Compensation Claims (a) The Employer agrees to cooperate toward the prompt disposition of employee on-the-job injury claims. The Employer shall provide worker’s compensation protection for all employees even though not required by state law, or the equivalent thereof, if the injury arose out of or in the course of employment. No employee will be disciplined or threatened with discipline as a result of filing an on-the-job injury report. The Employer or its designee shall not visit an injured worker at his/her home, at a hospital or any location outside the employee’s home terminal without his/her consent.
(b) At the time an injury report is turned in, the Employer shall provide the injured employee with an information sheet briefly outlining the procedure for submitting a worker’s compensation claim to include the name, address and phone number of the company’s worker’s compensation representative and other pertinent information relative to claim payment.
(c) An employee who is injured on the job, and is sent home, or to a hospital, or who must obtain medical attention, shall receive pay at the applicable hourly rate for the balance of his/her regular shift on that day. An employee who has returned to his/her regular duties after sustaining a compensable injury who is required by the worker’s compensation doctor to receive additional medical treatment during his/her regularly scheduled working hours shall receive his/her regular hourly rate of pay for such time. Where not prohibited by state law, employees who sustain occupational injury or illness shall be allowed to select a physician of their own choice and shall notify the Employer in writing of such physician.
(d) Road drivers sustaining an injury while being transported in company-provided transportation for Company purposes at a layover terminal shall be considered as having been injured on the job.
(e) In the event that an employee sustains an occupational illness or injury while on a run away from his/her home terminal, the Employer shall provide transportation by bus, train, plane, or automobile to his/her home terminal if and when directed by a doctor.
(f) The Employer agrees to provide any employee injured locally transportation at the time of injury, from the job to the medical facility and return to the job, or to his/her home if required.
(g) In the event of a fatality arising in the course of employment, while away from the home terminal, the Employer shall return the deceased to his/her home at the point of domicile.
(h) The Employer may publish reasonable safety rules and procedures and provide the Local Union with a copy. Failure to observe such reasonable rules and/or procedures shall subject the employee to disciplinary action in accordance with the disciplinary procedures in the applicable Supplemental Agreement. However, the time limitation relative to prior offenses shall be waived to permit consideration of the employee’s entire record of failure to observe reasonable safety rules and/or procedures resulting in lost time personal injuries. This provision does not apply to vehicular accidents. When issuing progressive discipline under the terms and conditions of Article 14 Section 1(h), it is understood that the time limitation relative to prior offenses of failure to observe reasonable safety rules and/or procedures resulting in lost time injuries is waived and may be included in the disciplinary process. However it is also understood that when an the employer Employer issues progressive discipline, the employer shall not utilize prior discipline that is in excess of three (3) years old when issuing additional progressive discipline, unless the employee has shown a pattern of failure to observe reasonable safety rules and/or procedures resulting in lost time injuries.
Arbitration Award All arbitration awards shall be final and binding as provided by Section 42 of the Trade Union Act. An arbitrator may not alter, modify or amend any part of this Agreement, but shall have the power to modify or set aside any unjust penalty of discharge, suspension or discipline imposed by the Employer on an Employee.
Arbitration Hearing An Arbitration Hearing will be held within thirty (30) days after the Administrative Conference if no discovery is taken, or within thirty (30) days after the close of discovery, unless all parties and the Panel agree to extend the Arbitration Hearing date, or unless the parties agree in writing to waive the Arbitration Hearing. The parties may mutually agree on the location of the Arbitration Hearing. If the parties fail to agree, the Arbitration Hearing shall be held in Chicago, Illinois, or at such other location determined by the Presiding Arbitrator to be most convenient to the participants. The Panel will determine the date(s) and time(s) of the Arbitration Hearing(s) after consultation with all parties and shall provide reasonable notice thereof to all parties or their representatives.
Location of the Arbitration Hearing Unless applicable law provides otherwise, the arbitration hearing for United States residents will be conducted in the federal judicial district in which you reside (in your hometown area) or, for Canadian residents, in the province in which you reside, and, if you choose, will be in-person.
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.