By Turner of Harris H.B. No. 2349
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to grievance procedures for county and certain other local
1-3 government employees.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Section 160.002, Local Government Code, as added
1-6 by Senate Bill 200. Act of the 71st Legislature, Regular Session,
1-7 1989, is amended to read as follows:
1-8 Sec. 160.002. COUNTIES AND EMPLOYEES AFFECTED. This chapter
1-9 applies only to a county with a population of more than 2.4 million
1-10 and all county (its) employees, including <but not limited to> the
1-11 employees of road and bridge districts, flood control districts,
1-12 adult probation departments (Community Supervision & Corrections),
1-13 and juvenile probation departments, all employees of all elected
1-14 County officials that are not covered by civil service including,
1-15 but not limited to, employees of the County Judge, Commissioners,
1-16 Assessor & Collector of Taxes, County Clerk, District Attorney,
1-17 District Clerk, County Courts At Law Civil & Criminal, Courts of
1-18 Appeals, District Courts-Civil-Criminal-Family, Family Juvenile,
1-19 Justices of the Peace in the county. However, this chapter does
1-20 not apply to (the) employees covered by civil service <of a
1-21 sheriff's department>.
1-22 SECTION 2. Section 169.003, Local Government Code, as added
1-23 by Senate Bill 220, Acts of the 71st Legislature, Regular Session,
2-1 1989, is amended to read as follows:
2-2 Sec. 160.003. DEFINITIONS <Definition>. In this chapter:
2-3 (1) "Aggrieved employee" means an employee who claims a
2-4 grievance in accordance with this chapter.
2-5 (2) "Employer" means the immediate supervisor of an
2-6 aggrieved employee or the supervisory authority over the conditions
2-7 or circumstances which gave rise to the grievance.
2-8 (3) "Days" means calendar days, including holidays and
2-9 weekends.
2-10 (4) "Response received" means that the grievant has
2-11 indicated receipt of the document by personal signature.
2-12 (4) "Grievance" þL(, "grievance"ää means any employee
2-13 complaint (a þLclaim by an employee that the employee was adversely
2-14 affected by a violation, misinterpretation, misapplication, or
2-15 disparity in the application of a specific law, ordinance,
2-16 resolution, written or unwritten policy, or ruleää regarding wages,
2-17 hours of (employment <work, or> þLand workingää conditions <of work>, and
2-18 any disciplinary action including, but not limited to, performance
2-19 evaluations, warnings, permanent suspensions and terminations.
2-20 SECTION 3. SECTION 160.005, Local Government Code, as added
2-21 by Senate Bill 220, Acts of the 71st Legislature, Regular Session,
2-22 1989, is amended to read as follows:
2-23 Sec. 160.005. STANDARDIZED GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE. (a) The
2-24 commissioners court of the county shall enact orders consistent
2-25 with this section to provide for:
3-1 (1) the annual appointment of a county grievance resolutions
3-2 committee(s);
3-3 (2) <filing of written grievances>;
3-4 ((2) <written responses to the grievance allegations>;
3-5 ((3) <procedures for appeal to an appointed county grievance
3-6 resolutions committee>;
3-7 ((4) <further appeal to the commissioners court;>
3-8 ((5) <presentation of grievance by an employee's requested
3-9 representative;>
3-10 <(6)> reasonable leave with pay for the grievant, the
3-11 witnesses, the grievant designated representative and for the
3-12 presentation of grievance; and
3-13 (3) <(7)> other necessary procedures to permit effective
3-14 implementation of this chapter that shall be adopted by
3-15 commissioners court and shall include the following.
3-16 (b) the orders and procedures shall apply equally to all
3-17 employees of the county, including those employees enumerated in
3-18 Section 160.002, including employees of independent elected
3-19 officials <, and shall provide for reasonable timetables for filing
3-20 and responding to grievances>.
3-21 (c) Within 30 days, after the date that an aggrieved
3-22 employee discovers the cause for a grievance under this chapter,
3-23 the aggrieved employee may file a written grievance with the
3-24 appropriate employer without meeting any other prerequisite to
3-25 filing.
4-1 (d) Within ten days after the date that an employer receives
4-2 a grievance, the employer shall meet with the aggrieved employee to
4-3 discuss the grievance. Within ten days after the date of that
4-4 discussion, the employer shall provide to the aggrieved employees a
4-5 written response to the grievance.
