Bereavement Leave
Section 23.1. If a death occurs in the employee's immediate family (spouse, children), employee's family (mother, father, stepparents), a grandfather, grandmother, father-in-law, mother-in-law, person in loco parentis, and any member of the employee's family residing in the employee's residence, such employee shall be granted three (3) days' funeral leave, consecutive and contiguous to the death without loss of pay, benefits, days off, holidays, or vacation time, provided that such leave may be extended, within discretion of the Sheriff, based on individual circumstances. If the death requires that the employee travel more than 200 miles, the Sheriff may, at the request of the employee, allow up to two (2) additional workdays as a bereavement leave.
Facts
The employer provides the statutory law enforcement services to the citizens of Fulton County, Ohio. The grievant is a deputy. The grievant worked on the night shift, and his days off were Wednesday and Thursday. On the evening of Thursday, June 21, the grievant's paternal grandmother died. The grievant was not informed of her death until after he had finished his shift on Friday, June 22. He was also informed that the funeral was going to be Sunday, June 24. The grievant reported for work for his regular shift on Saturday, June 23. The grievant then informed his supervisor of the death and indicated that he would be taking Sunday, June 24, off to attend the funeral. The grievant's request was approved, and the grievant then requested two additional days of bereavement leave, that is, Monday, June 25, and Tuesday, June 26, which was made known to the grievant's supervisors. The grievant filled out a "Request for Leave" form as required. However, after the fact, the employer reviewed his request in light of the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) and decided the grievant was not entitled to bereavement pay for Tuesday on the ground that the three days of bereavement leave here should have been Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Nevertheless, the employer chose only to disallow the Tuesday bereavement pay. The grievant appealed.
Issue
Did the employer violate the provisions of the CBA when it denied bereavement leave to the grievant?
Position of the Parties
The employer argues that under the CBA, the grant of three days' funeral leave must be consecutive and contiguous to the death (see Article 23, Bereavement Leave). So grievant was entitled to bereavement pay only for Sunday, as the death occurred on Thursday. The approval of any extension of that leave is within the discretion of the sheriff, who in this instance approved one day of the extension, Monday. Therefore, the grievant is not entitled to bereavement pay for Tuesday.
The union argues that the CBA does not require that the three bereavement days begin on the "first day" after the death, just that the days be near the death and be consecutive and contiguous to each other. When the employer approved the grievant's request for Sunday off, the three days of bereavement began, which means Monday and Tuesday should also count as bereavement days.
Questions
- As arbitrator, what would be your award and opinion in this arbitration?
- Identify the key, relevant section(s), phrases, or words of the collective bargaining agreement (CBA), and explain why they were critical in making your decision.
- What actions might the employer and/or the union have taken to avoid this conflict?