An Act To Include within the Definition of "Public Employee" Those Who Have Been Employed Less than 6 Months”
Maine Legislature, Session 129, LD 1959
Committee Amendment CA_A_H852 (House)
Amends: 5 MRSA §7051, 26 MRSA §1282, 26 MRSA §1283-A, 26 MRSA §1285, 30-A MRSA §501, 30-A MRSA §2701

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT “      ” to H.P. 1403, L.D. 1959, Bill, “An Act To 
Include within the Definition of "Public Employee" Those Who Have Been Employed 
Less than 6 Months”
Amend the bill by striking out the title and substituting the following:
'An Act To Include within the Definition of "Public Employee" and "Judicial 
Employee" Those Who Have Been Employed Less than 6 Months' 
Amend the bill by inserting after the enacting clause and before section 1 the 
following:
'Sec. 1.  5 MRSA §7051, sub-§5, as amended by PL 1987, c. 240, §3, is further 
amended to read:
5.  Probationary period; permanent appointments.  All original appointments to 
the classified service and all subsequent promotional appointments within the classified 
service shall must be for a probationary period.  The duration of the probationary period 
shall be is determined by the director in consultation with the director or commissioner of 
the agency, but in no case may it be for less than 6 months.
A.  Probationary employees shall An employee during the probationary period must 
be reviewed at the end of their the employee's 3rd month of employment by their 
supervisors the employee's supervisor.  The supervisor and the employee shall 
mutually discuss the job tasks and the performance of the employee, including any 
necessary improvements.
B.  Probationary employees shall An employee during the probationary period must 
be included in the payroll of the department in which they have the employee has 
been hired at the time of the commencement of their the employee's duties.  
Probationary employees shall An employee during the probationary period must be 
compensated in the same manner as a permanent full-time employees employee, 
provided they have as long as the employee has been hired in accordance with all 
applicable laws and procedures.
Date: 
(Filing No. H-          )
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT “      ” to H.P. 1403, L.D. 1959
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
C.  During the probationary period, an employee may be dismissed, suspended or 
otherwise disciplined without cause. Dismissal, suspension or any other disciplinary 
action against an employee during the probationary period is not subject to the 
grievance and arbitration provision of the collective bargaining agreement.
Sec. 2.  5 MRSA §7051, sub-§7, as amended by PL 1987, c. 9, §3 and PL 1995, c. 
560, Pt. K, §82, affected by §83 and amended by PL 2001, c. 354, §3 and PL 2003, c. 
689, Pt. B, §6, is further amended to read:
7.  Dismissal and disciplinary action.  An Except as provided in subsection 5, an 
appointing authority may dismiss, suspend or otherwise discipline an employee in the 
classified service for cause.  This right is subject to the right of appeal and arbitration of 
grievances set forth in the applicable labor contract, in sections 7081 to 7084 or by civil 
service rule; and sections 7081 to 7084 shall apply to any employee who has satisfactorily 
completed an initial probationary period.  This subsection does not apply to unclassified 
employees listed in section 931, nor does this subsection in any way limit the collective 
bargaining rights of classified and unclassified employees. This subsection does not apply 
to an employee appointed to a major policy-influencing position listed in sections 932 to 
953. 
Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the head of any institution 
under the control of the Department of Health and Human Services as the appointing 
authority may suspend with pay any employee who is charged by indictment with the 
commission of a criminal offense involving acts alleged to have been perpetrated upon 
any resident or residents of any such institution.  Any suspension with pay may be 
authorized by the appointing authority only when to permit the employee to remain on 
duty at the institution would be against the best interest of any one or more of the 
residents of the institution, and authorization for suspension with pay shall apply applies 
only during the pendency of the criminal proceedings in the trial court, but not longer 
than 30 working days.  Sections 7081 to 7084 shall do not apply to suspension with pay 
ordered by the appointing authority under this paragraph.' 
Amend the bill by inserting after section 3 the following:
'Sec. 4.  26 MRSA §1282, sub-§5, ¶E, as enacted by PL 1983, c. 702, is amended 
to read:
E.  Who is appointed to serve as a law clerk to a judge or a justice; or
Sec. 5.  26 MRSA §1282, sub-§5, ¶F, as enacted by PL 1983, c. 702, is amended 
to read:
F.  Who is a temporary, seasonal or on-call employee, including interns; or.
Sec. 6.  26 MRSA §1282, sub-§5, ¶G, as enacted by PL 1983, c. 702, is repealed.
