ARTICLE II UNION PRIVILEGES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Central Falls School District

Section 1. Unfair Labor Practices - Title 28-7-13

It shall be a violation of this contract to commit any of the practices enumerated in 28-7-13 of the General Laws of Rhode Island.

Section 2. Recruitment of Teachers for Membership

The recruitment of teachers for membership in any potential bargaining organization shall be the responsibility of teachers and shall be in accordance with state laws. No members of administrative staff shall collect funds or distribute recruitment materials for any existing or potential bargaining organization.

Section 3. Fair Practices

The District agrees to continue its policy of not discriminating against any employee on the basis of age, sex,  sexual orientation, race, religion, national origin, color, disability, marital status nor based on membership in, participation in, or association with the activities of any employee organization.

The Union agrees to maintain its eligibility to represent members of the bargaining unit by continuing to admit persons to membership without discrimination on the basis of age, sex, sexual orientation, race, religion, national origin, color, disability, or marital status; and, to represent equally all employees in the bargaining unit without regard to membership in, participation in, nor association with the activities of any employee organization.

Section 4. Agency Shop

All members of the bargaining unit shall, subject to the provisions below, support the bargaining agent by signing the authorization voucher for payroll deduction as a condition of employment prior to the first day of actual employment.

For members of the Central Falls Teachers’ Union, this support shall consist of their union dues and/or any subsequent assessment adopted by the Union during the school year.

For those staff not members of the Union, this support shall consist of a yearly service fee equal to the Union’s dues and/or any subsequent assessment adopted by the Union during the school year.

Said dues and fees shall be automatically deducted from every teacher’s pay bi-weekly and shall be forwarded to the Union.

Payment of the yearly service fee does not imply membership in the Union.

All new teachers shall be apprised of the Agency Shop Clause in the contract before being hired.

It will be the responsibility of the Union to apprise annually each teacher as to the current rate of dues deducted within the first week of school or within one week of any subsequent adjustments.

Claims for corrections and/or adjustments to payments due the Union must be made within the school year in which the payments were originally due.

The District shall request the fiscal authority to submit such sums in total to the union treasurer no later than one week after such deductions were made, together with the names of the individuals, the period covered, and such other information as may be necessary to the Union to maintain its record current.

The union treasurer or his/her designee will acknowledge in writing the receipt of said sums at the time of receipt from the fiscal office of the District. All authorizations are automatically renewable.

Section 5. Membership in C.O.P.E.

Membership in COPE shall be voluntary. For members of COPE this support shall consist of an annual rate of dues set by the Union COPE Committee.

Once a teacher has signed a COPE authorization card, these monies shall be deducted from the teacher’s pay in accordance with a procedure to be established with the Finance Office prior to deduction. Said dues and fees shall be automatically deducted from every teacher’s pay once a year and shall be forwarded to the union treasurer.

All authorizations are automatically renewable each year unless a teacher notifies the Union in writing of his/her desire to withdraw from COPE.

Section 6. Information to the Union

The District shall make available to the Union, upon reasonable request and within two school days such information, statistics and records relevant to negotiations or necessary for the proper enforcement of the terms of this agreement. This section will not apply to personnel files, but only to public records kept by the District.

Section 7. Building Representatives

School principals shall recognize one union building representative as the official representative of the Union in that school. At the start of each academic year, the building representative will identify himself/herself to the school principal. The Union will also make available to the District a list of the respective building representatives by the 8th day of the school year.

The principal and the building representative shall meet regularly, at the request of either party, to discuss school operations and questions related to the implementation of this contract. Proposed changes in existing policies and procedures for that school shall be subjects for discussion at such meetings.

Such policies and/or procedures adopted or maintained by any principal shall not be inconsistent with the terms of the contract. Building representatives shall be free to conduct union business during unassigned periods, however, except in cases of an emergency, may not use this time to meet with other members of the bargaining unit unless it is also their unassigned period.

Only union officers and building representatives may use school telephones for union business.

Section 8. Use of Buildings

The Union shall have the right to use school facilities for committee and/or building meetings and recreational activities before or after regular class hours and during lunch time or unassigned periods of the teachers involved, provided such meetings do not interfere with the operation of the school or its related activities.

Whenever a union meeting is to be held, the principal of the building shall be notified by the building representative at least twenty-four hours in advance.

There shall be no charge to the Union if facilities are used during the week when buildings are heated and maintained. If additional custodial services are required, the cost shall be borne by the Union. This shall include weekends and holidays.

Section 9. Communication Facilities

Union officers, building representatives and union committee members may use the communication facilities of the district to conduct union business. This includes duplicating equipment. The Union shall provide its own paper.

Section 10. Announcements

The Union may request a building principal to have brief announcements made over the public address system at the time of regular school announcements. The principal may grant such requests if, in his/her opinion, the announcements are not inconsistent with the effective and efficient operation of the school. The principal may further allow the Union to make announcements during lunch periods.

Section 11. Bulletin Boards and Mailboxes

Bulletin boards shall be provided in all schools to be utilized by the Union for the posting of official union business.

A copy of each notice will be presented to the principal or the person in charge before it is posted on the bulletin board.

The Union and its COPE Committee shall be allowed to utilize school mailboxes for the distribution of official union business. No literature that endorses a candidate for office shall be distributed by the Union or its COPE Committee in school mailboxes.

