21.1(a) Employees shall be
permitted to retain ownership of an invention conceived or developed by them if
the invention (a) was developed entirely on the employee's own time and the
invention is one for which no equipment, supplies, facilities, or trade secret
information of the Company was used; and (b) does not (i)
relate directly to the business of the Company or to the Company's actual or
demonstrably anticipated research or development, or (ii) result from any work
performed by the employees for the Company.
All other inventions shall be the property of the Company, and employees
shall assist the Company in the protection of such inventions as directed by
the Company.
21.1(b) No employee shall be required,
as a condition of employment or continued employment, to sign an invention
agreement which contravenes the provisions of Section 21.1(a).
The Company and the
The Union agrees to report to the Company when
it has knowledge of any acts of sabotage or damage to or the unauthorized or
unlawful taking of Company, government, customer or any other person's or
employee's property. The
All terms and conditions of employment included
in this Agreement shall be administered and applied without regard to race,
color, religion, national origin, status as a disabled or Vietnam era veteran,
age, gender, or the presence of a
disability, except in those
instances where age, gender, or the
absence of a disability may
constitute a bona fide occupational qualification. If administration and application of the
contract is not in contravention of federal or state law such administration or
application shall not be considered discrimination under this Section
21.4. Notwithstanding any other
provision of this Section 21.4 or of this Agreement, a grievance alleging a
violation of this Section 21.4, shall be subject to the grievance procedure and
arbitration of Article 19 only if it is filed on behalf of and pertains to a
single employee. Class grievances based
on alleged violation of this Section 21.4 shall not be subject to the grievance
procedure and arbitration under Article 19 of this Agreement.
Each employee has the right, during a Security
interview which the employee reasonably believes may result in discipline, to
request the presence of his/her shop steward, if the shop steward is available. If his/her shop steward is not available,
such employee may request the presence of another immediately available shop
steward. If a shop steward, pursuant to
the employee's request, is present during such an interview, the shop steward,
in addition to acting as an observer, may, after the Security representative
has completed his/her questioning of the employee, ask additional questions of
the employee in an effort to provide information which is as complete and
accurate as possible. The shop steward
shall not obstruct or interfere with the interview.
The parties will cooperate in expanding employee
assistance programs in order to promote the health and well-being of the
workforce. These programs include the
following:
Section 21.6(a) Wellness
Programs. The Company will emphasize programs to
improve the health and wellness of the workforce. Examples would include health monitoring,
exercise, hypertension classes, weight loss programs and stop-smoking classes.
Section 21.6(b) Comprehensive
Child and Elder Care Program. The Company will
establish a comprehensive child and elder care program. This program will consist of referrals of
employees to licensed care facilities, consultation with employees to determine
individual needs and providing educational materials and programs. To further
the objectives contained in this section, the Company agrees to establish a
flexible account to fund child and elder care.
Section 21.6(c) Joint
Company-Union Alcohol and Drug Dependency Program. The parties recognize that drug and alcohol
usage can adversely affect an employee's job performance and the maintenance of
a safe and productive work environment and can undermine public trust and
confidence in the Company's products.
Accordingly, they agree to cooperate in substance abuse awareness and
education. This will be in conjunction
with the Joint Company-Union Alcohol and Drug Dependency Program. The details of the Program are described in
the parties' Letter of Understanding No. 7, entitled Joint Company-Union
Alcohol and Drug Dependency Program.
The parties acknowledge that subcontracting work
(moving work from a Company facility to an outside supplier) and offloading
work (moving work from one Company facility to another Company facility not
covered by this Agreement) affect the job security of employees. The word “work” for purposes of this Section
refers to work of a type currently performed within the bargaining unit.
