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HomeMy WebLinkAboutFire Union MOU 2023-2026 RESOLUTION NO. FD 2023-036 A RESOLUTION OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE RANCHO CUCAMONGA FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT, RANCHO CUCAMONGA, CALIFORNIA, APPROVING THE MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN THE DISTRICT AND RANCHO CUCAMONGA FIREFIGHTERS LOCAL 2274 RELATIVE TO WAGES, BENEFITS AND OTHER TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT FOR THE PERIOD OF JULY 2023, THROUGH JUNE 30, 2026 WHEREAS, Representatives of the Rancho Cucamonga Fire Protection District ("District": hereinafter)and the Rancho Cucamonga Firefighters Local 2274"Fire Union" have met and conferred pursuant to the provisions of the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act(California Government Code §3500, et seq.) with regard to terms and conditions of employment; and WHEREAS, Representatives of the District and Fire Union have agreed upon and presented to this Board a Memorandum of Understanding pertaining to the Fire Union effective, July 2023, through June 30, 2026, specifying the results of said meet and confer process; and WHEREAS, All legal prerequisites to the adoption of this Resolution have occurred; and NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Board of Directors of the Rancho Cucamonga Fire Protection District of the City of Rancho Cucamonga that in all respects, as set forth in the recitals of this Resolution, the attached Memorandum of Understanding entered into by and between District representatives and the Firefighters Local 2274 for the period July 2023, through June 30, 2026. Resolution No. FD 2023-036 - Page 1 of 2 PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED this 19Lh day of July, 2023. .Aernfli Michael, e s i d e t ATTEST: A 1, JANICE C. REYNOLDS , SECRETARY of the Rancho Cucamonga Fire Protection District, do hereby certify that the foregoing Resolution was duly passed, approved, and adopted by the Board of Directors of the Rancho Cucamonga Fire Protection District, at a Regular Meeting of said Board held on the 1 g1h day of July, 2023. AYES: Hutchison, Kennedy, Michael, Scott, Stickler NOES: None ABSENT: None ABSTAINED: None Executed this 20th day of July, 2023, at Rancho Cucamonga, California. ---Zlwlek - —&ice C. Reynolds,- Secretary Resolution No. FD 2023-036 - Page 2 of 2 RESOLUTION NO. FD 2023-036 ADOPTED: JULY 19, 2023 MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING RANCHO CUCAMONGA FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT AND RANCHO CUCAMONGA FIREFIGHTERS' ASSOCIATION - IAFF LOCAL 2274 2023-2026 1 �.,€.� ��._.J w .�. ... ..._ .',_. [ IC" tiO-. -ice 2 3-036 Contents PREAMBLE................................................................................................................................................4 ARTICLEI RECOGNITION......................................................................................................................4 ARTICLE 11 COMPENSATION ................................................................................................................4 § 1. Survey.............................................................................................................................................4 § 2. Salary Plan....................................................................................................................................6 § 3. Work Periods and Overtime..................................................................................................12 § 4. Uniform Allowance...................................................................................................................13 § 5. Employee Group Insurance..................................................................................................14 § 6. Retirement Plan.........................................................................................................................15 § 7. Work-Related Injuries..............................................................................................................17 § 8. Carpooling...................................................................................................................................17 § 9. IRS 125 Plan................................................................................................................................18 § 10. Voluntary Employee Benefit Association....................................................................18 § 11. Deferred Compensation .....................................................................................................18 ARTICLE III LEAVES..............................................................................................................................19 § 1. Holidays.......................................................................................................................................19 § 2. Vacation Leave..........................................................................................................................21 § 3. Sick Leave...................................................................................................................................22 § 4. Conversion Factor....................................................................................................................24 § 5. Personal Leave..........................................................................................................................25 § 6. Bereavement Leave .................................................................................................................26 § 7. Compensatory Time ................................................................................................................26 § 8. Military..........................................................................................................................................27 § 9. Jury Duty.....................................................................................................................................27 § 10. Civil Subpoena/Criminal Subpoena...............................................................................28 § 11. Leaves of Absence without Pay......................................................................................29 § 12. Association Business.........................................................................................................29 § 13. Union Leave Bank................................................................................................................29 § 14. Natal and Adoption Pay......................................................................................................31 § 15. Family and Medical Leave.................................................................................................31 ARTICLE IV GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE...........................................................................................31 2 § 1. Purpose........................................................................................................................................31 § 2. Objectives ...................................................................................................................................32 § 3. General Provisions...................................................................................................................32 § 4. Informal Grievance Procedure.............................................................................................33 § 5. Formal Grievance Procedure ...............................................................................................33 ARTICLEV DISCIPLINE........................................................................................................................35 ARTICLEVI SAFETY..............................................................................................................................35 § 1. Compliance.................................................................................................................................35 § 2. No Discrimination.....................................................................................................................35 § 3. Safety Equipment.....................................................................................................................35 § 4. Employee Responsibility.......................................................................................................35 § 5. Minimum Staffing......................................................................................................................35 § 6. Smoking Policy .........................................................................................................................36 § 7. Weather Related Mandatory Recall....................................................................................36 ARTICLE VII MANAGEMENT RIGHTS...............................................................................................37 § 1. Scope of Rights.........................................................................................................................37 § 1. Emergency Conditions...........................................................................................................38 ARTICLE Vill MAINTENANCE OF BENEFITS..................................................................................38 ARTICLE IX APPROVAL BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS.........................................................39 ARTICLE X PROVISIONS OF LAW.....................................................................................................39 ARTICLEXI TERM..................................................................................................................................39 3 PREAMBLE This Memorandum of Understanding ("MOU" hereinafter) is made and entered into by and between the Rancho Cucamonga Fire Protection District ("District" hereinafter), and the Rancho Cucamonga Firefighters' Association - IAFF Local 2274 ("Union" hereinafter). The terms and conditions contained in this MOU are applicable to all full-time employees within this unit and contain the complete results of negotiations concerning wages, hours and other terms and conditions of employment for said employees represented herein. ARTICLE I RECOGNITION Pursuant to the provisions of existing rules and regulations and applicable State law, District hereby acknowledges the Union as the exclusive recognized employee organization for the representation unit, which includes non-management safety employees of the District, who are employed on a full-time basis. ARTICLE 11 COMPENSATION § 1. Survey District will conduct a survey in accordance with the elements and procedures provided below. A. Timing: The survey will be completed and available for review by District and Union no later than December 1 of the year prior to MOU expiration unless mutually agreed otherwise by the parties. Survey data will be those compensation amounts known and in effect as of the December 1 survey date. In the event a survey agency has a MOU that extends beyond the end of the fiscal year during which the survey is performed, the survey elements known and scheduled to be in force as of the following July will also be surveyed and included in the total compensation survey by the December 1 date. B. Survey Agencies: (1) Chino Valley Fire District, (2) City of West Covina, (3) City of Riverside, (4) City of Pasadena, (5) City of Ontario, (6) City of Corona. C. Survey Elements: 1. Top step base pay for Firefighter, Engineer, and Captain; 2. Emergency Medical Technician pay or stipend; 