Sec. 7.  26 MRSA §1283-A is enacted to read:
§1283-A.  Judicial employees; probationary period
If the public employer requires a judicial employee to complete a probationary 
period, that judicial employee may be dismissed, suspended or otherwise disciplined 
without cause. Dismissal, suspension or any other disciplinary action against a judicial 
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT “      ” to H.P. 1403, L.D. 1959
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
employee during the probationary period is not subject to the grievance and arbitration 
provision of the collective bargaining agreement. 
Sec. 8.  26 MRSA §1285, sub-§1, ¶E, as amended by PL 1989, c. 596, Pt. N, §6, 
is further amended to read:
E.  To confer and negotiate in good faith with respect to wages, hours, working 
conditions and contract grievance arbitration, except that by such obligation neither 
party may be compelled to agree to a proposal or be required to make a concession.  
All matters relating to the relationship between the employer and employees shall be 
are the subject of collective bargaining, except those matters which that are 
prescribed or controlled by law. Such matters appropriate for collective bargaining, to 
the extent they are not prescribed or controlled by law, include, but are not limited to:
(1)  Wage and salary schedules to the extent they are inconsistent with rates 
prevailing in commerce and industry for comparable work within the State;
(2)  Work schedules relating to assigned hours and days of the week;
(3)  Use of vacation or sick leave, or both;
(4)  General working conditions;
(5)  Overtime practices; and
(6)  Rules for personnel administration, except for rules relating to applicants for 
employment and employees in an initial probationary status, including any 
extensions thereof, provided that as long as the rules are not discriminatory by 
reason of an applicant's race, color, creed, sex or national origin.
Cost items shall must be included in the Judicial Department's next operating budget 
in accordance with Title 4, section 24.  If the Legislature rejects any of the cost items 
submitted to it, all cost items submitted shall must be returned to the parties for 
further bargaining.  Cost items related to a collective bargaining agreement reached 
under this chapter and submitted to the Legislature for its approval under this 
subsection shall may not be submitted in the same legislation that contains cost items 
for employees exempted from the definition of "judicial employee" under section 
1282, subsection 5, except that cost items for employees exempted under section 
1282, subsection 5, paragraphs paragraph F and G, need not be excluded.
Sec. 9.  30-A MRSA §501, sub-§2-A, as enacted by PL 2009, c. 106, §1, is 
amended to read:
2-A.  Probationary period for corrections officials.  Beginning October 1, 2009, a 
A person who is hired as jailer, master, keeper or a subordinate assistant or employee 
under section 1501 must complete an employment probationary period that lasts for one 
year.  During the probationary period, a person who is hired as jailer, master, keeper or a 
subordinate assistant or employee under section 1501 may be dismissed, suspended or 
otherwise disciplined without cause. Dismissal, suspension or any other disciplinary 
action against an employee during the probationary period is not subject to the grievance 
and arbitration provision of the collective bargaining agreement.
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT “      ” to H.P. 1403, L.D. 1959
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Sec. 10.  30-A MRSA §2701, as amended by PL 1993, c. 744, §15, is further 
amended by adding at the end a new paragraph to read:
During the probationary period, an employee may be dismissed, suspended or 
otherwise disciplined without cause. Dismissal, suspension or any other disciplinary 
action against an employee during the probationary period is not subject to the grievance 
and arbitration provision of the collective bargaining agreement.' 
Amend the bill by relettering or renumbering any nonconsecutive Part letter or 
section number to read consecutively.
SUMMARY
This amendment provides that a person who has been an employee of the judicial 
branch for less than 6 months is considered a judicial employee for the purposes of the 
law governing judicial employees labor relations. It clarifies that a person who has been 
an employee of the State or another public employer for less than 6 months may be 
dismissed, suspended or otherwise disciplined without cause during the probationary 
period. It specifies that termination of an employee or any other disciplinary action 
against an employee during the probationary period is not subject to the grievance and 
arbitration provision of the collective bargaining agreement.
Approved: 08/04/20
LD 1959
LR 3101(02)
Fiscal Detail and Notes
Fiscal Note
Minor cost increase - General Fund
Additional costs to the Maine Labor Relations Board and to the Department of Administrative and Financial Services 
associated with the requirements of this legislation can be absorbed within existing budgeted resources.
An Act To Include within the Definition of "Public Employee" Those Who Have Been Employed Less 
than 6 Months
Fiscal Note for Bill as Amended by Committee Amendment " "
Committee: Labor and Housing
Fiscal Note Required: Yes
LR3101(02) - Fiscal Note - Page 1 of 1