beyond the arbitrator’s jurisdiction. The first question to be placed before the arbitrator will be whether or not the alleged grievance is arbitrable. If the arbitrator determines the grievance is not arbitrable, the arbitrator shall render no decision on the merits. 6. The decision of the arbitrator shall be final and binding upon the OPBA, the member and the Township. Any cost involved in obtaining the list of arbitrators shall be equally divided between the Township and the OPBA. All costs directly related to the services of the arbitrator shall be paid by the losing party. Expenses, if any, of the witnesses shall be borne by the party calling the witness except that member witnesses on duty time shall not lose any wages due from the Township. The fees of the court reporter shall be paid by the party asking for one. The fees of the court reporter shall be split equally if both parties desire a court reporter’s recording, or request a copy of any transcript. The Township shall not incur any overtime expense as a result of this Step.
Mediation/Arbitration (a) All disputes, claims or controversies arising out of or relating to this Agreement (collectively, “Disputes”) shall be submitted to non-binding mediation by either party to an impartial mediator, as agreed to by the parties, and appointed through JAMS in San Francisco, California, for a good faith effort at resolution. The mediator shall review the Dispute within thirty (30) days of submission or at such other time provided the parties so agree. Any mediation fee shall be paid equally among the parties. Any Dispute which is not resolved through such mandatory mediation shall be settled by final and binding arbitration before a single neutral arbitrator of JAMS in accordance with the then current Commercial Arbitration Rules of the American Arbitration Association in San Francisco, California. Judgment on the award rendered by the arbitrator may be entered in any court in California. In the event that any Dispute between Indemnitee and the Corporation should result in arbitration, the prevailing party in the Dispute shall be entitled to recover from the other party all reasonable fees, costs and expenses of enforcing any right of the prevailing party, including, without limitation, reasonable attorneys’ fees, experts’ fees, and expenses. Each party agrees that the Dispute as mediated and/or arbitrated and the final resolution of such Dispute shall be considered to be confidential information, and shall be kept confidential by each party. (b) Indemnitee specifically acknowledges and understands that by agreeing to this provision, Indemnitee is waiving all rights to have his or her claims brought, investigated, and/or adjudicated by an administrative agency, or heard before a judge or jury. Indemnitee also understands that Indemnitee’s rights to discovery may be lesser or narrower in arbitration, that there may be fees and costs associated with mediation and/or arbitration that Indemnitee may not otherwise have, and that Indemnitee is waiving substantial time that Indemnitee might otherwise have to make a claim, prepare his or her case, or investigate his or her claims. The claims include claims of any kind relating to Indemnitee’s relationship with the Corporation, including claims relating to compensation, discrimination, any benefits, status as an officer, director or Agent of the Corporation, conflict of interest, or any other claim or dispute relating to or arising out of Indemnitee’s relationship with the Corporation. The underlying Disputes shall be fully and finally resolved through arbitration, including any right to permanent injunctive relief.