3. Paramedic pay or stipend; 4. Agency pick-up of member contributions to the Public Employees' Retirement System ("PERS"); employer contribution to PERS, net of any employee cost- sharing; 5. Uniform Pay; 6. Employer Contribution to 401(a) Plan; 4 7. Maximum employer contribution to Voluntary Employee Benefit Association (VEBA). For the purposes of the survey, this benefit will be reflected as a fringe benefit under MSA; 8. Maximum employer contribution to medical, dental, vision and long-term disability plans for new employees; and 9. Any other incentive or premium that 50% or more of the individuals given in a classification at an agency are eligible to receive, if it is also provided by 4 or more of the survey agencies, exclusive to the District. An individual is "eligible to receive" an incentive or premium if that individual can receive the item upon satisfaction of specified conditions (if any), without limits as to the number of individuals who can receive the incentive. For example, if a specialized training incentive is available to each individual who achieves the specific technical qualifications, the individual is "eligible to receive" that incentive even if he or she has not yet attained the technical certification that is required to actually receive it. Conversely, if a department offers a premium that requires training but only grants that premium to a limited number of individuals or only to individuals in a certain limited number of assignments, the number of individuals above the limit are not eligible to receive the premium. In those instances, the stipends may be reviewed and discussed on an individual basis. D. Survey Procedures and Users: Any survey element that is expressed as a percent of salary will be converted to a dollar amount using the top step base pay for the classification and agency involved. Multi-tiered survey elements involving medical benefits or other health and welfare benefits will be surveyed based on the compensation provided to new employees for that element. If applicable, other multi-tiered incentives will be surveyed at the highest amount of incentive pay obtainable, so long as the thresholds in Item C.7 are met. For comparison purposes in determining a market average, the high and low(of those that receive any given benefit)will be dropped for each salary element, except base salary, where all survey agencies will be used. After dropping the high and low agency, the mean average for the applicable survey element will be calculated. The resulting average numbers for each survey element will be added together to determine a cumulative average total compensation. The results may be used for comparison purposes in negotiations involving future compensation adjustments. There is no obligation to implement and salary element or to make any compensation adjustment based on the survey results and the parties acknowledge that other factors, including revenue, staffing, PERS contributions and other post-employment benefit ("OPEB") costs play a significant factor in the ability of the District to implement any survey element. Example: 5 4..f C)Z2 ",,E _ _�i_U E t,�`J it"G F"_.., 20,23 f�vim, 1. Look at a particular benefit at the maximum level achievable (in this example highlighted in yellow for each city): Chino Valley Fire District 7% City of West Covina Benefit X— 3% or 5% City of Riverside Benefit X— 5%; 10% or 15% City of Pasadena Benefit X— 3% or 6% City of Ontario N/A City of Corona Benefit X— 2% 2. Drop high (Riverside 15%) and low (Corona 2%)from among the four agencies that offer the benefit. 3. Average remaining three cities [(CVFD 7% +W.0 5% + Pasadena 6%) =6%]. 4. Thus, Benefit X for market comparison purposes is assumed to be 6%. § 2. Salary Plan A. Salary Adjustment All bargaining unit members shall receive a cost-of-living adjustment according to the following schedule: 3.25% effective the first full pay period in July 2023 2.5% effective the first full pay period in July 2024 2.5% effective the first full pay period in July 2025 All bargaining unit members shall receive an equity adjustment according to the following schedule: 3.25% effective the first full pay period in October 2023 2.5% effective the first full pay period in January 2025 2.5% effective the first full pay period in January 2026 B. Salary Ranges The base salary ranges for all classes in the bargaining units shall consist of five (5) steps, labeled A through E, with approximately five percent (5%) between each step. All stipends will be set at Step E. Advancement between steps requires a satisfactory or higher annual performance evaluation. No employee shall receive more than one step increase in a 12-month period unless granted for outstanding achievement pursuant to Section 2(G) below. Placement within the range shall be in accordance with the following: 6 are U io,r N40DU 23-20 _., RE _O U N . €0 -FD 20" 3 "_ ., 1. Salary on appointment New employees shall be compensated at Step "A" of the salary range to which their class is allocated. If unusual recruitment difficulties are encountered or a candidate is exceptionally well qualified, appointment at a higher step in the salary range may be authorized by the Fire Chief. 2. Merit Salary Adjustments Advancement within a salary range shall not be automatic but shall be based upon job performance and granted only on the recommendation of the employee's supervisor and approval of the Fire Chief. Employees shall be considered for merit salary increases in accordance with the following: a. Employees who are placed at Step A upon original employment, reinstatement, or promotion are eligible for a merit salary review after six (6) months of service. Subsequent merit salary review dates shall fall upon the completion of twelve (12) month service intervals. b. Employees who are placed at Step B or above upon original employment, reinstatement, or promotion shall be eligible for a merit salary review after six months of service. Subsequent review dates shall fall upon the completion of twelve (12) month service intervals. c. The granting of an official leave of absence of more than thirty (30) continuous calendar days, other than military leave, shall cause the employee's merit salary review date to be extended the number of calendar days he or she was on leave. d. If, in the supervisor's judgement, the employee's performance does not justify a salary increase on the review date, the employee shall be reevaluated before the expiration of six (6) months dating from the employee's review date. If the period of postponement exceeds three (3) months and the employee receives a salary increase, the employee shall be assigned a new review date based on the date the increase was granted. e. Authorized salary step increases shall become effective at the beginning of the pay period nearest the employee's review date. f. Should an employee's review date be overlooked, and upon discovery of the error, the employee is recommended for a salary increase, the employee shall receive a supplemental payment compensating him or her for the additional he or she would have received had the increase been granted at the appropriate time. g. The normal merit salary increase shall be one (1) step granted in accordance with the preceding. However, to reward outstanding achievement and performance, the Fire Chief may grant one (1) additional step increase not to exceed one (1) step in any given six (6) month period. 7 h. In order to address a situation where application of this section would result in the inequitable treatment of employees and upon the recommendation of the Fire Chief and approval of the Board, an employee may be placed at any step in the salary range for his or her class. 3. Salary on Promotion An employee, who is promoted to a position in a class with a higher salary range than the class in which he or she formerly occupied a position, shall receive the nearest higher monthly salary in the higher salary range that would constitute a minimum of five percent (5%) salary increase over his or her base salary rate, provided that no employee may receive a rate in excess of Step E of the promotional class. If the promotion occurs within sixty (60) days of a scheduled merit salary review date, the employee shall receive the merit increase (if otherwise entitled to it) and the promotional increase concurrently. The employee shall be given a new merit salary review date for purposes of future salary step advancement. The new date shall be based upon the effective date of promotion. 4. Salary on Demotion An employee who is demoted to a position in a class with a lower salary range shall receive a new merit salary review date based upon the effective date of the demotion and receive a salary in accordance with the following: a. Disciplinary demotion —any designated salary step in the lower salary range which will result in the employee's receiving at least a five (5) percent reduction in pay. b. Non-disciplinary demotion —that salary step he or she would have received in the lower class if his or her services had been continuous in said lower class. 5. Salary on Transfer An employee who is transferred from one position to another in the same class or to another position in a similar class having the same salary range shall receive the same step in the salary range previously received and the merit salary review date shall not change. 6. Salary on Position Reclassification When an employee's position is reclassified and the employee is appointed to the position, salary shall be determined as follows: a. If the position is reclassified to a class with a higher salary range than the former class, salary and merit salary review date shall be set in the same manner as if he or she had been promoted. 8 b. If the salary of the employee is the same or less than the maximum of the salary range of the new class and the salary range of the new class is the same as the previous class, the salary and merit salary review date will not change. c. If the salary of the employee is greater than the maximum of the range of the new class, the salary of the employee shall be designated as a "Y-rate" and shall not change during continuous regular service until the maximum of the salary range to which the class is assigned exceeds the salary of the employee. 7. Salary on Re-Employment An employee recalled after a layoff shall receive the same salary step in the range of the class which he or she was receiving upon layoff. 8. Salary on Rehire Upon rehire, an employee shall be placed at such salary step as may be recommended by the Supervisor and approved by the Fire Chief. The employee's merit salary review date shall be based on the date of rehire. 9. Acting Pay Acting pay shall be one (1) step, approximately five percent (5%), above the affected employee's base salary rate. To receive acting pay the employee must: a. Be formally assigned only doing the duties appropriate to the higher class. b. Subject to D below, at least fifteen (15) consecutive workdays, five (5) shifts for employees working twenty-four (24) hour shifts. Acting pay will be paid beginning with the sixteenth (16th) consecutive day worked in an acting capacity, sixth (6th) shift for employees working twenty-four (24) hour shifts. c. Subject to D below, if an employee is deployed on an assignment in a higher-class acting position, and that deployment/assignment extends past 120 hours, the acting employee will receive (1) step, approximately 5%, above his/her base salary rate for the entire deployment/assignment. d. In any instance where it is reasonably anticipated at the commencement of the acting assignment that the assignment is likely to extend beyond fifteen (15) consecutive workdays or five (5) shifts, the described five percent (5%) acting pay shall commence being earned from the first day/shift of the acting assignment. 