Accordingly, notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement, the Company
agrees that employees will not be laid off as a direct result of subcontracting
or offloading work unless they are unwilling to change jobs (including a
downgrade), shift, or locations within the bargaining unit. This layoff
restriction does not apply to strategic work placements, see below, or offsets
or offset arrangements (condition of sale placements); to a merger, sale,
transfer, or other disposition of a plant or facility or operating unit thereof; or to temporary
subcontracting or offloading necessary because
of required equipment overhaul or repair, labor disruptions, or events beyond
the control of the Company (acts of God, natural disasters, equipment failure,
major accidents, etc.).
The parties agree to oversee, upon the
To enable the Union Site
Representatives to suggest alternatives that would allow the retention of work
within the bargaining unit, the Company will, at least one hundred eighty (180)
days prior to signing the subcontract or offloading the work, provide notice to
the Union of plans to subcontract or offload work then being performed by
bargaining unit employees. The notice
will include the reason for the planned subcontracting or offloading. The
Company will provide the Union Site Representatives with the information used
by the Company’s Work Transfer Groups to assess the relative costs of
subcontracting, offloading, or performing the work in the bargaining unit. The
It is agreed that the
Union Site Representatives’ evaluation process is to be limited to those
significant subcontracting or offloading decisions where cost is the
determining factor. Consequently, the
notice and review process does not cover the following work transfers:
a.
Decisions
made primarily for strategic considerations (“strategic work placement”) such
as decisions to place work with foreign suppliers (1) for purposes of forming
or continuing key strategic alliances, (2) for gaining potential access to a
key market, (3) for entering risk sharing arrangements, or (4) because of
condition of sale placements;
b.
Decisions
arising from a merger, sale, transfer, or other disposition of a plant or
facility or operating unit thereof;
c.
Decisions
to subcontract or offload work due to lack of capability or capacity, or to
prevent production schedule slippage;
d.
Decisions
to temporarily onload work or to temporarily
subcontract or offload work due to emergent short-term needs; or
e.
Decisions
to consolidate work for efficiency or strategic reasons in a Company facility
not covered by this Agreement.
In the event of a
decision described in (a) through (e) above, the Company will notify the
The Company will conduct
a quarterly review with the
Anything in this Section
21.7 to the contrary notwithstanding, it is agreed that under and included
within the meaning of Article 2 of this Agreement that the Company has the
right to subcontract and offload work, to make and carry out decisions in (a)
through (e) above, to enter offsets and offset arrangements, and to designate
the work to be performed by the Company and the places where it is to be
performed, which rights shall not be subject to arbitration.
The parties recognize
that the Company must compete in a highly competitive global economy, and
commit to achieving the highest level of quality and productivity possible.
Both parties recognize that ultimate job security can only be realized in a
work environment that creates operational effectiveness, continuous improvement
and competitiveness.
Section 21.8 Pilot Projects.
Section 21.8(a) Objective. The
1.
Review
and evaluate pilot projects involving innovative approaches in the workplace
and provide for their implementation, operation and assessment;
2.
Assure
that pilot projects provide for employee and
3.
Review
experiences of other employees and unions with similar activities and provide
for dissemination of information;
4.
Assess
the impact on the pilot projects of existing work practices including, but not
limited to, job security, compensation, job descriptions/classifications,
training, and work schedules;
5.
Following
implementation and assessment of a pilot project, review the feasibility of broader application; and
6.
Select
consultants and other outside experts by mutual agreement.
Section 21.8(b) Implementation
of Pilot Projects. The
Section 21.8(c) Review of Pilot Projects. In
addition to the on-going review by a pilot projects committee, the
Section 21.8(d) Disputes
Concerning Pilot Projects. No dispute
concerning a pilot project or this Section 21.8 shall be subject to the
grievance and arbitration procedure of Article 19 of this Agreement except for
a dispute alleging a violation of a Pilot Project Agreement or the approval or
termination of a pilot project.
Section 21.9 Technology
Briefings.
In order that employees can better prepare
themselves for the skill requirements of the future, and in fulfillment of its
obligation to provide information to the Union, the Company will not less than
each six (6) months provide a briefing to the
During these briefings,
the Company will inform the
The Company and the