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Archiver > BOARD > 2005-06 > 1118701679


From: bookstorelady <>
Subject: Re: [BOARD-L] VOTE: Motion 05-10
Date: Mon, 13 Jun 2005 15:27:59 -0700 (PDT)
In-Reply-To: <PCEDIGLJFHKFCNAGDACICECBNCAA.srh@tyaskin.com>


Back from my working vacation...

If Shari hasn't presented by vote...
I vote YES...

Respectfully
Darilee Bednar
NW/Plains CC Rep

Shari Handley <> wrote:
Please vote your choice on Motion 05-10:

". . . that the Grievance Procedures Committee be disbanded, and that a
permanent Grievance Committee be established according to the guidelines
set out below. Further, that the Grievance Committee's first task should
be to complete the committee's working procedures, in accordance with
the guidelines set out below, with additional guidelines including, but
not limited to, procedures for handling conflicts of interest and
appeals to the Advisory Board, and that these procedures be submitted to
the Advisory Board for review and approval within 30 days of the
formation of the committee. The Grievance Committee should be prepared
to begin hearing grievances by no later than August 1, 2005." (See the
referenced proposed guidelines at the bottom of this message)

Vote YES to approve the motion
Vote NO to reject the motion

AB members will have until 12:01 a.m. EDT Wednesday, June 15 to cast
their votes.

Shari

=======================
PROPOSED USGenWeb Project Grievance Procedures

Grievances within the USGenWeb Project shall be handled by a designated
Grievance Committee, comprised of a Grievance Coordinator, and 5
permanent committee members. (This number may be increased if the
workload requires, subject to a majority vote of the Advisory Board.)
The National Coordinator shall also serve as an ex officio member, in
accordance with the USGenWeb Project bylaws. Project volunteers would
act as mediators and/or arbitrators.

Section 1 - Committee Qualifications & Appointments

Initial appointments to the Grievance Committee will be made by the
Advisory Board. The Advisory Board will solicit volunteers for this
committee, and post their qualifications for comment by USGenWeb Project
members. (Qualifications will be posted on the BOARD list, along with
other official project lists as deemed necessary.) Appointment will be
made to the Committee by vote of the Advisory Board. The Advisory Board
will appoint one of these volunteers as Grievance Coordinator for the
initial term.

Future vacancies within the Grievance Committee will be filled in the
following manner: The Grievance Coordinator will solicit volunteers for
the position, and post their qualifications for comment by USGenWeb
Project members. Volunteers will be chosen by a vote of Grievance
Committee members, and presented to the Advisory Board for approval.

Future appointments as Grievance Coordinator will be by vote of the
Grievance Committee members. Elections will be for a two-year term.

Qualifications: Volunteers for the Grievance Committee will be required
to meet certain minimum requirements for service.

Volunteers must have a minimum of one year's continuous service as a
Member in Good Standing of either a State Project or a recognized
Special Project of the USGenWeb Project.

Because grievances are considered personnel matters, all volunteers must
agree and state that they are willing to abide by strict confidentiality
requirements. Volunteers must also state that they understand that
violation of this confidentiality agreement will mean immediate
expulsion from the Grievance Committee, and could result in
determination of Member Not in Good Standing by the Advisory Board.

Section 2 - Committee Business

Two e-mail lists will be established for Grievance Committee business.
The first list will be archived, and will be available for all
interested project volunteers to subscribe on a read-only basis. The
list will be used to announce committee vacancies/appointments, to
request volunteers for open positions, and for discussions of policy
and/or procedures. This list will also be used for Billet Announcements.
No discussion of specific grievances will be held on the public list.

The second list will not be archived, and is considered strictly
confidential. Only Committee members will be subscribed to this list.
Any questions or concerns related to specific grievances will be raised
ONLY on the confidential list. The confidential list may NOT be used for
public business, or in an effort to avoid public disclosure.

Section 3 - Duties of Grievance Committee Members

Grievance Committee members act as administrators/advisors to volunteer
mediators and arbitrators, following complaints assigned to them
throughout the grievance process. Should a complaint progress to an
arbitration hearing, the Grievance Committee member will be responsible
for acting as Chair for the hearing. Grievance Committee members will
not take direct part in mediations under their guidance, and will not
have a vote in hearings they may chair. Grievance Committee members are
responsible to tracking the progress of complaints until resolved,
making status reports to the Coordinator and/or Committee as may be
necessary, with a final status report upon resolution of the complaint.

