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Member Rights /
Representation
Q: When should I ask for a union rep?
A: When you reasonably believe you could be
disciplined or have changed working conditions.
Seek a union rep immediately if you are:
• Informed of a meeting with your
administrator and urged to bring a union rep
• Notified that you need to attend a Labor
Relations Due Process conference.
• Asked questions by your administrator
that seem disciplinary – stop the meeting immediately and ask for a rep!
• Asked for a written statement – Inform
your administrator that you will respond shortly and contact your Union Rep or
MFT Business Agent ASAP to have it reviewed.
• Placed on administrative leave (A letter
will be given to you or will follow in the mail – go home if directed and do
not contact colleagues or students after that)
Q: What are my rights to representation when
meeting with a administrator? Can I
delay a meeting to get a rep?
A: You need to speak up to get a
steward! Your rights to
representation are determined by whether discipline might reasonably
result from the meeting. The
administrator should be candid if you ask whether discipline may result from
the meeting. If it “may”, then you
should get a steward. If the
administrator states that the meeting is not disciplinary, then your belief may
not be reasonable, but you should err on the side of getting a rep if you are
not sure and still concerned.
You cannot unreasonably delay a
meeting. You are allowed to get a
steward or a colleague if the site lacks a steward. You cannot put off the meeting if you prefer
someone from MFT when a steward is available.
Once you have the steward present, you and the steward are allowed a
brief time to talk before the meeting continues. The steward cannot speak for you in response
to the administrator’s questions. If
there is serious conduct involved, then make sure to consult your union steward
and/or MFT to determine if it may be best not to give a statement at that time
(you are choosing risk insubordination to do so if you believe that is a lesser
consequence). You should ask to hear all
of the questions/concerns of the administrator and tell the administrator you
will be responding very soon.
Q: Does the administrator need to tell me I
can have a union rep?
A: Best practice is that an administrator will
suggest you bring a rep. Bottom line,
you need to stop responding and request a union rep before continuing the
meeting if you believe that discipline may occur. You may ask if there “could” be
discipline. The administrator should be
candid if there is a possibility even if it depends upon the outcome. If you are concerned, we urge you to speak
up. You don’t have a right to a rep if
you are directly told that the meeting is not a topic that could lead to
discipline.
Q: When should I contact MFT for advice?
A: Contact
MFT immediately whenever you
have been notified of a Labor Relations Due Process conference, placed on
administrative leave, or are aware of allegations of serious conduct. Serious conduct can include allegations of
physical force, maltreatment (emotional, physical, or sexual abuse), extreme
conduct (vulgar language especially combined with anger), intoxication, job
abandonment, etc. Asked to give an oral
or written statement to an administrator, police officer, representative from
MDE.
Q: What is a Labor Relations Due Process
conference?
A: A due process meeting is a conference
called by Labor Relations to ask you questions.
You will receive a notice in writing from Labor Relations with the
date/time and attendees. It will help if
you communicate to your business agent some idea of what could arise at the
conference. The advice from MFT will be
more effective.
If you are asked to provide an oral or
written account for an administrator, please check with a union rep before
doing so, unless there are extremely urgent circumstances (e.g., child
missing). A written recollection as
soon as possible after any incident will be more reliable.
More
background: Cleveland Board of Education v. Loudermill, 470 U.S. 532 (1985) was a case decided by the
United States Supreme Court involving a public employee who was dismissed
without a pretermination hearing. It
established the right:
(1) to be apprised of the employer’s
charges, evidence, or allegations and
(2) to be afforded an opportunity to
respond before the decision is made.
You have a right to have UNION
REPRESENTATION. You do not have a right to investigatory information the
district may have. The conference will
occur during paid time (or you will be paid if it is over the summer). It is usually in your interest to attend and
respond on the record before they decide.
If there are serious allegations that could involve outside
authorities/agencies (liberty interests), then immediately contact a union rep
or MFT directly for more specific advice.
This is not a final conclusion of your
due process rights – you have extensive challenge rights that will depend upon
the merits and timeliness of seeking MFT’s assistance. The district is allowed to reach its decision
and you may have grievance rights. Talk
to your MFT rep about that. Your due
process rights end when any challenge rights you have are exhausted, not
at the end of the due process conference.
Q: Do I call for a sub while I attend a Labor
Relations Due Process conference?
