Newly Elected Chapter Chair, Nancy Merrill & Vice President, William Lipkin

Mix 92.3 is looking for the Mike Morse Law Firm Teacher of the week, so tell us something about a very special teacher in your child’s life. Maybe it’s a great story or a letter about something special a teacher did for your kid.

Reminder #1:  Please use any remaining PL time prior to January 1st.  PL time expires on 12/31 so if it is not used, it is lost.

Reminder #2: A&R has furlough days on 12/26 and 12/27.  A&R employees are not obligated to report to work on those 2 dates.  Anyone who chooses to work on either or both of those days needs to select another day as their furlough day(s).  Remember, we all are taking 3 furlough days between July 2017 and June 2018.  Everyone's paycheck is being docked for the value of 3 furlough days so if you do not take all 3 furlough days prior to June 30, 2018 then you far overpaid and there is no refund... it is the responsibility of each individual to ensure that they have taken all 3 furlough days by June 30, 2018.

If you were directed to work on the 11/24 furlough day, you cannot be directed to work on 12/26 or 12/27; management can only direct you to work on one of the three prescribed days.

Reminder #3: Prior to 12/31/17, anyone who has a "chronic condition" should read and complete the form found on the www.cthep.com website for that particular chronic condition.  This is part of the compliance piece associated with the $100 rebate...(as a reminder, the password requires at least 8 characters, at least 1 capital letter, and at least 1 number)

Reminder #4:  The 2018 Calendar of State Holidays and Check Dates is available for review/download.

*9/11- Exec meeting only with Jim Greene @ Ryder room 101

All members should know their rights under the contract.  We want to remind members of the following changes to our contract relating to winter weather:  

December 2017

Published by the Clearwater TRIF UNIT

CLICK to READ

While every grievance begins as a complaint, all complaints do not become grievances.  In order to know what complaints can be processed as grievances, you will need to refer to the Collective Bargaining Agreement between Mercer County Community College and the Mercer Community College Professional Staff Federation  (You can access the Agreement on this site under “Resources”.)

As you will see in Article 13 of the contract, a grievance can arise from a violation, misinterpretation, or improper application of the Agreement.

The purpose of the grievance procedure is to provide for the speedy, orderly and equitable resolution of disputes. Inherent in the grievance process is the remedy sought which must be identified in order to make the grievant whole.  In selecting an appropriate remedy, it is important to keep in mind that the purpose of the remedy is restoration not retribution.  The remedy should be consistent with the collective bargaining agreement in order to protect the integrity of the contract.

If you feel that the conditions for a grievance have been met, please do the following:

1. Carefully document all facts including dates and times pertaining to the grievance and any discussions or meetings which have taken place.

2. Contact one of the Grievance Committee members listed below:

            At the West Windsor campus:

                        Marcia Galambos ext.   3725      galambom@mccc.edu      CM133

                        Nin May  ext.         ext.   3460      mayn@mccc.edu               AD209

            At the James Kerney campus:

                        Stacy Denton         ext.   3132      dentons@mccc.edu           KC146

                        Debra Lawrey        ext.   3154      lawreyd@mccc.edu           KC141           

Remember that there is a big difference between a gripe and a grievance.  A grievance is a formal challenge to the employer that the contract or College policy has not been followed.

Fortunately, most problems can be settled informally without filing paperwork.  But it is imperative that you contact your local leadership as soon as possible when you have reason to believe you have a grievance.  There are strict timelines for the filing process (which you will also find under the grievance article in the contract), and they start the minute the violation takes place.

If you are looking for a family gift idea this holiday season, A&R has set-up 3 bus trips to MLB baseball games for the 2018 season...3 good games.  We have the defending World Series Champion Houston Astros against the Yankees in late May and then the Astros against the Red Sox in early September...these are 3 of the 4 American League playoff teams from last year and the Astros also boast New Britain native George Springer in centerfield (who was the MVP of the 2017 World Series)...then we also have a Yankee/Red Sox game in late September!  We haven't purchased tickets for this rivalry

Comptroller Kevin Lembo today announced that his office, in partnership with the state's Health Care Cost Containment Committee (known as the HCCCC, where A&R has a seat at the table), has initiated a measure to block the unnecessary use of outrageously expensive specialty drugs - and is urging the Office of the Attorney General to investigate the alleged possible relationships between a drug manufacturer and its top dispensing pharmacies and prescribers.