BONNEVILLE POWER ADMINISTRATION

**HUMAN RESOURCES**

##### Portland, Oregon

# PERSONNEL LETTER NO. 771-1 DATE: September 15, 1998

**SUBJECT**

Administrative Grievance Procedure

# PURPOSE OF ISSUANCE

This letter describes the Bonneville Power Administration's (BPA)
procedures for administrative grievances. BPA's previous administrative
grievance policy and procedures, published in BPA Manual (BPAM) Chapter
400/771A, have been abolished.

# EMPLOYEE COVERAGE

These procedures cover all current employees of BPA, except for:

A.  Employees who are members of a bargaining unit represented by a
    union which is recognized by BPA and who are covered by a negotiated
    grievance procedure.

B.  Applicants for employment with BPA.

C.  Senior Executive Service (SES) Employees.

# GRIEVANCE COVERAGE

These procedures cover any matter of concern or dissatisfaction relating
to the employment of an employee(s) which is subject to the control of
BPA management, except for those matters included in Appendix A.

# REFERENCES AND RELATED INFORMATION

-   BPAM Chapter 400/700A, Employee Relations Program

-   Management Assistance Services (MAS) Handbook Chapter 6, Grievances
    and Appeals

-   Personnel Letter 293-3, Employee Relations Case Files

-   Negotiated Grievance Procedures

# RESPONSIBILITIES AND AUTHORITIES

In identifying delegated authorities, BPAM Chapter 400/700A refers to
this procedure. Definitions and procedures below describe the management
levels who are delegated the authority to receive and to respond to
grievances at various stages.

# DEFINITIONS

A.  [Appropriate Management Official (AMO)]{.underline}. The person at
    the lowest management level, including the employee's immediate
    manager/supervisor, who can remedy the employee's specific concern
    or dissatisfaction. The AMO is usually the employee's first level
    manager/supervisor. He/she may be directly involved in the matter
    being grieved, and is the official to whom the informal grievance is
    presented.

B.  [Deciding Official]{.underline}. The manager/supervisor immediately
    above the supervisor/manager to whom the informal grievance was
    submitted (i.e., the AMO). He/she has the authority to decide on the
    formal grievance.

C.  [Days]{.underline}. Calendar days.

D.  [Fact-finding]{.underline}. An inquiry suitable to ascertain
    relevant facts that are in dispute. Fact-finding can be conducted at
    any stage of the grievance where it is necessary and appropriate.

E.  [Reconsideration Official]{.underline}. The management official to
    whom a formal grievance decision can be appealed (normally BPA's
    Chief Operating Officer). The Reconsideration Official's decision on
    the grievance is final.

# INFORMAL GRIEVANCES AND ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION

A.  [Informal Resolution and Time Limits for Filing]{.underline}. The
    employee and the AMO (usually the first level manager/supervisor)
    are encouraged to attempt to resolve the grievance informally. A
    grievance presented under this procedure shall be identified as an
    informal grievance and may be presented orally or in writing. A
    grievance may concern a continuing practice or condition at any
    time, but must present a grievance concerning a particular act or
    occurrence within 15 days of the date of the act or occurrence or
    the date he/she became aware of it.

B.  [Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)]{.underline}. The AMO shall
    promptly meet with the employee to discuss the issue, and if it
    can't be readily resolved, discuss the possibility of utilizing an
    ADR process (e.g., mediation, facilitation, etc.). Appendix B
    contains information about a variety of ADR processes. If the
    employee and the AMO agree, the Labor Relations staff shall be
    contacted to arrange for ADR. To extend the informal grievance time
    limits to allow for ADR, see Section XIII, below.

C.  [Informal Grievance Decision]{.underline}. If the grievance cannot
    be resolved informally, the AMO shall give the employee a written
    decision on the matter not later than 7 days from the final informal
    attempt at resolution (e.g., meeting with AMO, or after the final
    ADR attempt). The written decision shall inform the employee of the
    time limit within which to request further consideration under the
    formal grievance procedures, and to whom the formal grievance shall
    be sent. Advice and assistance may be obtained from the Labor
    Relations (LR) staff.

D.  [Rejection of Informal Grievance]{.underline}. A grievance cannot be
    rejected by the AMO for procedural error (e.g., timeliness or
    coverage issues) in the informal grievance stage. If the
    manager/supervisor believes that the grievance is not timely or
    consists of matters not covered under these grievance procedures,
    the employee should be advised, but also must be allowed to submit
    the grievance for further determination under the formal grievance
    procedure, if applicable.