10.Salary on Change in Range Assignment When a class is reassigned to either a higher or lower salary range by the Board, the salary of each incumbent in such a class on the date the reassignment is effective shall be adjusted to the step he or she was receiving in the former range. 9 11. Premium Pay Haz-Mat The number of personnel maintained on the Haz-Mat team is determined by the District. Personnel on the team must maintain their state certification, membership in the West End Hazardous Assistance Team, attend reasonable training sessions deemed necessary by the District, and agree to remain members of the District's Haz- Mat Team for a period of 2 years unless removed earlier by the District. Training to maintain status on the team shall be at the District's expense. Members who meet the above requirements shall be compensated for their involvement by being paid a dollar amount equal to five percent (5%) of Step E of the Fire Engineer class. 12. Bilinqual Compensation Bargaining Unit members who qualify for bilingual pay shall be compensated at the rate of seventy-five dollars ($75.00) per month. Employees must pass an examination demonstrating their proficiency in the Spanish, Chinese, or Japanese languages. 13. Paramedic Compensation Regardless of the classification of unit members who are eligible for paramedic compensation, said compensation shall be the equivalent of 13.92% per month of Step E of the base salary of the Engineer Classification. Paramedic pay differential may be authorized for any of the company ranks of Firefighter, Fire Engineer or Fire Captain. Effective for employees hired after January 1, 2015, the paramedic pay differential may not be continued upon promotion according to District need and the discretion of the Fire Chief. 14. Field Training Officer The District agrees to provide a stipend that is equivalent to 9.3% percent of Step E of the Fire Captain class, to the Field Training Officer position, or employee who is charged with these duties. 15.Technical Rescue The number of personnel maintained on the Technical Rescue team is determined by the District. Personnel on the team must maintain all required certifications and attend reasonable training sessions deemed necessary by the District and agree to remain members of the District's Technical Rescue Team for a period of 2 years, unless removed earlier by the District. Training to maintain status on the team shall be at the District's expense. Members who meet the above requirements shall be compensated for their involvement by being paid a dollar amount equal to 5% per month of Step E of the Fire Engineer class. 16.Terrorism Liaison Officer Pay The District has determined there is a need to provide premium pay for the position of Terrorism Liaison Officer for Homeland Security reasons. This premium is being provided for the Safety Officer Training/Coordinator work for which they are 10 responsible. The Terrorism Liaison Officers will routinely and consistently instruct personnel in safety procedures and department standard operating guidelines based on current threats and anticipated modes of attack. The number of personnel receiving Terrorism Liaison Officer's pay shall be determined by the District, but for the term of this MOU shall be a maximum of three (3) Firefighters. Personnel on the team must maintain all required certifications and attend reasonable training sessions deemed necessary by the District and agree to remain Terrorism Liaison Officers for a period of 2 years, unless removed earlier by the District. Training to maintain status on the team shall be at the District's expense. Members who meet the above requirements shall be compensated for their involvement by being paid a dollar amount equal to 2.5% per month of Step E of the Fire Engineer class. 17. Education Incentive The District shall provide to employees an educational incentive equal to the following: Bachelor of Arts/Bachelor of Science or Fire Officer Certification =$317/month Master of Arts/Master of Science or Chief Officer Certification =$475/month Eligibility for the above-mentioned education incentive requires proof of graduation and receipt of degree from a college or university that is accredited by a national recognized accrediting agency approved by the United States Secretary of Education and found on the United States Department of Education website. Compliance with the Fire Officer/Chief Officer certification requires proof of satisfactory completion (C or better or"pass" in a pass/fail class)of all required classes for the Certification Track currently authorized and approved by the California State Fire Marshall for Fire Officer or Chief Officer. Degrees earned online shall be accompanied by a declaration under penalty of perjury that the subject employee personally performed all requirements for issuance of the degree. The Fire Chief's determination regarding eligibility for an education incentive shall be final. The above-mentioned education incentives shall be non-cumulative, meaning that an employee who meets the highest recognized education incentive, which would be the Master of Arts/Master of Science or Chief Officer Certification, shall receive only one incentive pay regardless of whether they have also met the lower recognized education incentive also. Neither shall an employee receive education incentive pay or both a degree and a certification. 18. Stipend/Premium Pay Limitation No employees shall be eligible to collect more than two (2) simultaneous stipend/premium pay incentives of the following list: ® Hazardous Materials ® Paramedic ® Technical Rescue 11 ® Terrorism Liaison Officer § 3. Work Periods and Overtime A. Work Periods 1. Employees assigned to 24-hour shifts shall work a Kelly Schedule that consists of a 24-day rotation pursuant to section 207(k) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) as follows: SUN MON TUES WED THURS FRI SAT On Off On Off On Off On Off Off Off Off On Off On Off On Off On Off Off Off Off Off Off 2. The pay period for shift personnel is 14 days. Overtime is paid for time worked in excess of one hundred six (106) hours in the pay period. 3. The work period for forty (40) hour personnel is seven (7) days with overtime being time worked in excess of forty (40) hours in the period. 4. Pursuant to Section 7(k) of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), newly hired, trainee firefighters who are students at the RCFD Fire Academy shall work a 48- hour per week schedule, inclusive of a paid meal period and breaks. B. Work Shifts 1. All twenty-four (24) hour work shifts begin at 0800 and end at 0800 the following day, twenty-four (24) hours thereafter. 2. Personnel assigned to a forty (40) hour schedule shall work Monday through Thursday from 0700 to 1800 inclusive of paid breaks and unpaid sixty (60) minute meal period. Employees who experience hardship due to childcare issues, may request alteration of their schedule by taking a '/2 hour lunch and arriving at work Y2 hour late or leaving work '/2 hour early. Additionally, employees who carpool at 60% of the pay period and 60% of the distance into their assigned workplace are eligible to leave '/2 hour early from work or arrive %2 hour late. C. Flex Time 1. The work schedules of employees assigned to other than fire suppression are subject to change depending on needs of the service or desires of the concerned employee(s) (see item 3). 2. The District shall not change work schedules when the sole purpose of the change is to avoid payment of time and one-half for overtime. This however, is not to be 12 `-;'e �.v�i;Fon I,.�.,._ ,'` .' }f.� c e 01 j f 1 ON1 3 1O r� 2i, 23-t�6 interpreted as preventing a schedule change upon the mutual agreement of the District and affected employee. 3. Employees may request schedule changes to address personal interests. Whenever possible such requests will be accommodated, provided however, that needs of the service as determined by the District will take precedence over employee preferences. 4. The District will not affect schedule changes but for good and sufficient cause. D. Overtime Pay 1. The rate of pay for overtime hours worked shall be at the rate of time and one-half (1.5) the regular rate of pay, for those employees eligible for overtime. 2. For purposes of computing overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act, military leave shall not be considered hours worked. Holiday, vacation, sick, and injury leaves as well as time spent in a criminal or civil proceeding pursuant to a subpoena issued in connection with the employee's employment with the District shall be considered as hours worked for purposes of computing overtime. 3. For the purposes of this section, work time shall not include traveling to and from the normal work site. 4. Employees required (held over) to work more than fifteen (15) minutes overtime shall be compensated for a minimum of one (1) hour. Any overtime worked in excess of one (1) hour will be paid in half hour increments. Provisions shall be made for an equitable distribution of overtime, consistent with efficient operations of the District. 5. Employees may be subject to recall to be placed on overtime to fill vacancies created by District wide training programs of a class wide nature. Employees must receive at least two (2) weeks' notice of recall. E. Call Back A unit employee called back to work during off-duty hours shall be paid at time and one-half (1.5) the employees' regular rate of pay with a minimum of two (2) hours for each such call back. Work shall be paid in half hour increments (work over fifteen (15) minutes constitutes one half hour). This section not to be interpreted as requiring said minimum in the event of an extend workday or when the employee begins his or her regular work shift before the normal starting time. § 4. Uniform Allowance A. The District shall provide four (4) sets of work uniforms for each employee who is required to wear a uniform prior to his or her start date. The value of these initial 13 \f Du 0! E .102 -U uniforms provided shall be reported to CalPERS as compensation in accordance with applicable CalPERS requirements. Suppression members must buy their own Class A uniforms at the completion of probation. B. The District shall pay each employee a uniform allowance of $1,302 annually in July. § 5. Employee Group Insurance District agrees to provide group insurance plans in accordance with the following, and in accordance with Resolution FD 08-013, which is incorporated into this MOU by reference: A. Health Insurance 1. District will provide medical insurance through the State of California Public Employee's Medical and Hospital Care Program (PEMHCA). 2. District shall provide fully paid employee and family health insurance for all existing full-time and retired employees as of November 17, 1994. Such health benefits are vested for all full-time continuous and retired employees as of November 17, 1994. 3. District shall provide paid employee and family health insurance for all full-time employees hired after November 17, 1994, at the monthly amount equal to the average eligible "Public Employees Medical and Hospital Care Program" (PEMHCA) medical rates available to active Local 2274 members covering San Bernardino County. The monthly contribution amount averages will be calculated annually during the open enrollment period with changes going into effect when the new rates go into effect. 4. All new full-time employees hired after November 17, 1994, shall be responsible for paying their premiums for medical insurance through the State of California Public Employees Medical and Hospital Care Program, upon retirement. 