SENIORITY AND LAYOFF Section 1. Seniority means the length of continuous service in a bargaining unit position since the last date of hire. Section 2. Seniority shall continue to accrue during all paid leaves of absences and industrial accident leave not exceeding one year. Section 3. Seniority shall be revoked if an employee retires or otherwise terminates employment; is discharged for cause; permanently transfers out of the bargaining unit; or refuses or fails to respond to a recall from layoff under the conditions established in Section 7 of this Article. Seniority must be reinstated if an employee terminates employment or transfers out of the unit but returns to a bargaining unit position within one year. Section 4. Seniority, qualifications and capabilities of the officers located within a division requiring a reduction in force shall be the controlling factors in the selection of employees for layoff within each classification series. Seniority, qualifications and capabilities shall be the controlling factors in the selection of employees for voluntary transfer within the bargaining unit and within classification series. Employee transfer requests will be considered if the employee has completed twenty-four (24) months of continuous service in an assigned position number. Transfer applications shall include a letter of intent, a resume and, at the employee’s option, a state application. If an employee is denied a transfer, he or she will be entitled to written reasons upon request for purposes of guiding the employee in future application processes. Section 5. Any permanent employee subject to non-disciplinary demotion shall be given 10 calendar days advance notice of the action. Section 6. No permanent employees shall be laid off or subject to non-disciplinary demotion while temporary or probationary employees in the same classification are retained. Section 7. Recall from layoff shall be in the reverse order. If a position is available within the same geographical location, employees shall be recalled to permanent positions within the same classification and in the same geographic location in the bargaining unit. In recalling employees, the Employer shall send a certified, return receipt letter to the last known address for the employee with a copy to the Federation. The letter shall state that
SENIORITY AND LAYOFFS 11.01 Seniority of employees shall be calculated from date of hire. New employees shall be placed on the seniority list at the end of their probationary period and their respective seniority shall be dated back to the date of beginning of employment. Employees hired on the same date shall be placed on the seniority grid in reverse alphabetical order. 11.02 Seniority lists shall be maintained at all times by the Employer and shall be available to the Union to ascertain the seniority status of an employee within its jurisdiction. 11.03 Seniority rights shall cease for any employee who: a. voluntarily quits the employ of the Employer; b. is discharged and such discharge is not reversed through the grievance procedure; c. is laid off for a continuous period of more than nine (9) consecutive months; d. fails to return to work within five (5) workdays after notification to his address on record with the Employer or fails to notify the Employer within two (2) workdays of his intention to return. a. In case of layoffs, the Employer will give such recognition to the seniority standings of the employees as the continued proper performance of his work will permit. Ability to perform available work being relatively equal, the rule shall prevail that the employee having most seniority shall be laid off last and recalled first. b. Employees with less than six (6) months' seniority shall not have the right to recall. 11.05 One (1) week's notice of layoff shall be given to each employee for each year of seniority to a maximum of eight (8) weeks notice. 11.06 Any appeal in regard to a layoff must be taken up under the first step of the grievance procedure hereinafter set forth within three (3) workdays after the layoff took place. 11.07 Any employee laid off and recalled for work must return within two (2) workdays when unemployed and within five (5) workdays when employed elsewhere after being recalled, or make definite arrangements with the Employer to return.