(Teachers only)
A: You do not need to call in for a sub
!! The District has directed you
to be at 807 instead of at your assigned workplace at the time of the Labor
Relations Due Process Conference. It is
good practice to contact the administrator to establish that coverage will be
obtained by the administrator and to know when you are required to be present
if the meeting is during the duty day.
Q: Can I have a lawyer present at the Labor
Relations Due Process conference?
A: No. MFT will represent you at the
conference. There are significant legal
rights subsequent to an employment decision.
In particular, your issue could go to an independent legal hearing
(called an arbitration) that would be the final, binding conclusion to
the matter. The District and the
employee are both usually represented by legal counsel at an arbitration.
Q: When does the union provide legal
representation?
MFT will specifically advise you when
you legal representation will be provided to you. You will need to be a member (not fairshare)
to receive legal representation for individual matters other than “defending
the contract” which may include:
·
Police interview – indicate you’ll be in contact
soon and call MFT immediately
·
Minnesota Dept of Education (MDE) interview on
concerns of maltreatment of a student (when you are the subject of the
investigation)
·
Board of Teaching or other licensing agency
investigations
Q: When does it matter to be a member (vs.
fairshare)?
A: It matters if you think you may ever
need:
·
Legal representation
statutory discharge cases, MDE maltreatment investigation interviews, Bd of
Teaching (teacher licensure) matters, initial assignment of counsel up to point
of criminal charges being filed, etc.
(Ask for Ed Minnesota Legal Services Policies if you have a specific
situation).
·
Grievance support should
an individual (not contract defense) issue go to arbitration
·
$1M liability policy
coverage (errors and omissions policy) – this covers defending civil
litigation, reimbursement of up to $35,000 in criminal defense acquittals
·
Continuous payment of
dues at the last level while active is required if matters are being pursued
while you are on leave or discharged
Q: How is
membership established?
A: Membership
is available to a licensed teacher who is performing union work, fills
out a membership card, and is not delinquent in their dues being
deducted from their pay.
·
To get a membership card
– ask a steward, call MFT, or come by MFT and get one filled out
·
Dues “Check off” is
allowed under state law and the contract for any membership or fairshare
amounts to be deducted automatically
·
“LOC59FS” means Local 59
Fairshare (not a member) fees are being deducted and you may not be a member
·
“LOCAL 59” means you are
a member according to our records
·
Any problems – contact
MFT/Mary Lachelt (mlachelt@mft59.org,
612-529-9621 x261) to determine whether your dues have been paid or are
delinquent.
Q: What is administrative leave? Can MPS place me on administrative
leave?
A: Administrative leave means you will still
be paid but are not to report to work or have contact with colleagues or
students. The District is legally
allowed to direct you to stay home and pay you while allegations are
investigated. This is often the
most difficult time in a teacher’s career.
Contact MFT for some proactive steps you can take while on leave to
prepare yourself. Do not
attempt to investigate on your own, as you may end up violating the directives
in the administrative letter and/or may be accused of retaliating against those
who may have been asked for a statement in your matter.
Q: What is a Tennessen warning (Data Privacy Act Warning)
A: Tennessen
Warning is a requirement to tell you that your responses become part of the
District’s record. Under the MN Government Data Practices Act, the
school district needs to inform you of: 1) Why it’s being collected and how it will be
used. 2) Whether the individual can
refuse or is legally required to provide the data being requested from him or
her. 3) What consequences are of
supplying or not supplying the data. 4)
What other agencies or person will legally be able to get the data. Not
providing a “Tennessen Warning" means that the data cannot be kept or used
– but keep in mind that the warning can be easily remedied by giving it and
then asking you the same questions. A
Tennessen Warning does not have to be in writing, but a written Tennessen
Warning is recommended. See sample Tennessen Warning (Minnesota
Data Practices Information Form).
Q: What constitutes “discipline”?
A: Discipline is not being imposed when
you receive:
·
Notice of Concern and Expectation
·
Hallmark: Language to the effect of “This letter
shall serve as notice to you…”
·
Administrative leave for the purpose of
investigating is not disciplinary
Discipline is being imposed when you
receive:
·
A Notice of Deficiency, “Final Warning”, Last
Chance Agreement, an unpaid suspension, or discharge.
·
Hallmark of a disciplinary letter “Further
incidents will lead to further discipline…”
Q: How
much discipline is legally appropriate?
A: Discipline can be imposed with the purpose
of seeing that the conduct will not reoccur.
