Charge of the Committee

As an outcome of the collective bargaining process between the College administration and the Classified unit negotiations for the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) which was effective September 1, 2006, the following was mutually agreed:

“Classified employee Reclassification Committee

A Joint Committee of the Classified Unit of the Federation and the College will be convened to review and make recommendations on a Classified Reclassification project. The Joint Committee will review the reports of prior reclassification committees as guidance for a new Reclassification project for all Classified Unit employees.

The Committee will be comprised of equal members of the Classified Unit and the College and consist of no less than six (6) and no more than eight (8) members.

The Committee will be established prior to September 1, 2007.

Recommendation from the Committee will be made to the College President or his/her designee. Recommendations must be made on or before July 1, 2008.

Any recommendations which have been approved by the College President or his/her designee shall be implemented September 1, 2008.”

Process & Procedure Summary of Agreement

The Committee has built consensus, and has unanimously produced the processes and procedures outlined in this proposal. This includes the:

• Method for requesting a review of position for possible reclassification
• Application form and procedures to present the request
• Time frame for requesting review
• Final review and approval authority
• Annually renewing budgeted pool to implement and fund approved reclassifications

The Committee membership expressed some concerns and expectations that initially there may well be a high volume of requests for reclassification, as there has not been an opportunity for such a review for several years. This high volume may continue for a couple of years, until the back‐log has been resolved. Because of this expectation, the Committee recommends that the budgeted pool be established at a higher level for the first two (2) years, and then reduce to a lower ongoing level. Commencing with the fourth year, the budgeted pool should regularly increase to account for increasing annualized earnings of potential applicants utilizing the pool.

Process & Procedure Proposal

The Committee has established the following process and procedure for Classified staff requests and approvals for reclassification.

1. Annual Open Window:
   Once each year there will be an “open window” period during which Classified staff may submit a request to have his/her position reviewed for possible reclassification. This open window will commence on September 1st and end on October 31st of each year.
2. Position Description Questionnaire Form:
   The requesting individual must complete the “Position Description Questionnaire Form”.
   • This Form may either be submitted to the employee’s supervisor for completion of the supervisor portion of the Form and then forwarded on to the Human Resources Department (HR) for evaluation, or submitted directly to HR who will then request that the supervisor complete their portion of the Form.
   • In either case, the fully executed Form must be received by HR by the end of the submission period in order to be eligible for evaluation in that year.
   • Disagreements between the Classified unit employee and the supervisor concerning position duties will be mediated by HR.
   • Annual Upgrade Pool - The College will budget an annual pool to subsidize increases which are approved during this annual process. Any funds remaining in the pool at the conclusion of any one year will be returned to the College’s general fund. The College may waive funding (or full funding) of the pool in the event of financial exigency.
   • Increases to hourly rates pursuant to this review process will be in accordance with the Classified unit’s CBA, Article IX(e) (e.g., 8% increase to hourly rate for upgrade re‐ evaluation of one grade level, 9% increase for two grade levels, etc.).
   • If a position is assessed and it is determined to be at a lower grade, the hourly rate for any individual currently in that position will not change. However, the position will be established at the lower grade and any individual(s) in that position will be precluded from requesting any further position review for a period of three (3) years. The last paragraph of Article IX 4.(e) will not be imposed for any Classified unit employee who experiences an involuntary downgrading of his/her position as a result of this assessment. Therefore, if such an employee subsequently applies for and fills a position at a higher grade, he/she will be eligible for an increase in accordance with the collective bargaining agreement.
   • As there is an expected backlog of individuals who will request a review and upgrade to their position, the annual reclassification pool will be established as follows:
     • $70,000 for both the first and second year
     • $50,000 in year three
     • In year four (4), and each year thereafter, the pool will cumulatively grow at the same rate as Classified staff annual increases. For example if classified staff receive a 3.75% increase in both years four and five, the pool will grow from $50,000 to $51,875 in year four ($50,000 increased by 3.75%) and from $51,875 to $53,820 in year five ($51,875 increased by 3.75%). The annual pool will continue to increase up to a maximum of $70,000, with review of the cap in future years.
3. Review of Questionnaire Forms:
   HR will have the responsibility and sole authority to review, evaluate and determine the approval or denial of Forms presented for reevaluation.
   • HR will only review those Forms received during the open window submission period (September 1st through October 31st).
   • Review of these Forms will be sorted based on the Classified staff member’s seniority. The individual’s period of service in the position is not a factor for purposes of this determination of seniority for evaluation.
   • If an employee has had their position reevaluated and has received an upgrade, that individual is precluded from submitting another request for reevaluation of the same position for a period of three (3) years.
   • Eligibility for position upgrade will be based on assessment and confirmation that significant primary functions of a position have sufficiently changed to warrant a position upgrade.
   • Eligibility for position upgrade will not be based on, for example, “time in the position”, increased volume, or changes in the method of completing functions of the position (e.g., technology changes).
   • Forms may remain in any one year that have not yet been evaluated for approval or denial after the budget pool for providing increases has been fully distributed. In this case, the Classified staff member must re‐submit for evaluation in the next succeeding year (the application will not automatically carry over to the next year). If resubmitted in a timely manner, this individual’s application will be placed on the list for review solely in terms of his/her seniority, and will receive no other credit for their submission in the previous year.
   • HR will complete the review of Forms which are fully executed and submitted in a timely manner, by no later than January 31st of that fiscal year. HR may determine than an extension of time to complete the review may be necessary, primarily due to a high volume of submission requests. In such case, HR will request an approval for an extension of time to the Classified unit co‐chairs. Such a request will not be unduly withheld by the co‐chairs. The Classified staff member will receive their appropriate increase with the first full pay period following this January 31st deadline (or following a Classified unit approved extended deadline as described above).
4. Multiple Identical Positions: If a Classified staff member applies for and is approved for a position upgrade, and it is determined that there are other Classified staff in positions with exactly identical job responsibilities, all other individuals in these identical positions will also receive the increase. This is regardless of seniority and whether the other individual’s submitted applications for position reevaluation.
5. Communication & Training of New Processes & Procedures: HR and the Classified unit will collaborate on developing and distributing communication materials for Classified unit staff and their supervisors concerning these new processes and procedures. In addition, they will provide training for both staff and their supervisors; both group and individual help will be available.

Implementation

These new processes and procedures will be effective as soon as practicable following finalization and approval by the President, but no later than the July 1, 2009‐June 30, 2010 fiscal year. If implementation and funding of the reclassification pool budget can be made prior to the 2009‐2010 fiscal year, the College and the Classified unit will agree upon a window period that will occur as soon as practicable following communication and training of staff and supervisors.

Endnote

The Committee recognizes that the scope and charge of Committee activities is limited to the foregoing position reclassification processes and procedures. Nevertheless, during this time of unexpected and significant increases in the cost of living, the Committee wishes to recommend that the College review and assess the concept of “living wage”. This assessment would focus solely on whether minimum hourly rates paid at the lowest end of the unit position spectrum should be increased to accommodate a minimally acceptable wage rate. Neither the Committee nor the union is suggesting any conditional recommendations. Rather, the Committee is recommending that an open and interactive dialogue outside of the normal negotiations process, with no required commitment, would benefit both parties.