Memorandum of Understanding with Unit 12 - Dpa - State of California

E. “Days” means calendar days exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays and State recognizedholidays as defined in the Holidays section of this Agreement.14.3 Waiver of Time Limits/StepsA. Any level of review or any time limit established in this procedure may be waived orextended by mutual agreement of the State’s representative and IUOE’s representative.Beginning with any formal level, if the employee fails to appeal from one level to the nextlevel within the time limits established in this grievance procedure, the grievance shall beconsidered settled on the basis of the last decision, and the grievance shall not be subjectto further appeal or reconsideration.B. If the State fails to respond to a grievance within the time limits specified for that step, thegrievant shall have the right to appeal to the next step.14.4 PresentationAt any step of the grievance procedure the parties, by mutual agreement, may determine itdesirable to hold a grievance conference. If a grievance conference is scheduled, thegrievant or an IUOE employee representative or both may attend without loss ofcompensation. All parties recognize that it is mutually beneficial to resolve disputes asinformally as possible. When informal resolution is not possible, a formal grievance may befiled.14.5 Formal Grievance - Step 1A. A formal grievance may be filed no later than fifteen (15) days after the event orcircumstances occasioning the grievance or after knowledge of same reasonably shouldhave been acquired.B. A formal grievance shall be initiated in writing on a form provided by the State and shallbe filed with a designated local manager identified by each department head as the firstformal level of appeal.C. Within twenty (20) days after the formal grievance is postmarked to the persondesignated by the department head as the first level of appeal, this designated person shallrespond in writing to the grievance.D. No agreement, interpretation or grievance settlement made at this stage of the grievanceprocedure shall be considered precedential. All interpretations and settlements shall beconsistent with the provisions of this Agreement.14.6 Formal Grievance - Step 2A. If the grievant is not satisfied with the decision rendered pursuant to Step 1, the grievantmay appeal the decision to the Director or his/her designee as the second level of appeal.This appeal must be postmarked within ten (10) days from the postmark of the Step 1decision.B. Within fifteen (15) days after the appeal is postmarked, the Department head or designeeas the second level of appeal shall respond in writing to the grievance.89BU 12(99-01)