Harsher discipline will likely be upheld by an arbitrator if conduct
reoccurs after earlier discipline – especially if the conduct is similar or
creates a pattern. If the discipline is
consistent with or “lighter” than discipline generally imposed in other cases,
an arbitrator is less likely to favor a challenge on your case (MFT and/or
legal counsel can advise you whether this may be true in your case).
An employee’s entire employment record
is “in play” at any given time when discipline is considered – which means the
periods of good service as well as disciplinary incidents. Your employment files should be considered
important to protect, so make sure you ask about any grievance rights if you
get a letter.
Q: What triggers an investigation by the
licensing board (Board of Teaching “BOT”)?
A: Paid administrative leave, unpaid
suspensions, terminations, job abandonment can result in an investigation by
the BOT. School districts are
legislatively mandated to report suspensions and terminations (see MS122A.20 Subds
1-2) and are permitted to report other concerns like job abandonment or
licensure lapses. If the BOT activates an investigation of your license,
you will be individually notified by letter containing the concerns and advised
that you may respond within 30 days from the date of the letter. If
you are an active member of the MFT (i.e., signed a membership card and paying
member dues – not fairshare) at the time the letter arrives then you will get
legal assistance with your response. MFT
does not receive notification of this kind of investigation. If
you would like assistance, you should notify MFT immediately who will get you
in touch with Education Minnesota legal counsel. They will usually work
with you 1:1 to follow up and provide a written response to the charges in the
BOT letter. Do not ignore a BOT matter.
Q: What is a grievance? [View
sample form]
A: Grievances are a legal challenge to the
District to remedy contract violations or unreasonable disciplinary
decisions. There are four levels: Building Meeting/Level I, District
Meeting/Level II, Mediation/Level III, and Binding Arbitration/Level IV.
MFT must support the grievance for it to go forward and expects your
participation and candid preparation of a written account of your issues or
concerns. With that in mind, please be prepared to:
·
Keep a record - Write down the sequence of events,
keep track of documents, be prepared to concisely and accurately tell your
story or show your records and the source of support you have for your side of
the story, whether it would be witnesses, documents, past practices, etc.
·
Pinpoint the issues, if asked to do so (What is
inaccurate in this letter?)
·
Explore the assertions of the district (Why would
the district conclude that ….?)
·
State what would resolve the dispute
·
Exercise good faith in responding to the district's
assertions or giving credence to accurate assertions
·
Consider writing a rebuttal to a written reprimand
if you cannot point to a factual inaccuracy in the reprimand letter
·
Immediately contact an
MFT Business Agent and provide any correspondence that you receive.
Q: When/how is a grievance filed?
A: A grievance must be filed 20
duty/school days (weekends, breaks are not counted) to be counted from the
date you are disciplined or your contract rights are violated (i.e., a
"harm" to your employment rights must be pinpointed). Grievances are forms filed (by MFT only) to
challenge disciplinary actions and/or violations of the contract.
Q: Who “owns” the grievance and what duties
does a union member have to the union when a grievance is filed?
A: MFT is
the only entity that may file a grievance and has the right to withdraw/resolve
the grievance with or without the member’s consent. Generally, the member is expected to
participate, act in their own interest, and always act in good faith. If supported by the
Q: What rights do you have if you are
discharged ?
A: MFT will likely be advising you if
something as serious as discharge may occur.
However, it is ultimately incumbent upon a tenured teacher to respond
individually to a discharge letter. We
strongly encourage you to contact MFT for assistance once you receive the
letter. If you are discharged as a tenured
teacher, you have rights under the Teacher Tenure Act (MS122A.41). The
school board will need to take official action after which you will receive a
certified letter from the school board.
If you feel your discharge is unjustified, we advise you to respond to
the directions in the school board letter carefully and choose to request
"a hearing before an arbitrator" specifically within 10 days of the
letter's date (otherwise you have effectively waived hearing rights and
acquiesced to the school board’s action).
Note: ECFE and ABE teachers do not have statutory
rights to tenure status, but may have still have due process rights under the
contract. Contact MFT59 if you have been
discharged and have any questions about your rights.
Q: What is Realignment? Is it disciplinary?
A: Realignment
is regulated by the Teacher Tenure Act, legal decisions interpreting that act,
and any current agreements between MFT and the District. For a visual explanation of a typical
realignment example, click on Realignment FAQs. Contact a business agent at MFT if you have
further questions about realignment. It
is not disciplinary.
© 2003 Minneapolis
Federation of Teachers 67-