5. Cash Compensation in lieu of medical benefits in the amounts of $200.00 for single employees or $300.00 for employee's dependents, may be provided to those employees that can provide the following: (1) proof that the employee and all individuals for whom the employee intends to claim a personal exemption deduction for the taxable year or years that begin or end in or with the District's plan year to which the opt out applies ("tax family"), have or will have minimum essential coverage through another source (other than coverage in the individual market, whether or not obtained through Covered California) for the plan year to which the opt out arrangement applies ("opt out period"); and (2) the employee must sign an attestation that the employee and his/her tax family have or will have such minimum essential coverage for the opt out period. An employee must provide the attestation every plan year at 14 Fre �.. ! �._ ' f � ._ 'I J_ . L f 3F open enrollment, within 60 days of the date of hire, or within 30 days after the start of the plan year. The opt-out payment cannot be made and the District will not in fact make payment if the employer knows that the employee or tax family member doesn't have such alternative coverage, or if the conditions in this paragraph are not otherwise satisfied. Selection of compensation shall be at the employee's discretion. The employee may re-enter the Districts health plan at any time. 6. Affordable Care Act (ACA) Reopener. The District may reopen negotiations on the issue of health insurance benefits to address changes to or the elimination of the ACA and in order to avoid penalties or taxes under the ACA or other statutory scheme that may result from an interpretation of the ACA or other statutory scheme by the Internal Revenue Service or other federal agency (including, but not limited to, a revenue ruling, regulation or other guidance) or state agency, or a ruling by a court of competent jurisdiction. These negotiations will not result in a reduction in the amount the District provides for employee health coverage. B. Dental Insurance District shall continue to provide fully paid employee and family dental insurance plan for all full-time employees. C. Vision Insurance The District shall continue to provide vision care coverage for all full-time employees. D. Life Insurance All full-time employees shall be provided a term life insurance policy of $50,000, paid by District. § 6. Retirement Plan A. Benefits District is enrolled in the State of California Public Employee's Retirement System. Except as described herein, all benefits provided District employees under the District's Plan are paid by the District. Present benefits for public safety employees include the following: 1. Tier 1 - Employees hired prior to July 1, 2011: § 21362.2 3% at 50 Full Formula § 21574 4th Level 1959 Survivor § 20042 1 Year Final Compensation 15 u �'_ W v� _ � `, � tu-U� Employees pay 9% of the normal CalPERS member contribution. 2. Tier 2 - Employees hired on or after 7/1/11 and through 12/31/12, and Classic PERS members, as defined by PERS, who are hired on or after January 1, 2013: § 21363.3 3% at 55 Full Formula § 21574 4th Level 1959 Survivor § 20037 3 Year Final Compensation Employees pay 9% of the normal CalPERS member contribution. 3. Employees who are New PERS Members, as defined by PERS, who are hired on or after January 1, 2013: Employees are classified as New Members of PERS when they meet the definition of a "new member" for purposes of retirement pension benefits pursuant to the Public Employees' Pension Reform Act of 2013. Generally, this includes employees that were hired into a regular position on or after January 1, 2013, or former PERS members who have more than a six-month break in service. CalPERS ultimately determines who is a new member in compliance with the law. Employees who are classified as New Members shall be eligible for the 2.7% at 57 Formula, 3-year final compensation average. The employee contribution for new members shall be one-half the normal cost, as determined by CalPERS. As of the effective date of this MOU, the required employee contribution for new members is 11.5% of reportable compensation. This amount will be adjusted periodically by CalPERS, and the District employee contribution adjusted accordingly per state statute. The District has adopted a resolution providing that all employee CalPERS contributions shall be deducted on a pre-tax basis per IRC 414(h)(2). It is understood that all contributions paid by the employee as described in Parts 1 through 2 above shall be calculated based upon the pay rate (i.e. full base salary of the employee), plus any additional special compensation, including any Employer Paid Member Contributions (EPMC), and as described above in Part 3 above, on the pensionable compensation as defined in the California Public Employee's Pension Reform Act of 2013 ("PEPRA"). The District adopted a resolution providing that all employee CalPERS contributions shall be deducted on a pre-tax basis to the extent permitted by law or IRS regulation. All employee payments of the employer share are done pursuant to Government Code Section 20516(f). 16 B. Military Service Buy-Back District provides for employees to buy back military service credit at the employee's own expense pursuant to PERS regulations. C. CalPERS Cost Sharing — (Classic Members) Effective the first full pay period in July 2023, Classic CalPERS members contribute 1% of compensation earnable via payroll withholding as cost sharing of the employer contributions required by CalPERS. The cost sharing contributions shall be made pursuant to Government Code section 20516(f). Effective the first full pay period in July 2025, cost sharing contributions by Classic CalPERS members shall fluctuate up or down by the same percentage change that CalPERS may make, from time to time, to the employee contribution rate of PEPRA members. Any modification to the Classic member cost sharing rate would occur, if at all, with the first full pay period starting in July 2025, and would be based on the CalPERS valuation for the fiscal year 2025-2026. The Classic member cost-sharing amount shall fluctuate at the start of each subsequent fiscal year based on changes to the PEPRA rate set out in the CalPERS valuation for that fiscal year. The amount of Classic member cost sharing shall be capped at a maximum of 3% of compensation earnable and at a minimum of 0%. For example, if the CalPERS valuation for the fiscal year 2025-2026 requires an increase in PEPRA member contributions of .25%, the Classic member cost sharing shall increase from 1% to 1.25% of compensation earnable. The cost-sharing contributions shall be made pursuant to Government Code section 20516(f). This in no way affects the employee share of 9% that Classic employees contribute towards the cost of their retirement or the amount that PEPRA members contribute towards the employer/member share that is set by CalPERS. § 7. Work Related Injuries All unit employees are entitled to full salary and benefits when they sustain an on-the- job work-related injury for up to one (1) year. (See: California Labor Code §4850 for provisions). Although §4850 covers only safety personnel, District is extending this same benefit to non-safety employees. Temporary disability payments received during any injury period shall be returned to District. § 8. Carpooling Those employees participating in a carpool during going to and from their residence and work site shall not be in receipt of a reduced workday. Rather, those employees participating in a "carpool" shall be accorded the following benefit: Eligible carpool employees shall be regular, full-time employees who voluntarily participate in and file a "rideshare application agreement". Eligibility for ride-share related benefits is conditioned upon: 17 1. Each affected regular and full-time employee shall ride-share with another person(s) in a car or vanpool. 2. In the alternative, each affected regular and full-time employee shall drive to and from work other than in an automobile. For example, such transportation may include a bicycle, public transportation, or walking. 3. Eligibility for rideshare benefits shall be conditioned upon 1) the regular and full- time employee participating 60% of the total workdays during a given month, 2) ride-sharing for at least 60% of the commute distance, and 3) ride-sharing between the hours of 6 and 10 a.m. of the employee's scheduled work shift. Individuals meeting the above qualifications shall earn $2 for every day that the employee rideshares, paid at the end of each quarter. Further, the City is desirous of devising some type of"drawing" to provide a singular person on a monthly basis with an item of value in recognition of ridesharing. § 9. IRS 125 Plan District shall implement authorized pre-tax payroll deduction of out-of-pocket medical contribution premiums. Said pre-tax payroll deduction shall not only be used for the purpose of paying the difference between the amount of District funded premiums for District-provided health insurance plans, and the amount of out-of-pocket premium payments borne by the employee regarding District-provided plans. § 10. Voluntary Employee Benefit Association The City has established a Voluntary Employee Benefit Association (VEBA) through the California Government Voluntary Employee Benefit Association to assist employees with planning for future healthcare expenses. Represented employees are allowed a one-time election to opt into the plan. Represented employees shall be eligible to participate in the plan according to a schedule to be established as an addendum to this MOU. Contributions to the Plan shall be made as District contributions through a salary reduction arrangement and are made on a pre-tax basis in accordance with IRS provisions. The District will contribute 2% of base salary per pay period. Example: a biweekly base pay of $2,000 equals a biweekly contribution of $40. At the discretion of the Union, employee contributions may be amended once per year provided that such amendment is permitted by IRS regulations and in conformity with the Plan Document. § 11. Deferred Compensation 1. 457 Plan Effective the first full pay period in August 2019, bargaining unit members may continue to contribute to the 457 plan, however; the Fire District will no longer match contributions. 18 F - .i_n ,��-)G....= 02 , L026 R`E '`L.LU P 1� 3 H", F E; �v`' ..-�. Diu 2. 401(a) Plan Effective the first full pay period in August 2019, the Fire District will establish and contribute 2% of base salary per pay period. ARTICLE III LEAVES § 1. Holidays A. Employees shall accrue holiday time as follows: Type of Per Maximum Personnel Holiday Annually Accrual Shift Personnel (56- 12 hours 168 hours 216 hours hour work schedule) 40-hour Personnel 10 hours 140 hours 180 hours B. Holidays are those days which District designates as observed holidays. Holiday leave is a right, earned as a condition of employment, to a leave of absence with pay. The holidays designated by District for the term of this contract are as follows: 40 Hour Personnel July 4 Independence Day September Labor Day (1st Monday) November 11 Veterans Day November Thanksgiving (4th Thursday) November The day following Thanksgiving December 24 The day preceding Christmas December 25 Christmas January 1 New Years Day January Martin Luther King's Birthday (3rd Monday) February President's Day (3rd Monday) May Memorial Day (last Monday) Three (3) discretionary (floating) days may be taken by an employee at his or her convenience, subject to approval by the supervisor. The thirty (30) hours for the three (3) floating holidays shall be credited to the employee at the start of pay period No. 1 of each fiscal year. Whenever a holiday falls on a Sunday, the following Monday shall be observed as a holiday. Whenever a holiday falls on a Friday or Saturday, the preceding Thursday shall be observed as the holiday. 