Grievances: What to do

Dispute Resolution:

Any dispute over the application, meaning, or interpretation of an action taken by the Receiver/HPS in formulating, implementing, or administering any component of the turnaround plan shall be subject to the following dispute resolution procedure, which shall be the exclusive process available for resolving the dispute.8 Accordingly, the provisions of the grievance and arbitration articles of all the collective bargaining agreements are suspended and/or modified relative to such disputes.

Step 1

  •   The employee may bring a concern to the principal/head of department in writing within five (5) calendar days of the occurrence of the event giving rise to the concern. The employee should specifically state the desired resolution.
  •   The employee may be represented by a union representative at any stage of the dispute resolution process.
  •   Within 5 calendar days of the receipt of the concern, the principal/head of department should meet with the employee to discuss the concern.
  •   Within 5 calendar days of the meeting, the principal/head of department should issue a decision in writing to the employee.

    Step 2

  •   If the employee is not satisfied with the resolution issued by the principal/head of department, s/he may bring the concern to a senior HPS executive, designated by the Receiver, in writing within 5 calendar days of receiving the principal’s/head of department’s decision.
  •   Within 5 calendar days of the receipt of the concern, the HPS executive should meet with the employee to discuss the concern.
  •   Within 5 calendar days of the meeting, the senior executive should issue a decision in writing to the employee.

    8 This dispute resolution process does not apply to disputes relating to the dismissal of a teacher with professional teacher status. Those disputes will be governed by the arbitration process set out in G.L. c. 69, § 1K(d), or G.L. c. 71 § 24, as appropriate.

    Holyoke Public Schools Renewed District Turnaround Plan, released October 1, 2018 48

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Step 3

  •   If the employee is not satisfied with the resolution issued by the senior HPS executive, s/he may bring the concern to the Receiver (or his designee, if applicable) in writing within 10 calendar days of receiving the previous decision.
  •   Within 10 calendar days of the receipt of the concern, the Receiver or his designee should meet with the employee to discuss the concern.
  •   Within 10 calendar days of the meeting, the Receiver should issue a decision in writing to the employee, which shall be final and binding.

    General Provisions

  •   Failure of the employee to advance the grievance to the next level within the designated time period shall be deemed to be acceptance of the prior grievance response.
  •   The Receiver may suspend the time periods in writing with the union.

    During the 2015–2016 school year, the Receiver will develop a dispute-resolution process that will be applicable to disputes other than disputes over the application, meaning, or interpretation of an action taken by the Receiver/HPS in formulating, implementing, or administering any component of the turnaround plan. Before the implementation of the dispute-resolution process, the current grievance and arbitration system will remain in place for such other disputes.

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