ARTICLE 23 - CLASSIFICATION AND RECLASSIFICATION
Section 1. Class Specifications.
A. The College shall provide the Union with a copy of the class specification of each title covered by this Agreement for which such a specification exists.
B. Each employee in the bargaining unit shall be permitted by the College to have access to examine his or her class specification.
C. The parties to this Agreement acknowledge that the classification structure and the accompanying job specifications have been created by the Commonwealth through its Human Resources Division for the purpose of describing the duties and responsibilities of each job title.
D. Job Specification Review Committee.
1. The parties to this Agreement acknowledge the need to review existing bargaining unit job specifications in an effort to cause those job specifications to more accurately reflect the duties and responsibilities performed by incumbents of those titles.
2. Accordingly, the parties agree to continue the Job Specification Review Committee to review bargaining unit job specifications and job titles and to seek to appropriately adjust them as the Committee may deem necessary.
3. The Committee shall develop guidelines and procedures for such a review process.
4. Said Committee shall consist of four (4) members representing the Union and four (4) members representing Community and State Colleges and one (1) member representing the Board of Higher Education and shall meet until all job specifications and/or job titles either party believes in need of adjustment have been addressed.
5. The committee mutually agrees to meet as often as necessary to complete said review process.
Section 2. Individual Appeal of Classification.
An employee who seeks a reclassification shall adhere to the following procedure:
1. An employee who seeks a reclassification of that position may request an audit of the position on the form attached hereto (Appendix E).
2. The employee shall file said form with the Chief Human Resources Officer and shall forward a copy of same to the Union.
3. The Chief Human Resources Officer or designee shall conduct a job audit within ninety (90) working days of receipt of the request.
4. Within ten (10) working days of completion of the job audit, the Chief Human Resources Officer or designee shall hold a hearing. Nothing shall preclude the appointment of a committee to serve as the designee of the Chief Human Resources Officer where it is currently the practice to do so. In the case of a request for an individual reclassification, the hearing officer shall not be in the supervisory chain of the employee seeking the reclassification. The Union may participate in the hearing if the employee so requests.
5. The Chief Human Resources Officer shall make a final determination within thirty (30) working days of the hearing.
6. The decision of the Chief Human Resources Officer may be appealed within ten (10) working days to the CEO or designee who shall issue a decision within thirty (30) working days of receipt of the appeal.
7. When such reclassification request is granted, the monies necessary to fund such reclassification shall be budgeted for the following fiscal year, and if funds are available such reclassification shall be effective on the date of the appeal to the Chief Human Resources Officer.
8. When a request for reclassification is denied, the individual may submit within fifteen (15) working days after the CEO’s decision, a written appeal to the Chancellor or his/her designee, through the Higher Education Coordinator, AFSCME Council 93, 8 Beacon Street, Boston, MA 02108, a copy of which shall be sent to the CEO of the College. Within ten (10) working days after submitting this request for review the individual must submit all of his/her reclassification package to the Chancellor, through the Higher Education Coordinator, AFSCME Council 93, as noted above.
The Chancellor shall refer all reclassification appeals to the Board of Higher Education Reclassification Review Committee (hereinafter The Reclassification Committee).
The Reclassification Committee shall be comprised of five (5) members as follows: one member, who shall be the Chairperson of the Committee, shall be from the staff of the Board of Higher Education and shall be appointed by the Chancellor; one member shall be an excluded administrator from the Community Colleges who shall be appointed by the Chancellor; one member shall be an excluded administrator from the State Colleges who shall be appointed by the Chancellor; one member shall be from the staff of A.F.S.C.M.E., who shall be appointed by the Union; and, one member shall be a Union official who shall be appointed by the Union. Members of the Reclassification Committee shall not have fixed terms and shall serve at the pleasure of the Chancellor or the Union, respectively.
The Reclassification Committee shall be convened by the Chairperson and meet every other month, unless the members of the Reclassification Committee mutually agree to meet more frequently.
The Chairperson of the Reclassification Committee shall acknowledge receipt of all reclassification appeals filed with the Chancellor and shall notify the CEO of the College that an appeal has been filed. Upon such notification, the CEO of the College shall forward a complete copy of the reclassification record to the Chancellor. A notice of the date, time and location upon which the appeal will be heard by the Reclassification Committee shall be sent in writing to the appellant or his/her representative and to the College at least twenty-one (21) days prior to the scheduled date of such hearing.
Subsequent to the hearing of the appeal, the Reclassification Committee shall meet to discuss the merits of the reclassification. Unless otherwise stated the Reclassification Committee shall complete their review of the merits and make a determination on the day upon which the Committee reviews the appeal, unless additional information and/or time is needed.
All members of the Reclassification Committee are voting members. The final decision of the Reclassification Committee will be binding on all parties.
Efforts shall be made to hear an appeal within sixty (60) working days following receipt of the individual’s reclassification package by the Chancellor.
9. The parties agree that the procedure herein provided shall be the sole procedure for reclassification and reallocation of positions and the grievance and arbitration procedures of Article 29 shall not apply.