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POSTDOCTORAL SCHOLAR (PX)

Contract Implementation Training

October 2012UC Irvine

OVERVIEWo The Postdoc Labor Agreement is in effect from

August 12, 2010 through September 30, 2015.

o The bargaining unit includes Postdoctoral Scholar:o Employees (3252)o Fellows (3253)o Paid Directs (3254)

o APM 390 will only be used for:o Postdoctoral Scholars whose physical work locations are not located in

California.o SOM only under very limited circumstances: Clinical Instructors who are

on certain fellowship grants and conducting research not directly related to their clinical work. AP must be consulted before use of these APM 390 title codes are used.

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EXCLUSIVE REPRESENTATION

THE LAW

Under HEERA, when a union is an exclusive representative, it represents all employees in the bargaining unit.o The union negotiates wages, hours, benefits and

working conditionso The negotiated terms in the labor contract govern

most of the University’s employment relationship with Postdocs.

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o Definition of Postdoctoral Scholar has NOT changedo Have Ph.D. or other terminal advanced degree; engaged in

temporary & defined period of work of advanced training … under direction & supervision of faculty mentors.

o Postdoctoral Scholars do not “own” the work. Postdoctoral Scholar are “trainees” carrying out research.

o When a Postdoc appointment ends, the University is not obligated to replace her/him with another Postdoc, unless required by a training grant.

o Relationship with supervisor still involves performance and research expectations.

AGREEMENT vs APM 390MUCH IS UNCHANGED

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SUPERVISOR/POSTDOC RELATIONSHIP

oSupervisoro The term “supervisor” is used throughout the

Agreement to refer to the person who is responsible for mentoring / performance evaluation, appointment decisions, etc.

o Supervisor is used because the Agreement reflects terms and conditions of employment, and therefore the relationships covered by the labor agreement are those of supervisor/employee.

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o Appointments & Reappointments are at the sole discretion of the University.

o Terms of serviceo The initial appointment must be at least one year.o Subsequent reappointments are at management discretion

and are normally one year; may be longer at PI discretion or as required by a grant.

o Subsequent appointments may be shorter than a year under limited circumstances:o Funding is available for less than a full yearo Continuation of project is less than one yearo Visa Limitationso At request of Postdoc UC may bridge appointment for less than a year.

APPOINTMENTS

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APPOINTMENTS

oAppointment process:oAppointment and Reappointment

delegated to Deans and Vice Chancellor of Research, effective October, 2012

oRevised Appointment Form, UCI-AP-PX1, which combined the offer and appointment process in one form.

oAcademic Personnel and Graduate Division will continue to serve as policy resources to departments and schools.

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TIME WORKED / TIME OFFoPostdocs are considered “exempt” employeeso Exempt = salaried, not hourly; not overtime eligible

oExpectation: “at least 40 hours per week”oSupervisor still verifies absenceso Postdoc cannot independently determine her/his schedule – supervisor still approveso Emphasis is on meeting professional goals and on demonstrating research and creative capabilities, rather than working a specified number of hours.

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TIME WORKED / TIME OFF

o Personal Time Off must be requested and approved in advance

o Supervisor cannot unreasonably deny time offo Research considerations still prevail

o Religious holiday – UC may not unreasonably deny a request for a religious holiday

o “Use-it-or-lose-it” form of time off: no need to pay off unused time off at end of appointment

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GRIEVANCE & ARBITRATIONo A Grievance is: “a claim by an individual Postdoctoral Scholar, a group of

Postdoctoral Scholars, or the UAW that the University has violated a specific provision of this Agreement during the term of the Agreement.”

o Excluded Issues:o Content of Individual Development Plans, Progress Assessments, Annual Reviews o Arbitrator cannot review or substitute own judgment for that of the PI.

o The campus steps in the grievance process allow for review by the Dean and/or Vice Provosto Informal – Supervisor/Chairo Step One – Chair/Assoc Deano Step Two – Graduate Deano Step Three – Office of the Presidento Arbitration – 3rd party neutral – full evidentiary hearing

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INDIVIDUAL DEVELOPMENT PLANSo Development of an IDP is OPTIONAL – a PI cannot require

a Postdoc to develop one. o The Postdoc is responsible for the development of her/his

IDP.o The Supervisor may designate another qualified individual

who can work with the Postdoc on her/his IDP.o The IDP may be used as part of the foundation for the

Performance Assessment.o Process for developing IDP is outlined in the contract.o The supervisor or designee provides advice about revisiono The process serves as a communication tool.

http://www.grad.uci.edu/forms/postdoctoral-scholars/Postdoc%20IDP%20Guidelines.pdfhttp://www.grad.uci.edu/forms/postdoctoral-scholars/Postdoc%20IDP%20Self%20Assessment%20form.pdf