19 56 Hour Personnel July 4 Independence Day September Labor Day (1 st Monday) September Admissions Day October 12 Columbus Day November 11 Veterans Day November Thanksgiving (4th Thursday) November The day following Thanksgiving December 24 The day preceding Christmas December 25 Christmas January 1 New Years Day January Martin Luther King's Birthday (3rd Monday) February 12 Lincoln's Birthday February 22 Washington's Birthday May Memorial Day (last Monday) C. No District employee will be allowed to exceed the maximum accrual at any time. As excess holiday time is earned, it must either be taken as time off or be paid to the employee by District. D. Holiday time shall be accrued annually beginning with the first pay period of the fiscal year within the pay period which it occurs. Beginning in calendar year 2022. the two December holidays will accrue on November 30 of each year. 1. Beginning December 1, 2021, and annually thereafter, any employee that wants to have the District buy back holiday hours shall make an irrevocable election to do so. The irrevocable election shall be submitted in writing to the City's Human resources Department on or before December 15 and shall indicate the number of hours of holiday that the employee expects to earn in the following calendar year that the employee wants the District to buy back in December(between first and second pay period). Regardless of the number of hours requested to be cashed out, the most the District can cash out is the number of hours accrued and available in that calendar year to date. 2. Holidays may be used as scheduled time off with the approval of the Supervisor. E. District employees will be advised in writing, within the pay period prior to the time that maximum holiday accrual is reached or that they are approaching their maximum accrual. F. Any employee who is on vacation or sick leave when a holiday occurs will not have that holiday charged against his or her vacation or sick leave. 20 G. Forty (40) hour personnel who obtain prior approval from their immediate supervisor to work a holiday will be allowed to bank that holiday at straight time. If a 40-hour employee who is eligible to receive overtime compensation is recalled to work on a holiday, that holiday will be banked at time and a half (1.5) for the number of hours actually worked that day. § 2. Vacation Leave A. Vacation Leave is a right to a leave of absence with pay. It is earned as a condition of employment. All full-time employees shall, with continuous service, accrue working days of vacation monthly according to the following schedule: 40-hour Personnel Years of Annual Maximum Pay Period Completed Service Accrual Accrual Accrual Rates 1-3 years 85.72 hours 192.0 3.297 4-7 years 128.57 hours 272.0 4.945 8-10 years 171.43 hours 353.0 6.593 11-14 years 188.58 hours 353.0 7.253 15-19 years 205.72 hours 353.0 7.912 20-24 years 222.86 hours 353.0 8.572 25+ years 240.00 hours 353.0 9.231 Shift Personnel Years of Annual Maximum Pay Period Completed Service Accrual Accrual Accrual Rates 1-3 years 120 hours/5 shifts 288.0 4.615 4-7 years 180 hours/7.5 shifts 408.0 6.923 8-10 years 240 hours/10 shifts 528.0 9.231 11-14 years 264 hours/11 shifts 528.0 10.154 15-19 years 288 hours/12 shifts 528.0 11.077 20-24 years 312 hours/ 13 shifts 528.0 12.002 25+ years 336 hours/14 shifts 528.0 12.923 B. An employee who, as of July 1 of any given year, has completed 10,15, 20 or 25 years of service shall receive a onetime credit of 24 hours of vacation in addition to the employee's annual accrual of vacation, if a shift employee, or 10 hours, if a 40-hour employee.The employee shall, beginning the 11tt' 16tt' 21st and 26th year, resume accruing vacation at the appropriate pay period accrual rate. C. The District will notify employees, in writing, within the pay period prior to the time that maximum vacation accrual will be reached that the accrual is approaching that 21 maximum. The employee will then be required to (1) schedule time off or, (2) receive pay in lieu of time off so as to not exceed the maximum accrual. D. Any full-time employee who is out about to terminate employment and has earned vacation time to his or her credit, shall be paid for such vacation time on the effective date of such termination. When separation is caused by death of an employee, payment shall be made to the estate of such employee. § 3. Sick Leave Sick leave is the authorized absence from duty of an employee because of physical or mental illness, injury, pregnancy, confirmed exposure to a serious contagious disease, or for a medical, optical, or dental appointment. A. Accrual All unit employees shall accrue sick leave as follows: Personnel Monthly Annual Accrual Max. Accrual 40-hour Personnel 10 hours 120 hours No limit Shift Personnel 12 hours 144 hours No limit (1/2 shift) (6 shifts) B. Use 1. Sick Leave with pay may be used for: a. Any bona fide illness or injury. b. Quarantine due to exposure to contagious disease. c. Any treatment or examination included to, but not limited to, medical, dental, eye, or psychiatric examinations. d. Not more than twelve (12) days for 40-hour employees or six (6) shifts for shift personnel of sick leave each calendar year in case an employee's presence is required elsewhere because of sickness, disability, or childbirth of a member of his/her immediate family, as defined in District Personnel Rules. 2. Types of Sick Leave Use a. Personal Sick Leave Employees can use sick leave for personal illness, injury, a health-related reason (such as the diagnosis, care or treatment of a health condition), or preventive care. b. Family Sick Leave 22 Employees can use sick leave for the illness or injury of a health-related reason (such as the diagnosis, care or treatment of a health condition), or preventive care of a qualified family member. For the purpose of Family Sick Leave, a qualified member means the employee's: child (includes any age or dependency status, or for whom the employee is a legal ward or stands in loco parentis), parent (includes person who stood in loco parentis of the employee as a child), parent-in- law, spouse, registered domestic partner, grandparent, grandparent-in-law, great-grandparent, great-grandparent-in- law, grandchild, great-grandchild, or sibling. c. Other Statutory Use Sick leave can be used to cover an absence for an employee who is victim of domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking to: 1. Obtain or attempt to obtain a temporary restraining order or other court assistance to help ensure the health, safety, or welfare of the employee or their child(ren). 2. Obtain medical attention or psychological counseling; services from a shelter; program or crisis center; or participate in safety planning or other actions to increase safety. 3. No employee shall be entitled to sick leave with pay while absent form duty for the following causes: a. Disability arising from sickness or injury purposely self-inflicted or caused by his or her own willful misconduct. b. Sickness or disability sustained while on leave of absence. 4. Sick leave shall not be used in lieu of or in addition to vacation. C. The Fire Chief reserves the right to require evidence in the form of a physician's certificate whenever an employee is absent and requests sick leave for the period of absence, except personal leave (see Section 5). D. Any employee absent from work due to illness or accident, may at the discretion of the Fire Chief, be required to submit to a physical examination before returning to active duty. Such physical examination shall be performed by a physician specified by District and shall be at District expense. E. Termination of an employee's continuous service, except by reason of retirement or lay-off for lack of work or funds shall abrogate all sick leave and no payment will be made by the District for sick leave accrued to the time of such termination regardless of whether or not such employee subsequently reenters District service. 23 F. Any employee incurring a serious injury or illness while on paid vacation leave may have those days of illness changed to sick leave with pay and vacation days restored accordingly, provided the employee has sufficient sick leave accrued and the period of illness is certified by a written doctor's statement. G. Employees with ten (10) or more years of service shall be eligible to convert unused sick leave to vacation in accordance with the following: 1. Shift Employees who, in the preceding calendar year, accrued 180 to 144 (90 to 120 for 40-hour week employees) unused hours of sick leave earned in that preceding calendar year, may exercise the option of having one-half (1/2) of that unused sick leave accrued in the preceding year converted to vacation leave and the remainder carried over as accrued sick leave. 2. Those members of this unit who have accrued 72 to 108 (60 to 90 for 40-hour week employees) unused hours of sick leave earned in the preceding calendar year may exercise the option of having one-fourth (1/4)of the unused sick leave accrued in the preceding calendar year converted to vacation leave and the remainder carried over as accrued sick leave. 3. Any employee who qualifies to convert sick leave to vacation leave must submit a written request to the District on or before January 15th of the year in which the conversion is to be made. H. Upon the retirement of an employee, the employee may elect from one or more of the following options: ® Sell back up to fifty percent (50%) of his/her accumulated unused sick leave at the employee's regular hourly rate of pay at retirement. • Designate accumulated unused sick leave for CalPERS service credit per Government Code Section 20965. • Apply the cash value of up to one hundred percent (100%) of accumulated unused sick leave to the employee's VEBA account (if. enrolled), at the employee's regular hourly rate of pay, as permitted by the VEBA plan. § 4. Conversion Factor The factor used to convert the accruals for forty (40) hour per week personnel to fifty- six (56) hour per week personnel will be: Vacation, sick leave, and holiday: 24 Ire ir—I moil � _ . ., L_ !4 FD 2 'emu Work Week Basis Vacation 40 Hour 56 Hour Conversion Factor 1-3 years 85.72 120 1.5 4-7 years 128.57 180 1.5 8-10 years 171.43 240 1.5 11-19 years 188.58 264 1.57 20-24 years 196.58 288 1.57 25+ years 204.58 312 1.57 Holiday 140 168 1.5 Sick 120 144 1.5 (40 to 56) EXAMPLE (8-10 year employee) Employee Benefits Vacation = 100 hours Holiday = 72 hours Sick = 300 hours 472 total hours X 1.5 (factor) = 708 hours total Note: if an employee goes from a 56 to 40 hours basis, the conversion will be the reciprocal of 1.5 or .667 § 5. Personal Leave A. The employee shall be granted one (1) day paid personal leave to attend the funeral of a close relative not in the employee's immediate family. B. An employee required to appear before a court for other than subpoenas due to actions as a District employee or jury duty will receive the necessary time as paid personal leave, providing: 1. He or she notifies his or her supervisor or Duty Chief in advance, with adequate time remaining so that a relief may be obtained. 