E.  [By-Passing the Informal Grievance Stage]{.underline}. Unless both
    the employee and management agree to by-pass the informal grievance
    stage, or unless the issue being grieved is addressed in the
    paragraph below, the employee must pursue resolution of his/her
    grievance under the informal procedure before advancing to the
    formal procedure.

The employee must initially present a grievance directly under the
formal procedure, described below, if it concerns a reprimand or a
disciplinary or other personnel action that was effected after an
advance written notice. In these cases, the grievance must be filed with
the Labor Relations staff within 14 days of the effective date of the
action, in accordance with instructions included on the action.

# FORMAL GRIEVANCES

A.  [Submission of Formal Grievance]{.underline}. When an employee
    receives a decision under the informal procedure, or when the time
    limit for the AMO to respond has expired without a decision, the
    employee may, within 7 days thereafter, submit the grievance to the
    Labor Relations staff. If the grievance is regarding an issue that
    cannot be addressed informally (e.g., reprimand or other personnel
    action) the employee may file the formal grievance within 14 days of
    the effective date of the personnel action.

B.  [Contents of Grievance]{.underline}. The formal grievance must be in
    writing, signed and dated by the employee, and should contain the
    following:

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1.  Sufficient data to identify and clarify the basis for the grievance;

2.  Description of the employee's efforts to resolve the grievance
    informally;

3.  The relief sought by the employee; and

4.  Name, address and phone number of the employee's representative, if
    applicable.

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C.  [Acceptance or Rejection of Formal Grievance]{.underline}. Upon
    receipt of the formal grievance, the Labor Relations staff will
    request that the AMO submit a summary of the matter grieved and the
    action taken or the results under the informal procedure (i.e.,
    usually the informal grievance decision). In addition, the Labor
    Relations staff shall take one of the following actions within 7
    days of receipt of the formal grievance:

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1.  Reject the grievance if it was not filed within the time limits
    specified for filing under the informal or formal procedures;
    consists wholly of a matter or matters excluded from coverage of the
    grievance system; or if there is no personal relief within BPA's
    authority to grant the employee. The notice of rejection shall be in
    writing, give the reason(s) for rejection, and inform the employee
    of the right to request the Chief Operating Officer to review the
    decision to reject the grievance.

2.  If the employee has not completed the informal procedure, or the
    grievance consists of issues or relief not raised under the informal
    procedure, return the grievance to the employee and explain the
    requirement that the informal procedure must be used before a
    decision can be made to accept or reject the grievance.

3.  If the issues in the grievance and the relief sought are not clearly
    described, give the employee the opportunity to provide additional
    information or clarification within a specified time limit. Vague or
    general allegations which do not detail the matter about which the
    employee is dissatisfied or the relief sought cannot be properly
    addressed or investigated and shall not be accepted for processing.

4.  Accept the grievance, forward it to the Deciding Official (see
    definition of Deciding Official), and notify the employee in writing
    to whom the grievance has been forwarded for decision. The written
    notification shall inform the employee of his/her option to request
    a meeting with the Deciding Official, who to contact to set up the
    meeting, and the time limit for requesting such a meeting.

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D.  [Action by the Deciding Official]{.underline}.

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1.  The deciding official shall give the grievance fair and impartial
    consideration and issue a decision within 21 days, unless a mutually
    agreeable extension is made. If the facts of the situation are not
    clear, or if there appears to be a discrepancy in the facts, the
    Deciding Official should take action to ascertain the facts prior to
    deciding on the grievance, if time permits (see Section XII,
    "Agreement to Extend Time Limits" and Section XI,
    **"**Fact-Finding," and Appendix C, "Fact-Finding Considerations,"
    below).

2.  Either party may request that a meeting be held to discuss the
    matter or the parties may agree that no meeting be held. If either
    party elects a meeting, it shall take place as soon as practicable
    and must be requested within 7 days of receiving the notification
    from Labor Relations staff that the grievance has been forwarded to
    the Deciding Official. Grievance meetings are for the purpose of
    providing the employee the opportunity to elaborate on any aspect of
    the grievance, and/or the Deciding Official the opportunity to
    clarify facts, etc. The parties may wish to agree to extend the time
    limit for issuing a decision if the meeting cannot be held within
    the Deciding Official's 21-day time limit for issuing a decision
    (see Section XII, "Agreement to Extend Time Limits," below).