Section 4 - Duties of Grievance Coordinator

The Grievance Coordinator will be responsible for receiving complaints,
numbering them, and assigning them to a Grievance Committee member to
administer. The Coordinator will also be responsible for maintaining a
list of volunteer members to act as mediators, as well as a list of
volunteer arbitrators, and assigning them to complaints as needed. The
Grievance Coordinator will make a regular report to the Advisory Board
on the number of complaints received and resolved, and provide other
information as needed by the Board. The Grievance Coordinator shall act
as chair of committee meetings, and as such will have no vote, except in
case of a tie.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Procedure:

The grievance process applies when a complaint is made by the following:
1) Any member of the USGenWeb Project, filing on his/her own behalf,
within 45 days of incident, or discovery of incident.
2) Former USGenWeb members within 14 days of termination of membership
either with the Project, or within a specific State or Special Project.
3) Transcribers and accepted contributing researchers, within 45 days of
incident, or discovery of incident. 4) In the case of two or more
individuals forming one party, the group will select one spokesperson to
act on behalf of the others.

Third-party complaints will not be considered.


The initial complaint should be brought to the Grievance Coordinator,
and should include the following information:
1) Full name & project affiliation of the member bringing the complaint
2) Full name & project affiliation of the member the complaint is
against
3) The exact nature of the complaint, including the date that the
incident occurred
4) What steps or actions the member has taken to this point, if any, to
resolve the situation outside of the grievance process
5) What actions/reparations that the project member desires as a result
of their grievance

Upon receiving the initial complaint, the Grievance Coordinator will
assign it a number, and appoint one of the permanent committee members
to oversee the process. A volunteer mediator will also be assigned.

-----
Mediation:

The mediator will meet with each party separately, discussing the issues
raised and prompting suggestions for a solution, short of the party
receiving their requested goal, that would be acceptable to him/her. All
correspondence will be CC'd to the permanent committee member, who is
responsible for overseeing the mediation, but does NOT take active part
in the process, although the permanent committee member may make
suggestions or comments to the mediator.

When and if the mediator is able to bring both parties close to a
potential resolution, he/she can then bring the parties together "face
to face" to try to finalize the compromise solution.

If, after the mediator has worked with both parties for a reasonable
amount of time, and the mediator determines that the movement of one or
both parties will not be sufficient to produce a mediated resolution,
the process is terminated. The mediator will make a final recommendation
to the Grievance Coordinator as to whether the matter should proceed to
arbitration or whether the matter should be considered closed.

Failure of either party to proceed with mediation in good faith may be
considered grounds for terminating the process.

The mediation process is considered confidential, and parties involved
must agree to uphold that confidentiality unless ALL parties agree to
the contrary.


-----
Arbitration:

If the mediation process fails, and the grievant wishes to continue with
his/her complaint, the Grievance Coordinator will select the next 3
names from the list of volunteer arbitrators. These volunteers, along
with the overseeing permanent committee member, will be subscribed to a
confidential email list to conduct the arbitration hearing, with the
permanent committee member acting as a non-voting chair.

Both parties to the grievance will be subscribed to the list, and will
be given the opportunity to present statements or evidence.

The volunteer arbitrators may request additional information if they
feel it is necessary, or may ask further questions of the parties
involved.

After hearing both sides, the parties to the grievance will be
unsubscribed, and the volunteer arbitrators will discuss the material
presented.

The arbitrators may find for either party, or reach a decision that is a
compromise between the two positions. The arbitrators will make a
recommendation as to what action, if any, should be taken.

The volunteers will make their decision, and the findings will be
presented by the chair (permanent committee member) to both parties
involved, as well as the Grievance Coordinator.

The arbitration process is considered confidential, and parties involved
must agree to uphold that confidentiality unless ALL parties (including
volunteer arbitrators and witnesses) agree to the contrary.


------
Process to choose non-AB members as mediators/arbitrators:

1. The Grievance Coordinator makes a call for CCs to volunteer to serve
as either mediators, or on arbitration committees, should the need
arise. Project members may volunteer for either or both functions. All
volunteer mediators/arbitrators must agree to uphold the confidentiality
of any proceedings in which they may be involved.

2. Create a list by assigning a consecutive number to each CC that
corresponds with the order in which the responses are received.

3. As complaints are received, mediators/arbitrators are assigned from
the list, following numerical order.






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