2. The employee must return to duty within a reasonable time after the appearance. C. Personal Leave will be charged against any time the employee has accrued, such as sick leave, vacation, and compensatory time, at the employee's option. D. Employees can use up to twenty (20) hours of accrued sick leave as personal leave. These twenty (20) hours can be used incrementally (i.e., 1 hour, '/2 hour) throughout the fiscal year. Use this time for emergency situations requiring the employee's attention and needs to be cleared with their supervisor when using this time. 25 § 6. Bereavement Leave When a death occurs in the family of a full-time employee, 40-hour personnel shall be granted up to 80 hours of bereavement leave with pay and Shift personnel shall be granted up to 112 hours of bereavement leave with pay. A death certificate or other acceptable evidence may be required by the City Manager or designee before leave is allowed. Family members are defined as follows: employee's spouse or domestic partner, employee's parents, employee's grandparents, employee's children, son-in- law, daughter-in-law, employee's siblings,or employee's grandchildren, employee's spouse or domestic partner's parents, employee's spouse or domestic partner's grandparents, grandparents-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, employee's spouse or domestic partner's children, employee's spouse's grandchildren, or a blood relative residing with employee. The City Manager or designee shall approve such bereavement leave. (References to domestic partner refer to registered domestic partners, as defined by California Family Code Section 297.) 40-hour personnel are eligible for up to an additional forty (40) hours of bereavement leave in addition to the currently provided eighty(80) hours and Shift personnel are eligible for up to an additional fifty-six (56) hours of bereavement leave, in addition to the currently provided one hundred and twelve (112) hours, when the bereavement leave is related to the employee's spouse or domestic partner, employee's parents, employee's children, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, or employee's siblings, employee's spouse or domestic partner's parents, employee's spouse or domestic partner's children, or a blood relative residing with the employee. The parties agree to review any usage concerns in June 2024. § 7. Compensatory Time A. In lieu of overtime pay, a unit employee, at the employee's option, may be compensated with compensatory time off(CTO). CTO will accrue at the rate of one and one-half hours for each overtime hour worked. An employee may accumulate a maximum of 144 hours of CTO. Once an employee accumulates 144 hours of CTO, any additional overtime hours will be paid to the employee at the employee's regular rate of pay as of the end of the fiscal year in June, and then the balance in the CTO accounts will be reduced to zero hours. CTO balance must be cashed out on the last pay period in June of a given fiscal year. Annually, any employee that wants to have the District buy back CTO hours at the "Holiday/Vacation/Compensation Time" shall make an irrevocable election to do so. The irrevocable election shall be submitted in writing to the City's Human Resources Department on or before December 15 and shall indicate the number of hours of CTO that the employee expects to earn in the following calendar year between July and the first payday in November that the employee wants the District to buy back in November up to 144 hours (between the first and second payday of the month). Regardless of the number of hours requested to be cashed out,the most the District can cash out is the number of hours accrued and available in that calendar year to date. 26 _ E ��: f U _ l -.iti U B. Compensatory time may be earned for required attendance at special meetings of the Board of Directors and District Committees, except when such meetings are held in lieu of a regularly scheduled meeting or when such meetings are called and/or scheduled as part of the annual budget preparation process and annual audit. C. Compensatory time may also be earned for special and/or unusual work situation not provided for in the preceding paragraphs. § 8. Military A. Every employee who is a member of a state or federal reserve military unit shall be entitled to be absent from service with District while engaged in the performance of ordered military duty and while going to or returning from such duty in accordance with the laws of the State of California or federal government. B. Employees are entitled to thirty(30) days paid military leave in any one fiscal year, provided they have been employed by the District for one (1) year prior to this leave. An employee that serves in the California National Guard shall be entitled to 30 days paid military leave for each instance of emergency activation. Any employee with less than one (1) year of service must use accrued annual leave or compensatory time if he or she wishes to receive normal pay. C. Employees who are called or volunteer for service with the armed forces of the United States shall be entitled to reinstatement to their former positions. Upon application for reinstatement, the individual must display a certificate showing service was under honorable conditions. D. Any employee returning from service with the armed forces shall be entitled to such length of service seniority as would have been credited to them had they remained for that period of time with the District. E. An employee who was in a probationary period at the time of military leave shall, upon return, complete the remaining portion of the probationary period according to the then present rules. F. An employee promoted to fill a vacancy created by a person serving in the armed forces shall hold such position subject to the return of the veteran. The employee affected by the return shall be restored to his or her former position or one of a similar nature while the returning employee resumes the position he or she previously held. § 9. Jury Duty Any member of District who is called or required to serve as a trial juror may be absent from duty with District during the period of such service or while necessarily being 27 present in court as a result of such call. Such member on jury duty will continue to receive normal pay, provided he or she: A. Notifies his or her supervisor, in advance, with adequate time remaining so that relief may be obtained. B. Returned to duty within a reasonable time after being released with a signed certificate of service from the court stipulating the hours of service and release time. This certificate may be obtained by asking the court secretary or bailiff. The employee then forwards it to his or her supervisor or Deputy Chief. C. Pay received for service while absent from District must be turned over to District; however, pay received while off duty may be kept by the employee. D. All personnel called for jury duty must abide by all of the above rules and must return to work if dismissed before the end of their regular work shift. § 10. Civil Subpoena/Criminal Subpoena A. Civil Subpoena When members of the District have been served a civil subpoena to appear in court as a witness due to actions as a District employee, the following procedure shall be followed: 1. Personnel will be paid at their regular hourly rate while they are in court. Per Fire District Rules and Regulations such appearances shall be considered "hours worked' for purposes of computing overtime eligibility in accordance with applicable rules and Memorandum of Understanding. 2. District transportation will be provided when available. If the employee uses his or her own transportation, he or she will be reimbursed by District at the prevailing mileage rate. 3. If the employee is required to appear in a court that is outside the Rancho Cucamonga Fire Protection District and this appearance requires the employee to buy a meal and/or lodging, he or she will be reimbursed. If an extended appearance in court is necessary where lodging and meals would be required, authorization shall be obtained from the department head. B. Criminal Subpoena 1. Pursuant to California Penal Code 1326 et. seq., if an employee is served with a criminal subpoena, the employee will be paid at the regular hourly rate while in court. Per Fire District Rules and Regulations such appearances shall be considered "hours worked" for purposes of computing overtime eligibility in accordance with applicable rules and Memorandum of Understanding. 28 7 -( 2. District transportation will be provided when available. If the employee uses their own transportation, they will be reimbursed by District at the prevailing mileage rate. 3. If the employee is required to appear in court outside the Rancho Cucamonga Fire Protection District and this appearance requires the employee to buy a meal, he or she will be reimbursed. If an extended appearance in court is necessary where lodging and meals would be required, authorization shall be obtained from the department head. 4. A criminal subpoena need not have a court stamp affixed. § 11. Leaves of Absence without Pay A. Upon the written request of the employee, a leave of absence may be granted for a period not to exceed thirty (30) days by the Fire Chief, or a period not to exceed one (1) year by the Board of Directors. B. Failure of the employee to return to his or her employment upon the termination of an authorized leave of absence shall constitute a separation from service of that employee. C. Leave of absence without pay granted by the Board shall not be construed as a break in service or employment. During these periods, vacation, holiday, or sick leave credits shall not accrue. An employee reinstated after a leave of absence without pay shall receive the same step in the salary range received when he or she began the leave of absence. Time spent on such leave without pay shall not count toward service for increases within the salary range. For purposes of this section, the employee's merit increase eligibility date shall be adjusted to the date of reinstatement. D. An employee on an approved leave of absence without pay may continue medical insurance coverage by paying the full cost to District, in advance, for each month, or portion thereof, of which he or she is absent. § 12. Association Business The Association president, or others designated by him or her (up to a maximum of seven representatives), shall be permitted reasonable time off without loss of pay for the conduct of Associate business, including, but not limited to, negotiations, processing grievances, representing employees in disciplinary matters, and meeting with District personnel. Representatives of the Association shall be compensated for all hours spent in actual negotiations with the District and meetings with district personnel, whether regularly scheduled to work that day or not. § 13. Union Leave Bank In addition to any other paid time off provided to the Association's Board of Directors under any other provisions of this MOU, existing rules, regulations or practices, there is hereby created a Union Leave bank for the sole and exclusive use of the Union. 