Contractor Responsibility and Debarment The following requirements set forth in the County’s Non-Responsibility and Debarment Ordinance (Title 2, Chapter 2.202 of the County Code) are effective for this Agreement, except to the extent applicable State and/or federal laws are inconsistent with the terms of the Ordinance.
A. A responsible Contractor is a Contractor who has demonstrated the attribute of trustworthiness, as well as quality, fitness, capacity and experience to satisfactorily perform the contract. It is the County’s policy to conduct business only with responsible contractors.
B. The Contractor is hereby notified that, in accordance with Chapter 2.202 of the County Code, if the County acquires information concerning the performance of the Contractor on this or other Agreements which indicates that the Contractor is not responsible, the County may, in addition to other remedies provided in the Agreement, debar the Contractor from bidding or proposing on, or being awarded, and/or performing work on County Agreements for a specified period of time, which generally will not exceed five years but may exceed five years or be permanent if warranted by the circumstances, and terminate any or all existing Agreements the Contractor may have with the County.
C. The County may debar a Contractor if the Board of Supervisors finds, in its discretion, that the Contractor has done any of the following: (1) violated a term of an Agreement with the County or a nonprofit corporation created by the County; (2) committed an act or omission which negatively reflects on the Contractor’s quality, fitness or capacity to perform a contract with the County, any other public entity, or a nonprofit corporation created by the County, or engaged in a pattern or practice which negatively reflects on same; (3) committed an act or offense which indicates a lack of business integrity or business honesty, or (4) made or submitted a false claim against the County or any other public entity.
D. If there is evidence that the Contractor may be subject to debarment, the Department will notify the Contractor in writing of the evidence which is the basis for the proposed debarment and will advise the Contractor of the scheduled date for a debarment hearing before the Contractor Hearing Board.
E. The Contractor Hearing Board will conduct a hearing where evidence on the proposed debarment is presented. The Contractor and/or the Contractor’s representative shall be given an opportunity to submit evidence at that hearing. After the hearing, the Contractor Hearing Board shall prepare a tentative proposed decision, which shall contain a recommendation regarding whether the contractor should be debarred, and, if so, the appropriate length of time of the debarment. The Contractor and the Department shall be provided an opportunity to object to the tentative proposed decision prior to its presentation to the Board of Supervisors.
F. After consideration of any objections, or if no objections are submitted, a record of the hearing, the proposed decision and any other recommendation of the Contractor Hearing Board shall be presented to the Board of Supervisors. The Board of Supervisors shall have the right to modify, deny or adopt the proposed decision and recommendation of the Hearing Board.
G. If a Contractor has been debarred for a period longer than five (5) years, that Contractor may, after the debarment has been in effect for at least five (5) years, submit a written request for review of the debarment determination to reduce the period of debarment or terminate the debarment. The County may, in its discretion, reduce the period of debarment or terminate the debarment if it finds that the Contractor has adequately demonstrated one or more of the following: (1) elimination of the grounds for which the debarment was imposed; (2) a bona fide change in ownership or management; (3) material evidence discovered after debarment was imposed; or (4) any other reason that is in the best interests of the County.
H. The Contractor Hearing Board will consider a request for review of a debarment determination only where (1) the Contractor has been debarred for a period longer than five (5) years; (2) the debarment has been in effect for at least five (5) years; and (3) the request is in writing, states one or more of the grounds for reduction of the debarment period or termination of the debarment, and includes supporting documentation. Upon receiving an appropriate request, the Contractor Hearing Board will provide notice of the hearing on the request. At the hearing, the Contractor Hearing Board shall conduct a hearing where evidence on the proposed reduction of debarment period or termination of debarment is presented. This hearing shall be conducted and the request for review decided by the Contractor Hearing Board pursuant to the same procedures as for a debarment hearing.
I. The Contractor Hearing Board’s proposed decision shall contain a recommendation on the request to reduce the period of debarment or terminate the debarment. The Contractor Hearing Board shall present its proposed decision and recommendation to the Board of Supervisors. The Board of Supervisors shall have the right to modify, deny, or adopt the proposed decision and recommendation of the Contractor Hearing Board.