4-6 (e) If the aggrieved employee is not satisfied with the
4-7 response received in accordance with Subsection (d), the aggrieved
4-8 employee, within ten days after the date the employee received the
4-9 response, may file the written grievance with the level of
4-10 management immediately above the employer. Within ten days after
4-11 the representative of that level of management receives a
4-12 grievance, the representative shall meet with the aggrieved
4-13 employee to discuss the grievance. Within ten days after the date
4-14 of that discussion, the representative shall provide to the
4-15 aggrieved employee a written response to the grievance.
4-16 (f) If the aggrieved employee is not satisfied with the
4-17 response received under Subsection (e), the aggrieved employee may
4-18 repeat the procedure of Subsection (d) with each successively
4-19 higher level of management up to the highest ranking nonelected or
4-20 elected official in the district, department, board, commission, or
4-21 other entity that employs the aggrieved employee, and each level of
4-22 management must respond in the manner provided by Subsection (d).
4-23 All meetings between the grievant, the grievant's representative(w)
4-24 and the employer shall be arranged promptly at a mutually agreeable
4-25 date and time to all parties of the grievance including the
5-1 representative(s). If the employer fails to arrange a meeting
5-2 within ten days, the grievant may present the grievance to the next
5-3 higher level of the grievance procedure.
5-4 (g) If an aggrieved employee has exhausted the grievance
5-5 procedure provided by Subsections (c)-(f), the employee may request
5-6 a hearing to review the grievance before the county grievance
5-7 resolutions committee by filing a written grievance with the
5-8 committee. Within ten days after the date that the committee
5-9 receives the grievance, the committee shall set a time and place
5-10 for a hearing on the grievance and notify the aggrieved employee.
5-11 (h) The aggrieved employees may be represented by another,
5-12 as determined by the employee, at any stage of the grievance
5-13 procedure under this section.
5-14 (i) If the aggrieved employee requests, the hearing must be
5-15 open to the public. The committee shall arrange for the appearance
5-16 of employees of the county to testify at the hearing if requested
5-17 by the aggrieved employee, the employer, or any level of management
5-18 of the district, department, board, commission, or other entity
5-19 that employs the aggrieved employee. All testimony at the hearing
5-20 must be given under oath, and hearsay testimony may not be
5-21 permitted.
5-22 (j) The committee shall record the hearing by an audio
5-23 recorder and provide a written transcript of the hearing to the
5-24 aggrieved employee within thirty days after the date of the
5-25 hearing.
6-1 (k) At the conclusion of the hearing, the committee, by a
6-2 vote of an majority of committee members, shall render a decision
6-3 on the matter and notify the aggrieved employee. The decision on
6-4 the matter and notify the aggrieved employee. The decision must
6-5 discuss the evidence and the reasons for the decision.
6-6 (l) The commissioners court shall provide written notice to
6-7 each employee subject to this chapter of the right to be
6-8 represented by another during a grievance procedure. The notice
6-9 must include the name and telephone number of any county employee
6-10 union.
6-11 (m) The commissioners court, by order, shall require that
6-12 any action taken with respect to a grievance under this chapter
6-13 must be evidenced by a written document.
6-14 SECTION 4. Section 160.005, Local Government Code, as added
6-15 by Senate Bill 220, Acts of the 71st Legislature, Regular Session,
6-16 1989, is amended to read as follows:
6-17 Sec. 160.005. The purpose of this act is to prevent employees of
6-18 counties,f as enumerated in Section 160.002, from being terminated
6-19 from their employment without just and good cause. In this act
6-20 "cause for termination" means that the employer has just and good
6-21 reasons for the termination and that the employer adheres to the
6-22 principles of progressive disciplinary action. SECTION (45.
6-23 Section 160.005, Local Government Code, as amended by this Act,
6-24 applies only to a grievance based on events that occur before
6-25 September 1, 1993, is covered by the law in effect on the date that
7-1 the events occurred, and that law in continued in effect for that
7-2 purpose.
7-3 SECTION (56. The importance of this legislation and the
7-4 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
7-5 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the constitution
7-6 rule requiring bills to be read on three separate days in each
7-7 house is suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended, and that
7-8 this ACT take effect and be in force from and after its passage,
7-9 and it is so enacted.