29 - Each active member of the Union shall have 0.9230 hours of vacation leave irrevocably deducted from his or her vacation or holiday leave accrual each biweekly pay period. Twice each year, in January and July, the Union Executive Board shall have the authority to amend the deduction described above. If such an amendment is approved, the union President shall notify the Finance Director in writing of the new deduction amount. The new deductions shall be accomplished as soon as practical. The District will deduct the hours from vacation time first, then from accrued holiday time. A member can notify the Finance Director by the first Monday in August of each year if they want the time deducted from accrued holiday leave time first, then accrued vacation leave time. Said hours shall be deposited into the Union Leave Bank. Each pay period the Finance Director, or his or her designee, shall furnish the Union President, or his or her designee, with an accounting of the Union Leave Bank in the form of a Leave Hours Balance Report. The report will include that pay period's beginning balance, new deposits, hours used, and the remaining balance of hours. A Union member desiring to use available Union Leave must obtain a memo authorizing the use of such leave from the President of the Union, or his or her designee. The authorization must specify the amount of time that is to be used and the business or activity that is to be used for. The memo authorizing the use of Union Leave time must be attached to the timecard in which the Union Leave time is requested. In no event will Union Leave be used for any activity, whatsoever, related to a City of Rancho Cucamonga City council election and/or City of Rancho Cucamonga ballot measure. Once approval is obtained, and if time is available in the Union Leave Bank, the Union member shall designate the time used on the timecard for the pay period as "Union Leave" and attach the memo approving the use of the time to the timecard. The Union member shall be paid at his or her regular rate of pay for each such time. Union Leave may only be used in increments of one hour. If the Union member will be absent from work on Union Leave, the member must follow the rules and procedures set forth in the Situational Staffing Policy (1-012). In the event the Union is dissolved, or the Union Leave Bank is discontinued by agreement of the parties, any remaining balance shall be distributed as vacation time evenly to all active employees of the Union at the time of such distribution. The distribution of hours will occur without regard to an individual employee's regular rate of pay. At any time should the District's budget analysis indicate a need to reduce administrative overtime programs, the use of the Union Leave Bank can be temporarily suspended by the Fire Chief, or his or her designee. The Fire Chief will analyze the use of administrative time at the end of each quarter, using the following gauges: i) 1st Quarter no more than 24%; ii) 2"d Quarter no more than 47%; iii) 3rd Quarter no more than 74%; and iv) 4t" Quarter within the adopted budget. If at the end of any quarter the respective gauge is exceeded, the District will notify the Union President in writing of the need to temporarily suspend the use of the Union Leave bank, except for previously approved uses. Such notification will become effective at the beginning of 30 the next pay period following the date of the notification. The District will analyze the overtime expenditures every 60 days from the date of the written notification and will determine when the temporary suspension can be removed. The temporary suspension will automatically be removed at the beginning of the first pay period that falls into a new fiscal year. The District shall jointly administer the Union Leave Bank with Union, as specified herein, without charge to the Union or its membership. The District will be provided, on an initial basis for all current employees, and following that on an ongoing basis for new employees,written confirmation that the Union member(s) have agreed to subject themselves to the Union Leave Bank requirements. § 14. Natal and Adoption Pay A. Natal and Adoption Leave with Pay Employees are granted up to 120 hours of natal and adoption leave with pay for the birth or adoption of a child, however, use of 120 hours does not extend any time charged under FMLA or CFRA or additional state and federal laws. Any paid time required beyond this initial 120 hours must be charged to sick leave, vacation, compensatory or floating holiday time. B. Natal and Adoption Leave without Pay The District shall provide employees up to four months natal and adoption leave for the birth or adoption of a child; such leave shall be pursuant to the provisions of the California Pregnancy Disability Act ("PDA"; California Government Code section 12945), if applicable. The District's PDA policy is incorporated herein by reference. Employees on this leave of absence without pay beyond the four-month period will be responsible for the payment of medical, dental and optical premiums to keep the coverage in force during the leave of absence. § 15. Family and Medical Leave Unit employees may be eligible to take a leave of absence of up to twelve weeks for certain reasons under the provisions of the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). The District has developed a separate policy to comply with this law. The FMLA policy is incorporated herein by reference. ARTICLE IV GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE § 1. Purpose This article is intended to provide a fair and orderly procedure for the resolution of employee grievances involving wages, hours and terms and conditions of employment. A grievance is a claimed violation, misinterpretation, misapplication, or noncompliance with existing District codes, resolutions, rules, regulations, or this document. This grievance procedure shall not apply to disciplinary matters or to reviews of performance evaluation reports or to discharge of probationary employees. 31 Disciplinary matters include all warnings, written reprimands, suspensions, reductions in pay, demotions, dismissal or any other action which consists of a taking of property as said term is defined by the courts in the disciplinary context § 2. Objectives The grievance procedure is established to accomplish the following objectives: A. To settle disagreements at the employee-supervisor level, informally if possible. B. To provide an orderly procedure to handle grievances. C. To resolve grievances as quickly as possible. D. To correct, if possible, the cause of grievances to prevent future similar complaints. E. To provide for a two-way system of communication by making it possible for levels of supervision to address problems, complaints, and questions raised by employees. F. To reduce the number of grievances by allowing them to be expressed and thereby adjusted and eliminated. G. To promote harmonious relations generally among employees, their supervisor and the administrative staff. H. To assure fair and equitable treatment for all employees. § 3. General Provisions A. Preparation of a grievance will be accomplished in such a manner and at a time that will not interfere with normally required work procedures. B. Regarding a pending grievance, no individual or entity acting on behalf of the grievant shall contact any individual member of the Board of Directors, nor the Board of Directors as an entity, verbally, in writing, and/or through any other means of verbal, written or electronic communication. C. Failure of the grievant to comply with time limitations specified in the grievance procedure shall constitute a withdrawal of the grievance, except upon a showing of good cause for such failure. Failure of District supervisory or administrative staff to comply with specified time limitations shall permit the grievant to proceed to the next step in the procedure. EXCEPTION: Notwithstanding the above, an extension of time is permitted with the mutual consent of both parties. Mutually agreed upon extensions of time shall be evidence in writing. D. In the event a grievant elects to represent himself or herself or is represented by counsel other than that provided by the employee organization, the employee 32 organization shall be apprised of the nature and resolution of the grievance if the issues involved are within the scope of said organization's representation rights. E. If an individual named in a dispute is unavailable within the time period specified in these procedures, time limitations can be extended by mutual agreement of the representatives of the respective parties. F. Any period of time specified in this rule for the giving of notice or taking of any action exclude weekends and holidays. A "day" as used in this Article shall mean a calendar day. If the last date for action falls on a day that administrative offices are closed, the last date for action shall be extended to the next day during which administrative offices are opened. § 4. Informal Grievance Procedure Most problems or complaints can be settled if the employee will promptly, informally and amicably discuss them with his or her immediate supervisor. Such an initial discussion shall precede any use of the formal grievance procedure. If the immediate supervisor fails to reply to the employee within three (3) days, or the employee is not satisfied with the decision, the employee may utilize the Formal Grievance Procedure. § 5. Formal Grievance Procedure A. Step I The employee and/or representative shall present the grievance, in writing and signed, to his or her immediate supervisor within thirty (30) days of the date that cause for grievance arises. An official grievance form must be used stating names, dates, times, place, and nature of grievance. The employee's supervisor shall attempt to resolve the grievance with the employee and shall submit his or her decision in writing to the employee within ten (10) days after receipt of the grievance. The employee shall have the right to appeal the decision of the supervisor to the Fire Chief. B. Step II 1. If the grievance is not resolved to the satisfaction of the employee, the grievant has ten (10) days following receipt of the written response from his or her supervisor to file a written appeal to the Fire Chief or designated representative. 2. Written appeal to the Fire Chief or designated representative shall consist of the statement of the grievance and shall include a statement by the grievant's representative setting forth the reasons why the response of the employee's supervisor did not satisfactorily resolve the grievance and an indication of the action desired by the grievant. 3. After submission of the written appeal, the Fire Chief or designee shall reply within three(3)days, in writing, to the grievant regarding the grievance. In event of rejection, reasons for so doing will be included in the response. 33 e 2 R r n _ 4. The decision by the Fire Chief or designee shall address whether or not the grievance of the employee is grievable pursuant to the definition set forth in § 1 above and /or is timely filed or otherwise administratively prosecuted in a timely manner. In the event that the Fire Chief or designee determines that the employee's grievance is not defines as such by § 1 above and/or is not filed in a timely manner, the Fire Chief or designee shall advise the employee that the matter is not grievable and the grievance shall proceed no further unless or until on application by the employee, a judgement is entered at the trial court level, indicative of the matter being jurisdictionally grievable pursuant to the definitions set forth in § 1 above and/or pursuant to requirements of timeliness. C. Step III If the grievance is not settled in Step II, binding arbitration may be invoked in accordance with the following: 1. The request for arbitration must be submitted with either ten (10)days of receipt of the decision of the Fire Chief, or of expiration of time for the Fire Chief to render a decision. 2. A "Fact Sheet" must be submitted to the arbitrator by both parties, stating the nature of the grievance and desired action. 3. The term "arbitrator", as used herein, shall refer to a single arbitrator. 4. A list of five (5) arbitrators shall be requested from the California State Conciliation Service. The hearing arbitrator shall be chosen by an initial flip of a coin, with the winning side, Board or grievant, having the choice of either selecting the arbitrator or eliminating one (1) candidate. The turn shall then revert to the other side,who then can exercise the same option. This procedure continues until either an arbitrator is agreed upon or there is only one (1) candidate remaining. 5. The arbitrator so selected shall hold a hearing at a time and place convenient to the parties involved. Statements of position may be made by the parties, and witness may be called. 