3.  If the employee is not granted his/her requested remedy, he/she
    shall be informed in the grievance decision of his/her option to
    request reconsideration of the decision, and time limits for doing
    so.

# RECONSIDERATION OF FORMAL GRIEVANCE DECISION

A.  If the employee is dissatisfied with the decision in the formal
    grievance, he/she may request reconsideration of the decision within
    7 days by the Reconsideration Official (normally BPA's Chief
    Operating Officer). Such request must be in writing and sent to the
    Labor Relations staff, who will subsequently forward it and other
    relevant information to the Reconsideration Official. The
    Reconsideration Official shall give the grievance fair and impartial
    consideration and issue a decision within 21 days.

B.  Either party may request that a meeting be held to discuss the
    matter or the parties may agree that no meeting be held. If either
    party elects a meeting, it shall take place as soon as practicable
    and must be requested within 7 days of receiving the formal
    grievance decision.

C.  The employee may not obtain further administrative review of the
    same matter addressed in the reconsideration decision.

# FACT-FINDING

Consideration of all relevant facts is an essential part of all
grievances. Fact-finding is appropriate to ascertain relevant facts that
are in dispute. Fact-finding can be conducted at any stage of the
grievance where it is necessary and appropriate. It can be conducted
informally by any of the management officials involved in adjudicating
the grievance, or by a skilled, internal or external fact-finder, whose
services are arranged for by the Labor Relations staff. See Appendix C
for fact-finding considerations.

# REPRESENTATION

The grieving employee may designate a representative at any step of the
procedure. Failure to designate a representative at earlier steps does
not preclude designation at later steps. The employee must designate
his/her representative in writing as a part of the written grievance.
Disallowance of an employee's designated representative (if the
representative is employed by BPA) may be made by a management official
because of unavailability due to priority needs of BPA, unreasonable
cost to the government, conflict of position, or conflict of interest.

# AGREEMENT TO EXTEND TIME LIMITS

Management and the employee can mutually agree at any stage of the
grievance process to extend time limits. Both parties are highly
encouraged to agree to an extension of time limits, especially if
management feels fact-finding is necessary or if the parties agree to
ADR. If the parties cannot come to agreement on an extension of time
limits, it may be necessary for a grievance decision to be issued
without the benefit of fact-finding or ADR.

# OFFICIAL TIME

The grieving employee and the employee's representative (if employed by
BPA) are entitled to a reasonable amount of official time to present a
grievance. They are not entitled to official time to prepare the
grievance except to the extent necessary to obtain information and
interview witnesses not otherwise available during non-duty hours.
Employees must obtain approval from their managers/supervisors prior to
the use of official time. "Presenting" includes any discussions with
managers/supervisors, cooperation with ADR attempts, attendance at
meetings with grievance officials, and meetings with fact-finders.

# CANCELLATION OF GRIEVANCE

A grievance shall be canceled:

-   At the employee's written request.

-   Upon termination of the employee's employment with BPA, unless the
    personal relief sought by the employee may be granted after
    termination of employment.

-   Due to lack of timely action by an employee.

-   Upon death of the employee unless the grievance involves a question
    of pay.

# GRIEVANCE FILES

A.  [Contents of Grievance Files]{.underline}. Grievance files shall be
    established and maintained in individual grievance folders by the
    Labor Relations staff for each grievance that becomes formal. The
    following items, as applicable, shall be included in the grievance
    file:

-   Written formal grievance;

-   Appropriate Management Official's written summary of action and
    results during the informal procedure;

-   Copies of any personnel action being grieved (e.g., reprimands, all
    documents relevant to a suspension of 14 days or less, etc.);

-   Copies of all personnel action documents relevant and associated
    with the grievance;

-   Any written fact-finding report, including any statements of
    witnesses and statements made by parties to the grievance;

-   Formal grievance and Reconsideration decisions; and

-   All other documents pertinent to the case (except for ADR or
    mediation notes/documents).

B.  [Access and Retention of Grievance Files]{.underline}. Access to
    these records will be in accordance with System-of-Records: DOE-1,
    DOE Personnel and General Employment Records. Grievance files will
    be disposed of in accordance with BPA Personnel Letter 293-3,
    Employee Relations Case Files.

