Okla. Admin. Code § 455:10-19-35

Current through Vol. 42, No. 7, December 16, 2024

Section 455:10-19-35 - Grievance

(a)General. The resolution of disputes is advocated within the agency before appeals are filed with the Commission.

(b)Promotion. Any employee who feels that he or she has not been treated fairly with regard to a promotional action has the right to file a formal grievance. The Commission will accept an appeal regarding a promotional issue only after such complaint has been reviewed in the formal grievance procedure [74:840-4.15(C)].

(c)Classification.An employee has the right and responsibility to file a classification grievance, as provided by law and rule, when duties performed on a regular and consistent basis do not conform to the class specification [74:840-4.3(B)].

(1)Employees shall be classified in accordance with the work they are assigned on a regular and consistent basis as an integral part of their normal work assignment and class specification [74:840-4.3(B)]. Any employee who believes he or she is not classified in accordance with the work assigned on a regular and consistent basis as an integral part of his or her work assignment and job family descriptor, has the right to file a formal grievance.

(2) An employee is entitled to the compensation assigned to the job family descriptor for which duties were performed on a regular and consistent basis as determined by the Human Capital Management Division (HCM) [74:840-4.3(B)]. Any employee who believes he or she is entitled to compensation for having performed duties on a regular and consistent basis which do not conform to the job family descriptor for the position he or she occupies or occupied, has the right to file a formal grievance.

(3) The appointing authority and employee shall attempt to resolve these disputes through the formal grievance procedure.

(4) If the dispute can not be resolved, the resolution decision by the appointing authority shall be to advise the employee to complete an Human Capital Management Classification Dispute Review Request (HCM-70) pursuant to rules adopted by the Administrator of the Human Capital Management Division.

(5)Agency classification and reclassification decisions shall not be subject to appeal to the Oklahoma Merit Protection Commission. However, the involuntary removal of a permanent employee in permanent status in a job family level to a lower level in the same job family or to another job family level assigned a lower pay band shall be considered a demotion. Such action may be appealed by the employee to the Oklahoma Merit Protection Commission [74:840-4.3(B)]. An employee may allege a violation of law or rule over which the Commission has jurisdiction in the classification and reclassification process pursuant to OAC 455:10-3-3.

(d)Discipline. Any employee who has reason to believe that discipline imposed was not uniform, appropriate or in compliance with the agency progressive discipline policy, has the right to file a formal grievance. The Commission will accept an appeal regarding a discipline issue (except suspension without pay, involuntary demotion or discharge) only after such complaint has been reviewed in the formal grievance procedure.

(e)Leave. Any employee who feels that he or she has not been treated fairly with regard to annual, sick or any other leave accrual, accumulation, use or eligibility (including leave without pay and leave sharing), has the right to file a formal grievance. The Commission will accept an appeal regarding leave issues only after such complaint has been reviewed in the formal grievance procedure.

(f)Employee service rating system. Any employee who disagrees with his or her individual service rating has the right to file a formal grievance.

(1) The Commission will accept, for alternative dispute resolution only, a complaint involving disagreement with the individual service rating only after such complaint has been reviewed in the formal grievance procedure.

(2) The Commission will accept an appeal of alleged violation of the Oklahoma Personnel Act or Merit Rules in regard to the employee service rating system only after such complaint has been reviewed in the formal grievance procedure.

(3) Alleged violations of Title 74 O.S., Section 840-2.5 and Section 840-2.9 in regard to the employee service rating system may be appealed directly to the Commission.

(g)Discrimination. Complaints of illegal discrimination, including sexual harassment, are subject to the internal agency grievance resolution procedure. The appointing authority may adopt special procedures for addressing and resolving discrimination complaints. Any such procedures shall comply with federal laws and rules, the Oklahoma Personnel Act and the rules in this subchapter.

(h)Pay movement mechanisms and other compensation issues. Any employee who feels that a violation of law, rule, policy or practice has occurred with regard to pay movement mechanisms or other compensation issues, has the right to file a formal grievance. The Commission will accept an appeal regarding pay movement mechanisms and other compensation issues only after such complaint has been reviewed in the formal grievance procedure.

Okla. Admin. Code § 455:10-19-35

Added at 12 Ok Reg 2823, eff 7-13-95; Amended at 17 Ok Reg 533, eff 11-30-99 (emergency); Amended at 17 Ok Reg 2560, eff 6-26-00; Amended at 19 Ok Reg 2376, eff 7-1-02; Amended at 26 Ok Reg 559, eff 3-1-08 through 7-14-09 (emergency)¹; Amended at 26 Ok Reg 2690, eff 7-25-09

Amended by Oklahoma Register, Volume 33, Issue 24, September 1, 2016, eff. 9/11/2016

¹This emergency action expired before being superseded by a permanent action. Upon expiration of an emergency amendatory action, the last effective permanent text is reinstated. Therefore, on 7-15-09 (after the 7-14-09 expiration of the emergency action), the text of 455:10-19-35 reverted back to the permanent text that became effective 7-1-02, as was last published in the 2006 Edition of the OAC, and remained as such until amended again by permanent action on 7-25-09.