6. The location and time of the hearing shall be mutually agreed upon by both parties. If an agreement cannot be achieved, each party will submit their location and time to be drawn by chance. 7. All expenses which may be involved in the arbitration proceedings shall be borne by the parties equally; however, expenses relating to the calling of witnesses or the obtaining depositions or, any other similar expenses associated with such proceedings shall be bore ,-,-by the party at whose request such witnesses, or depositions are required. 34 rt v ._,.'_t ,`,s 1 ._ `--6 i.! ; 3 30' 1#v' `__. 2 ff_;-! v6 8. Legal counsel may be obtained by either party if they so wish. Expenses for legal counsel shall be borne by the party obtaining such counsel. 9. Failure on the part of the District's representative or grievant/grievant's representative to appear in any case before an arbitrator, without good and sufficient cause, shall result in forfeiture of the case and responsibility for payment of all costs of arbitration borne by the party failing to appear. 10.The decision of the arbitrator shall be final and binding upon District and appellant. ARTICLE V DISCIPLINE District and Union have met and conferred and adopted a disciplinary procedure which is hereby incorporated by reference as though set forth in full. ARTICLE VI SAFETY § 1. Compliance District and employees in Association shall conform to and comply with all health, safety, and sanitation requirements imposed by District, state or federal law or regulations adopted under state or federal law. § 2. No Discrimination No employee shall be in any way discriminated against as a result of reporting any condition believed to be a violation of 1 of this Article V. § 3. Safety Equipment Should the employment duties of an employee in the unit, in the estimation of OSHA, require use of any equipment or gear to ensure the safety of the employee or others, District agrees to furnish such equipment or gear. § 4. Employee Responsibility In the course of performing their normally assigned work, employees will be alert to observe unsafe practices, equipment, and conditions; as well as environmental conditions in their immediate area which represent health hazards and will report such conditions to their immediate supervisor. All employees shall make certain that all power machinery is equipped with safety devices properly installed and in working condition and that co-workers use utmost care in the handling of tools and equipment. Employees shall report all accidents immediately to their immediate supervisors. Reports shall be submitted on forms provided by District. § 5. Minimum Staffing The District shall maintain a minimum staffing level. Staffing of companies and units with 30 personnel shall consist of the following: 35 ' — s _ _3 L�sw� =I N , `16 A. Seven-three (3) person paramedic engine companies, consisting of 1 captain, 1 Engineer and 1 Firefighter with any one rank being a certified paramedic. B. Two four (4) person paramedic truck companies, consisting of 1 Captain, 1 Engineer and 2 Firefighters with any one rank being a certified paramedic. C. One (1) Captain Specialist The District shall maintain a minimum staffing of 1 training division position consisting of the following: A. One (1) Training Captain Any reduction in these levels must be agreed upon through the meet and confer process. § 6. Smoking Policy Employees in Union have agreed to accept and abide by the District"Smoking Policy," as written and approved by the Chief. § 7. Weather Related Mandatory Recall The definition of the High Wind Warning, Red Flag Warning and Flash Flood Warning shall be made by the Fire Chief or his/her designee as follows: A. High Wind Warning: winds are sustained at 40 mph or more, and/or gusts are present at 58 mph or more and are expected in less than one day (24 hours). B. Red Flag Warning: winds are sustained at 25 mph or more and relative humidity is less than 15%, with conditions persisting more than six (6) hours and expected in less than one day (24 hours). This can also be released without the wind component for weather that is less than 10% relative humidity for longer than 10 hours. C. Flash Flood Warning Rain is sustained at 1/2" an hour, for longer than 1 hour, or per hour, for longer than 4 hours. When a warning is determined, the duty Battalion Chief shall have the authority to staff additional apparatus in conjunction with consultation from the Deputy of Fire Chief. Apparatus shall be utilized as best determined by the duty Battalion Chief or his or her designee. Staffing procedures shall be as follows: 36 1. If time permits, the on-duty Battalion Chief may contact the fire stations to solicit volunteers for the staffing of units as needed. 2. If no volunteers are available or additional personnel are needed, the on-duty Battalion Chief shall utilize the force hire list in Telestaff to recall personnel as staffing levels dictate. For additional staffing procedures, refer to Situational Staffing and Overtime Tracking Policy#1-012. 3. The on-duty Battalion Chief may hold off-going personnel until the individuals on the force hire list are contacted and arrive at their scheduled assignment. Once relieved, the individuals held over shall be released from their assignments. 4. All personnel who are assigned for these circumstances shall remain in their assigned position until the Battalion Chief or designee dictates that the potential threat has subsided or are relieved by personnel for the next operational period. 5. The overtime rate and time frames shall be paid per Section 3 D in the MOU. ARTICLE VII MANAGEMENT RIGHTS § 1. Scope of Rights It is understood and agreed that District possesses the sole right and authority to operate and direct the employees of District in all aspects, except as modified in this Memorandum of Understanding. These rights include, but are not limited to: A. The right to determine its mission, policies, and standards of service to be provided to the public; B. To plan, direct, control, and determine the operations or services to be conducted by employees of the District; C. To determine the methods, means, and number of personnel needed to carry out District's mission; D. To direct the working forces; E. To hire, assign, or transfer employees within District; F. To promote, suspend, discipline, or discharge employees; G. To layoff or relieve employees due to lack of work or funds or for other legitimate reasons. (any provision within this MOU, City rules and regulations or any other policy or procedure promulgated by the City or any Department of the City which prohibits the imposition of layoffs, is deemed null and void); 37 H. To make, publish, and enforce rules and regulations; I. To introduce new or improved methods, equipment, or facilities; J. To contract out for goods and services; K. To take any and all actions as may be necessary to carry out the mission of District in situations of civil emergency as may be declared by the Board of Directors or Fire Chief; L. To schedule and assign work; M. To establish work and productivity standards. § 1. Emergency Conditions If in the sole discretion of the Board of Directors or Fire Chief, it is determined that extreme civil emergency conditions exist, including, but not limited to, riots, civil disorders, earthquakes, floods, or other similar catastrophes, the provisions of this MOU may be suspended during the time of the declared emergency, provided that wage rates and monetary fringe benefits shall not be suspended. ARTICLE Vlll EMPLOYEE RIGHTS §1.Scope of Rights All employees shall have the following rights which may be exercised in accordance with State Law, applicable ordinances, rules and regulations: A. To The right to form, join and participate in the activities of employee organizations of their own choosing for the purpose of representation on all matters of employer-employee relations. B. The right to be free from interference, intimidation, restraint, coercion, discrimination, or reprisal on the part of an appointing authority, supervisor, other employees, or employee organization as a result of their exercise of rights granted in this Article. The provisions of Section 3500 et seq. of the Government Code are hereby incorporated as such provisions may apply to employees within the Fire Union Local 2274. §2. New Employee Orientation The Fire District shall provide thirty (30) minutes at a mutually agreeable time during the employee onboarding process for Union-representative to meet with a new Union covered employee and present the benefits of being a member of the Union. Onboarding of new employees occurs during the first working day at the start of a new pay period up to 26 38 is aI.I! ', :) _'J `'E..._._1 4 !ON NO, .-D f_.L.. 03 times per year. The Fire District will provide a calendar before the start of a new year. A Union representative will have 30 minutes of uninterrupted time to meet with the new Union covered employee. Prior to the meeting, or in no case later than the meeting time, the Fire District will provide the designated Union representatives with all available information about the employees as required under AB 119 within 30 days of the employees start date and the District will provide the required information on all Union covered employees again as required under AB 119 at least three (3) times per year. ARTICLE VIII MAINTENANCE OF BENEFITS All wages, hours and terms and conditions of employment specifically provided for in this memorandum of understanding, shall remain in full force and effect during the term of the MOU, unless modified pursuant to written agreement of the parties. ARTICLE IX APPROVAL BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS This MOU is subject to approval by the Board of Directors of the District. The parties hereto agree to perform whatever acts are necessary both jointly and separately to urge the Board to approve and enforce this MOU in its entirety. Following approval of this MOU by the Board, its terms and conditions shall be implemented by appropriate ordinance, resolution, or other lawful action. ARTICLE X PROVISIONS OF LAW It is understood and agreed that this MOU and employees are subject to all current and future applicable Federal and State laws and regulations and the current provisions of District law. If any part or provisions of this MOU is in conflict or inconsistent with such applicable provisions of those Federal, State, or District enactments or is otherwise held to be invalid or unenforceable by any court of competent jurisdiction, such part or provision shall be suspended and superseded by such applicable law or regulations, and the remainder of this MOU shall not be affected thereby. If any substantive part or provision of this MOU is suspended or superseded, the parties agree to re-open negotiations regarding the suspended or superseded part or provisions with the understanding that the total compensation to employees under this MOU shall not be reduced or increased as a result of this Article. District and Association recognize that under this MOU and in personnel matters not covered in this contract, the current District Personnel Rules as amended and effective shall apply. The Personnel Rules applicable to the Association shall not be changed for the duration of this Agreement. ARTICLE XI TERM The term of this MOU shall run from July 1, 2023, through and including 11:59 p.m. on June 30, 2026. In the event either party wishes to negotiate a successor MOU, the parties agree that informal discussions and data sharing may commence on or about July 1, 2025, with 39 _ - < _ formal negotiations starting after the completion of the salary survey as outlined in Article 11 of this MOU. Union District -71�512o23 7/19 110-3 Dated Dated - aniel arrette John R. Gillison I P res ent City Manager J ke n if e_ pPlyliov Human Resources Director 40