Veronica L. Williams

Manager, Human Resources

Attachments:

Appendix A -- Non-Grievable Matters

Appendix B -- Alternate Dispute Resolution Options

Appendix C -- Fact-Finding Consideration

Appendix A

**[NON-GRIEVABLE MATTERS]{.underline}**

1.  The content of published regulation and policy.

2.  A decision which is appealable to the Merit Systems Protection Board
    (MSPB), or subject to final administrative review by the Office of
    Personnel Management (OPM), or the Equal Employment Opportunity
    Commission (EEOC) under law or regulations.

3.  A preliminary warning notice or an action which if effected would be
    covered under the grievance system or excluded from coverage by
    paragraph 2, above.

4.  The use or non-use of Alternative Discipline procedures, or the
    substance of an Alternative Discipline decision and agreement.

5.  The establishment of a Performance Improvement Plan.

6.  Matters administered by the General Accounting Office, Office of
    Personnel Management, and the Office of Worker's Compensation
    Programs.

7.  Grievances with issues included in a complaint filed with the Office
    of Special Counsel (OSC) will not be processed until the allegation
    filed with the OSC is resolved.

8.  Non-selection for promotion from a group of properly ranked and
    certified candidates, or failure to receive a noncompetitive
    promotion.

9.  A return of an officer or employee from the Senior Executive Service
    to the General Schedule during the 1-year period of probation or for
    less than fully successful executive performance under 5 U.S.C.,
    Section 3592.

10. An action which terminates a temporary promotion within a maximum
    period of 2 years and returns the employee to the position from
    which the employee was temporarily promoted.

11. The substance of the critical elements and performance standards of
    an employee's position which have been established in accordance
    with the requirements of 5 U.S.C., Chapter 43, Subchapter I, and 5
    CFR, Part 430.

12. An action which terminates a term promotion at the completion of a
    specified period, in excess of 2 years but not more than 5 years,
    and returns the employee to the position from which promoted or to a
    different position of equivalent grade and pay in accordance with 5
    CFR, Part 335.

13. The granting or non-granting of any monetary or non-monetary award
    or Quality Step Increase.

14. The termination of an employee in the initial stages of employment
    prior to gaining due process rights under 5 CFR, Parts 752 and/or
    432.

15. A return of an employee from an initial appointment as supervisor or
    manager to a non-supervisory or non-managerial position for failure
    to satisfactorily complete the probationary period under 5 U.S.C.,
    Section 3321(a)(2) and 5 CFR, Part 315, Subpart I.

16. A separation action not otherwise excluded by this attachment.

17. A diminished penalty or other lesser action which resulted from a
    decision on a grievance.

18. A decision to include an employee's position in the pool of DOE's
    positions subject to random drug and/or alcohol testing.

19. A decision to include or exclude an employee's position on or from
    the eligibility lists for Voluntary Separation Incentives (VSI)
    and/or Voluntary Early Retirement Authority (VERA).

Appendix B

### [ALTERNATE DISPUTE RESOLUTION OPTIONS]{.underline}

The following types of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) are the most
widely used options:

[Mediation]{.underline}. Mediation is the most widely utilized of ADR
techniques in the Federal government today. Mediation provides for a
neutral third party to assist in negotiating agreements, but the
mediator does not render a decision in the matter. Any settlement
reached through mediation must be achieved by the parties themselves.
The mediator, however, takes an active role in the negotiations.

Mediation must be voluntary and it is private and confidential.
Mediators will not testify concerning the mediation or submit any report
or record of the mediation discussions. In addition, mediators do not
disclose anything that one of the parties asks them (in a separate
session) not to disclose to the other. In BPA, each case is usually
assigned to a team of two mediators, primarily from the Federal
Executive Board's Shared Neutrals program. Mediators assigned to assist
in the informal grievance stage will most likely be mediators from
outside BPA. All mediators have completed specialized training and are
experienced mediators. They come from broadly diverse backgrounds and
from all types of jobs. In any case, each party must approve of the
designated mediation team.

[Facilitation]{.underline}. Facilitation is a collaborative process that
helps parties reach a decision or a satisfactory resolution of the
matter at issue. A facilitator is a neutral individual who generally
conducts meetings and coordinates discussion between the parties, but
does not become as involved in fleshing out the substantive issues as a
mediator. The facilitator does not perform a decision-making role nor is
an opinion issued as to the ultimate resolution of the controversy.