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PROGRESS ASSESSMENTSoSupervisor “shall provide the Postdoc with at

least one written review per 12-month period”.o Supervisor must communicate research and

progress expectations for coming year; no specific time frame.o Failure to do so could impact ability to discipline for

performanceoWhen putting expectations in writing, supervisor

may use a pre-established form (UCI-AP-PX3). o Contents of IDPs, Progress Assessments, and

Annual Reviews are not grievable.oDOCUMENTATION IS KEY TO SUCCESS

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DISCIPLINE & DISMISSALo Three levels of discipline:o Letter of Warningo Suspensiono Dismissal

o Dismissal normally preceded by at least one letter of warning.

o UC may proceed to dismissal without written warning when seriousness of misconduct or performance warrants.

o Just Cause for Discipline & Dismissalo Process outlined in the Agreemento Disciplinary Actions will be grievable and arbitrable.

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JUST CAUSE (NOT “JUST BECAUSE”)

Just Cause includes seven universal standards: 1. Notice: Prior to imposing discipline, employee must have notice of rules

and expectations. May need to prove that employee knew the rules/expectations.

2. Reasonable Rule or Order: Must be consistent with labor contract, cannot be arbitrary or capricious.

3. Sufficient Investigation must occur prior to the discipline, be thorough, give employee opportunity to respond, & allow for union representation.

4. Fair Investigation: The result must not be a foregone conclusion; question assumptions & bias.

5. Proof: Level of proof is normally “substantial evidence” but a higher standard may be applied for more serious discipline.

6. Equal Treatment: Did the employer apply rules, orders and penalties evenhandedly – applying same standard of justice it would apply to other (favored) employees?

7. Penalty: Was the degree of discipline administered reasonably related to either the seriousness of the employee’s offense or to the record of past service?

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LAYO

FFS

o Layoffs are for “lack of funds” only.o Layoffs are not discipline

and cannot be used as a substitute for discipline.

o 30 day notice has not changed.o Proposed Layoffs are to be

submitted to the Academic Personnel Office f

or contract compliance revi

ew prior to implementation.

o Copy of layoff notice to be

sent to Union.

PERSON

NEL

FILESo Materials to be retained in a

Personnel File

o Postdoctoral Scholars have rights to

access their personnel files.

o UC must be able to provide access w/in

5 working days

o E-mails may be placed in a personnel

file. Example: An e-mail from PI to a

Postdoc to memorialize a conversation

re. performance, attendance, or conduct

o Documents relevant to a Postdoc’s

appointment should be included in the

personnel file and copies should be

provided to the Postdoc.

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The

Reap

poin

tmen

t De

cisio

n

o Do I want to hire the postdoc

for another year (or less if

applicable)?o Do I have the funds?“Postdoctoral Scholar appointments are temporary and

have fixed end dates. (Article

2.B.1)”“It is within the University’s sole

discretion to appoint, reappoint,

or not reappointment a Postdoctoral Scholar. (Article

2.B.5)”o No requirement to reappoint.

COM

PENSATIO

NCurrently (since June 1, 2011):

o All newly appointed Postdocs must be

appointed at least the NIH rate for her/his

years of experience as a Postdoctoral

Scholar.

o All future reappointments must be to at

least the appropriate experience based

salary/stipend rate.

o Postdoctoral Scholars with salary above the

appropriate experience level shall receive at

least 2% salary increase upon

reappointment or on anniversary date (if

with multiple-year appointment).

PostDocs Appointed

as of June 1, 2011

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COM

PENSATIO

NUpon reappointment or on anniversary

date between June 2011 through May

2014:o If salary above NIH Scale at current

experience level:

o 2% minimum per year Nothing

precludes the University from paying

more.

o If salary below the NIH Scale:

o Salary should be moved to the next

appropriate experience scale or

receive 3%, whichever is less

**may not ever get on scale

PostDocs

Appointed

PRIOR TO June 1, 2011 19

COM

PENSATIO

NA few reminders when

reviewing postdoc

compensation level:

Look at when the postdoc was initially

appointed:

Prior to June 2011: the salary increase is either:

2% if above experience level; or

to appropriate experience level or 3%, whichever is

less, if below experience level

On or after June 2011:

2% if above experience level; or

to the next appropriate experience level

Who

To C

onta

ct

Graduate DivisionAcademic PersonnelLabor RelationsDean’s Offices DepartmentsResearch Unit administrators

Web

Res

ourc

e Lo

catio

ns

Labor Agreement:atyourservice.ucop.edu/employees/poli

cies_employee_labor_relations/collectiv

e_bargaining_units/post_docs/Academic Personnel :http://www.ap.uci.edu/postdoc/index.htmlInformation for

Postdoctoral Scholars:http://www.grad.uci.edu/postdoc/