J. These terms shall also apply to subcontractors of County Contractors.
Letter of Understanding Professional Responsibility For the life of this Collective Agreement, the parties agree as follows: The parties acknowledge and agree that professional responsibility concerns are most appropriately resolved expeditiously between them in the workplace. The parties commit to exhausting all reasonable efforts, which may include third party mediation, before an IAC hearing is conducted. The parties agree that resident care is enhanced if concerns relating to professional practice and workload are resolved in a timely and effective manner. The parties acknowledge that in most cases they will be able to find a resolution to these concerns. In exceptional circumstances, where concerns are not resolved, either party may proceed to an IAC hearing as they are entitled to under Article 19.01 of the Collective Agreement. Where the local parties enter into these agreements, the agreement may include one or more of the following principles:
MUTUAL RESPONSIBILITY 6.2.1 The Contractor shall afford the State and separate contractors reasonable opportunity for the introduction and storage of their materials and equipment and the execution of their work, and shall connect and coordinate his / her Work with the work of the State and separate contractors as required by the Contract Documents.
6.2.2 If any part of the Contractor's Work depends for proper execution or results upon the work of the State or any separate contractor, the Contractor shall, prior to proceeding with the Work, promptly report to the Architect any apparent discrepancies or defects in such other work that render it unsuitable for such proper execution and results. Failure of the Contractor so to report shall constitute an acceptance of the State's or separate contractors work as fit and proper to receive
6.2.3 Any costs caused by defective or ill-timed work shall be borne by the party responsible therefor.
6.2.4 Should the Contractor wrongfully cause damage to the work or property of the State, or to other work on the site, the Contractor shall promptly remedy such damage as provided in Subparagraph 10.2.5 of these General Conditions.
PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY (APPLIES TO RNS ONLY 19.01 The parties agree that resident care is enhanced if concerns relating to professional practice and workload are resolved in a timely and effective manner, as set out below; In the event that the Home assigns a number of residents or a workload to an individual employee or group of employees, such that she or they have cause to believe that she or they are being asked to perform more work than is consistent with proper resident care, she or they shall:
i) At the time the workload issue occurs, discuss the issue within the Home to develop strategies to meet resident care needs using current resources. If necessary, using established lines of communication, seek immediate assistance from an individual(s) identified by the Home who has responsibility for timely resolution of workload issues.
ii) Failing resolution at the time of occurrence of the workload issue, complain in writing to the Union-Management Committee within twenty (20) calendar days of the alleged improper assignment. The chairperson of the Union-Management Committee shall convene a meeting of the Union-Management Committee within twenty (20) calendar days of the filing of the complaint. The Union-Management Committee shall hear and attempt to resolve the complaint to the satisfaction of both parties. The Employer will provide a written response to the Union, with a copy to the ONA representation within ten (10) calendar days.
iii) Prior to the complaint being forwarded to the Independent Assessment Committee, the Union may forward a written report outlining the complaint and recommendations to the Director of Resident Care and/or the Administrator.
iv) At any time during this process, the parties may agree to the use of a mediator to assist in the resolution of the Professional Practice issues.
v) Any settlement arrived at under 19.01 (a) i) – iii) shall be signed by the parties.
vi) Failing resolution of the complaint within twenty (20) calendar days of the meeting of the Union-Management Committee, the complaint shall be forwarded to an independent Assessment Committee composed of three (3) registered nurses; one chosen by the Ontario Nurses' Association, one chosen by the Home and one chosen from a panel of independent registered nurses who are well respected within the profession. The member of the Committee chosen from the panel of independent registered nurses shall act as Chairperson.
vii) The Independent Assessment Committee shall set a date to conduct a hearing into the complaint, within twenty (20) calendar days of its appointment, and shall be empowered to investigate as is necessary to properly assess the merits of the complaint. The Independent Assessment Committee shall report its findings, in writing, to the parties within twenty (20) calendar days following completion of its hearing.
(b) i) The list of Independent Assessment Committee Chairpersons is attached as Appendix “B”. The members of the panel shall sit in rotation as agreed by the parties. If a panel member is unable to sit within the time limit stipulated, the panel member next scheduled to sit will be appointed by the parties.
Policy and Procedures If the resident leaves the facility due to hospitalization or a therapeutic leave, the facility shall not be obligated to hold the resident’s bed available until his or her return, unless prior arrangements have been made for a bed hold pursuant to the facility’s “Bed Reservation Policy and Procedure” and pursuant to applicable law. In the absence of a bed hold, the resident is not guaranteed readmission unless the resident is eligible for Medicaid and requires the services provided by the facility. However, the resident may be placed in any appropriate bed in a semi-private room in the facility at the time of his or her return from hospitalization or therapeutic leave provided a bed is available and the resident’s admission is appropriate and meets the readmission requirements of the facility.