Appendix C

#### [FACT-FINDING CONSIDERATIONS]{.underline}

Management should consult with the Labor Relations staff in determining
whether fact-finding is appropriate and, if so, who should conduct the
fact-finding. If the services of a skilled internal or external
fact-finder are necessary, these services will be arranged for by the
Labor Relations staff.

**I. Determining Whether Fact-finding is Appropriate**

Consideration of all relevant facts is an essential part of all
grievances. Fact-finding, under this procedure, is appropriate when
relevant facts are in dispute.

When there is agreement about the relevant facts, i.e., what actually
occurred or was said, but there is disagreement about the relevancy or
significance or interpretation of the facts, fact-finding is *not*
appropriate. The following are some examples to illustrate when
fact-finding is appropriate and when it is not:

-   [Grievance A]{.underline}. An employee grieves his/her performance
    rating on the sole ground that the performance standards applied by
    the rating official were unfair because they are unrealistically
    high. *The relevant facts (the performance standards and the record
    of performance) are not in dispute. Therefore, fact-finding is not
    appropriate*.

-   [Grievance B]{.underline}. An employee grieves his/her performance
    rating on the sole ground that the rating official failed to
    consider significant assignments that he/she performed during the
    rating period. The rating official says those assignments were
    completed before the rating period began. The employee and rating
    official agree on when the rating period began. *There is a dispute
    concerning a relevant fact (when particular assignments were
    completed). Therefore, fact-finding is appropriate.*

-   [Grievance C]{.underline}. An employee claims that he/she was not
    properly ranked in competition for promotion to a non-supervisory
    position because some employees were given extra credit for
    supervisory experience and the employee never had a supervisory
    experience. The Human Resource Specialist says that the extra credit
    for supervisory experience was appropriate even though the vacancy
    was non-supervisory*. The facts are not in dispute. Therefore
    fact-finding would not be appropriate.*

-   [Grievance D]{.underline}. An employee alleges that he/she was
    denied consideration for promotion vacancy because the selecting
    official was heard to say at the time of the announcement that
    he/she would not select somebody whom had never worked in his/her
    division. The selecting official denies that he/she said this.
    He/she says that he/she did state that he/she would prefer to select
    somebody from within his/her own division. *There is a dispute
    concerning a relevant fact (what the selecting official actually
    said). Therefore, fact-finding would be appropriate.*

**II. Who Should Conduct Fact-Finding?**

Fact-finding, under this procedure, can be conducted informally by any
of the management officials involved in adjudicating the grievance, or
by a skilled, internal or external fact-finder, whose services are
arranged for by Labor Relations staff. However, there is no general rule
of thumb to use in making a determination whether formal fact-finding by
a third party is necessary or desirable.

Regarding informal fact-finding, supervisors/managers are expected to
use the full extent of their authorities and capabilities in collecting
facts that do not require professional fact-finding or investigative
skills, techniques or authorities. In these types of issues:

-   the documentation and availability of facts and relevant evidence to
    make a determination in the matter grieved is usually close at hand
    and readily available to the supervisor/manager;

-   interviews of a large number of third parties probably will not be
    necessary;

-   all logical sources of information are readily available; and

-   the grievance does not involve allegations of a serious nature.

    If the grievance is more complicated, if allegations of a serious
    nature are being made against one of the management officials
    involved in deciding the grievance, or if the number of potential
    interviews is such that it creates a workload problem for the
    Deciding Official, consideration should be given to involving a
    skilled, internal or external fact-finder.

# III. Collecting the Facts

In documenting the facts surrounding an incident:

A.  Be factual and specific, recording what people actually did, saw or
    heard. Answer the questions:

-   What actually happened?

-   When did it happen (i.e., date and time)?

-   Where did it happen (i.e., place/location)?

-   Who was involved?

-   Who witnessed the incident?

-   How did the event or situation occur?

-   Why did it happen?

B.  Be sure the dates, times and places documented are accurate.

C.  Do not use subjective thoughts, assumptions, opinions, judgments or
    conclusions unless objective facts are provided to support them.
    Describe direct observations if possible.

D.  If appropriate, attempt to get signed statements. When another
    person describes an incident, ask questions to help the person use
    objective observations to describe what they saw, heard, felt, etc.

E.  As appropriate and applicable, collect any other reports or records
    (e.g., promotion certificate records, copies of discipline being
    grieved, performance appraisals, etc.).