Know Your Rights: Weingarten Rights. State Scientists (and all state employees) have the right to request a union representative to attend a meeting they reasonably believe will result in disciplinary action. These rights are called “Weingarten Rights” which are derived from a 1975 Supreme Court Case (NLRB v. J. Weingarten, Inc.). These rights apply in investigatory interviews and meetings where the employee has a reasonable belief that formal discipline may result. State Scientists may request union representation before, or during, such an interview. When representation is requested the supervisor must do one of three things: grant the request and delay questioning until the representative arrives; deny the request and end the interview immediately; or offer the option of having the interview without representation. The last option is essentially voluntarily giving up one’s rights to union representation. This is usually NOT the best option.
If your supervisor denies the request for union representation and continues the interview, you have the legal right to refuse to answer questions. This option must be exercised tactfully. Don’t walk out of the interview. Instead, request CAPS’ representation but don’t answer questions without your CAPS representative present. If you are pressured into answering (such as being threatened with insubordination for failure to answer), the information gathered at the meeting may be excluded in any subsequent disciplinary action.
A helpful tool to help you figure out when a meeting is “disciplinary,” and therefore subject to Weingarten Rights is this – if the meeting is held and you are being questioned about things that happened in the past, the meeting is likely disciplinary; if it’s to discuss how to handle things in the future, it’s most likely not. If you enact your Weingarten Rights, contact CAPS as soon as possible (caps@capsscientists.org).
Democratic Party of Sacramento County Central Committee Resolution in Support of CAPS passes unanimously. On Thursday, August 11, 2022, Secretary Justin D. Garcia brought forth a floor resolution at the Democratic Party of Sacramento County Central Committee Meeting as a voting member of the party. The resolution in support of CAPS passed unanimously.
In Review. Check out what you may have missed from past CAPS Updates here:
August 2, 2022. Member Complaints Important in the Telework Effort. In a worksite meeting that was held last week, CAPS heard that members are uncomfortable submitting telework agreements that follow the 2-day in-office rule. CAPS relayed during this meeting that members should submit the telework agreement they would like to obtain – whatever that might mean to them, as opposed to limiting themselves by submitting the limitation that the department has set forth.
Telework Agreements are permissive, meaning that both parties must agree to the parameters that are contained in the Agreement. If a member submits a telework agreement, their supervisor must review it and engage with the member to find a best-fit for that member based on their job duties, per the 2021 Statewide Telework Policy. Should a supervisor disagree with the agreement, and should there be no resolution after a discussion, the supervisor can deny that telework agreement submission. If this occurs, the member then has the ability to contact CAPS and discuss the possibility of filing a grievance to attempt to obtain the best telework agreement possible. Without members engaging in that first step: putting forth what they would like to see and engaging with their supervisors, CAPS had no recourse to file any action on behalf of a particular member. Doing so helps CAPS help members, and will help CAPS in fighting for maximum flexibility in telework as a whole, as members illustrate that there are disagreements in the blanket-statement standards. So, if you find yourself denied a telework agreement that you believe suits your job duties, contact CAPS today at caps@capsscientists.org.
Read the rest of the entries, or see what else you may have missed on the CAPS Website here: http://capsscientists.org/members/caps-member-updates/ The password is ChooseCAPS! – it is case-sensitive.