Campaign literature that is the legitimate business of the Union or of its COPE Committee may be distributed in school mailboxes.

The District shall maintain a mailbox for the Union at the Office of the Superintendent.

It is further understood that only a duly authorized building representative will assume the responsibility for posting or distributing official material for the Union.

Section 12. Directives or Decisions Affecting Teachers

Directives or decisions affecting teachers and agreed to at principals’ meetings and/or faculty meetings shall be emailed to teachers.

Section 13. Released Time for the Union President and Vice-President

The President of the union shall be allowed three periods per week for conducting union business.  Effective at the beginning of the 2017-2018 school year, the Secondary Vice- President shall be released for one period each week and an additional period every other week.  The Elementary Vice-President shall be released for one period each week and an additional period every other week in order to conduct union business.  In an emergency situation, the Principal shall have final authority to change a release period if it impacts the safety of students. They shall be allowed to conduct union business wherever their presence is required whenever they are not actively engaged in teaching.

The President is free to leave the building by following the sign-out procedure (Article V, Section 5); however, he/she may be excused from his/her regular teaching duties in the event of an emergency. Should such an emergency arise, the Superintendent shall be notified immediately and shall determine the action to be taken.

In the event that the Superintendent is unavailable, the building principal, or in his/her absence the immediate supervisor, shall render a decision.

The President shall be excused from his/her regular teaching duties to attend educational conferences, seminars, Union functions, etc., according to procedures outlined in Article VIII, Section 2.C.

The President shall be excused from all non-teaching duties, including homeroom. Such time shall be available for union business. He/she shall further be excused from attending and supervising all non-teaching activities such as assemblies and fieldtrips in order to conduct important union business. The principal shall arrange for coverage, where needed, in such instances.

The President may be excused from faculty meetings by his/her principal if requested to conduct urgent union business, but the President remains responsible for the business of the meeting.

The principal and/or immediate supervisor of the President shall give special consideration in arranging the building’s itinerant schedule in order to provide blocks of time to the President for union business.
The President may sign out of the building for the day at the completion of the last class that he/she is actually engaged in teaching.

Because the District and the Union work closely together on many issues to maintain an orderly and effective environment conducive to providing the best educational conditions for children, teachers and administrators, further considerations for additional time for the President may be given by the Superintendent with the hiring of additional staff and by future adjustments or reorganization of programs.

Section 14. Right to Visit Schools

The president of the union or his/her designee shall have the right to visit schools to investigate teacher complaints or problems, or for any other purpose relating to the terms and conditions of this contract. Such visits shall not interfere with the regular teaching duties of the President or his/her designee nor with the instructional program of the school visited, except in cases of an emergency as determined by the principal.

All union officials, when visiting a school, shall sign in and out of any school building on a visitors’ log and wear a union badge.

Section 15. Released Time for Teachers for Union Business

Members of the bargaining unit required to participate in conferences, meetings or negotiating sessions scheduled by the District or mutually agreed upon by the District and the Union shall be released from their teaching duties without loss of pay.

Section 16. Union Access to Board of Trustees Meetings

The Union upon written request shall be entitled to appear before the Board of Trustees at a special meeting to speak on matters it deems of importance or with regards to the terms and conditions of this contract. Said special meeting shall occur and legal notice given.

A copy of the agenda shall be sent to the President and/or his/her official designee at the same time such is sent to Board of Trustees. A portfolio identical to that provided to Board of Trustee members, save privileged communications covered by the Open Meeting Law, shall be prepared for the Union at all regular and special meetings of the Board of Trustees.

The District shall provide the Union with a copy of the annual budget when it is prepared each year.

In the event of a change in the governance model for the District during the life of this contract, the Union and the Superintendent shall re-negotiate language to accommodate Union access to meetings with the appropriate authorities.

Section 17. Meetings with the Superintendent

The Superintendent shall meet at least monthly with the Union to discuss matters relating to the implementation of this contract, the educational needs of the school system and/or administration-staff relationships.

Agendas of items to be discussed may be exchanged. In such instances items not included on either party’s agenda shall be considered only by mutual consent of the parties involved.

Meetings shall be conducted at a mutually agreeable time, normally when the parties involved are not scheduled for teaching duties, except that the Superintendent shall have the discretion to release the necessary staff from teaching duties should unusual circumstances warrant such action.

Additional meetings may be requested by either party.

Section 18. Union Representation at Funerals

The Union shall be allowed two (2) representatives at the funerals of school personnel or their immediate families. One union representative shall be allowed to attend the funeral of any non-certified personnel, or of any district employee. Such leaves shall consist of a half day of school unless unusual circumstances prevail. In such cases additional time may be granted by the Superintendent.

Section 19. Search Committees

A.Superintendent

Whenever a search committee is formed for the purpose of hiring a new superintendent, the Union shall be allowed two (2) appointments on said committee.

B.Assistant Superintendent, Director of Student Services, ESL Director

Whenever a search committee is formed for the purpose of hiring a new Assistant Superintendent, Director of Student Services or ESL  Director or any other central office administrator position the Union shall be allowed   two (2) appointments on said committee.

C. Principal and Assistant Principal

Whenever a search committee is formed for the purpose of hiring a new principal or assistant principal the Union shall be allowed  two (2) appointments on said committee.