I. Purpose
A. The purpose of this Interim Employee Grievance Procedure (“Procedure”) is to implement the Employee Grievance Policy (“Policy”) of Anne Arundel Community College (“College”) by providing an orderly process that incorporates appropriate due process standards and provides for the prompt resolution of employee grievances at the College.
II. Scope and Applicability
A. This Procedure applies to all College employees, except as set forth in the Policy.
B. This Procedure applies to any Grievance, as defined in the Policy, that is alleged by a College Employee(s).
C. This Procedure does not apply to matters set forth in the Exceptions Section of the Policy.
D. Where an Employee(s) has pursued or is pursuing substantially the same matter that is the subject of a Grievance through another applicable College complaint procedure, the Employee(s) may not pursue a Grievance pursuant to this Procedure.
E. To the extent that the College Manual conflicts with this Procedure, this Procedure supersedes the College Manual.
F. Where a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) applies, the terms of the CBA shall govern to the extent they conflict with this Policy.
III. Definitions
A. All capitalized terms in this Procedure have the meanings provided in the Policy.
B. All other capitalized terms in this Procedure have the following meanings:
1. Adverse Employment Action in the context of a claim of Retaliation under the Employee Grievance Policy means an action that would have dissuaded a reasonable employee from filing a grievance or otherwise participating in the grievance procedure and can include, but is not limited to, termination, demotion, pay reduction, significant changes in job responsibilities, denial of promotion, disciplinary actions, or creating a hostile work environment.
2. Advisor means another employee of the College selected by the Grievant or Respondent to offer advice and/or support to a Grievant or Respondent.
3. Business Day is any day that is not a Saturday or Sunday or day that the College is closed, such as holidays, spring break, winter break, or other day that the College announces that it is closed.
4. CCFPO is the College’s Chief Compliance and Fair Practices Officer.
5. Decision Maker is the College Employee to whom the Grievance is submitted for investigation, determination and/or Appeal, as described below for each Step.
6. Formal Grievance Process begins with the filing of the Grievance Form and refers to the review process set forth below.
7. Grievance Record contains all of the documents submitted and issued during the grievance procedure. The record accumulates throughout the process and is organized by each step in the procedure.
8. HR is the Office of Human Resources.
9. Informal Discussion or Informally Discuss means an attempt by the Grievant to reach a mutually-agreed upon resolution with the Respondent without outside intervention.
10. Party or Parties refers to the Grievant and/or the Respondent.
11. Preponderance of the Evidence means it is more probable than not that the Prohibited Action occurred.
12. Record means the original Grievance Form, any Appeal Forms, any dismissal determined by the CCFPO, and any decision issued throughout the process.
13. Step 1 Grievance File means the Step 1 Grievance Form and responses thereto, documents/evidence submitted, all documents issued by the CCFPO throughout the process and the final decision.
14. VP is the Vice President who oversees one of the College’s divisions.
15. Written or in writing means in the form of a letter, document, email, or electronic communication or transmission.
IV. Right to an Advisor
A. Both Parties have the right to be accompanied by an Advisor who is another employee of the College and is available to accompany the Grievant or Respondent at any Step of the Formal Grievance Process, including any meeting.
1. The Advisor must not be involved in a conflict of position, such as a member of HR, the CCFPO, or General Counsel’s office.
2. The Advisor may not be a witness or otherwise involved in the subject matter of the Grievance.
3. The College will not tolerate discrimination or Retaliation against the Advisor based on the Advisor serving in this role on behalf of either Party.
4. If an Advisor believes the Advisor has been subject to Retaliation as a result of serving as an Advisor, the Advisor may file a grievance under this Procedure.
B. The Grievant or Respondent must notify the CCFPO or designee if they want to bring an Advisor to any meeting at least one (1) Business Day prior to the meeting.
C. An Advisor will be required to sign a Confidentiality Statement Form and return it to the CCFPO or designee prior to attending a meeting during the Formal Grievance Process.
D. An Advisor is not permitted to be an active participant in the Formal Grievance Process and has a non-speaking role; rather, during a meeting, the Grievant or Respondent may request to confer with the Advisor in private for support and advice.
E. Parties may choose to pursue any portion of the procedure without an Advisor.
F. Advisors are voluntary, optional, and may not delay or disrupt any proceedings.
G. If the Advisor does not comply with this Procedure, the Advisor may be asked to leave and if so, will not be permitted to participate further.
V. Initial Discussion
A. Prior to filing a Grievance, an Employee is encouraged to attempt to Informally Discuss the grievance with the Respondent.
B. The Employee should keep records of attempts to Informally Discuss the matter.
C. If the issue is resolved informally, the Parties should document the resolution that was agreed-upon in writing to avoid further disputes regarding the underlying issue or misunderstandings regarding the resolution.
VI. Filing a Formal Grievance
A. Grievance Form
1. If the issue was not resolved to the Employee’s satisfaction through Informal Discussion, or Mediation pursuant to the Mediation of Employee Grievances Procedure, the Employee may submit a Grievance Form, selecting Step 1 – Initial Grievance, to the CCFPO or designee via email to begin the Formal Grievance Process.
2. The Grievance Form must include a description of the alleged Prohibited Action, including the basis of the Grievance, the date of the initial event that gave rise to the Grievance, an explanation of prior attempt(s) to Informally Discuss the grievance, and a proposed remedy or resolution.
3. The Grievant may include any relevant documents with the submission of the Grievance Form.
B. Deadline for Filing a Grievance Form
1. The Grievance Form must be submitted within twenty (20) Business Days of the initial event or act giving rise to the Grievance, not including the date of the initial event or act.
a. The date of the event or act is the date of the communication giving rise to the Employee’s Grievance, not the effective date of the action (e.g., if an Employee was told on February 1 that the Employee is being terminated and that the last day of employment is February 15, the event would be considered the conversation or written communication where the Employee was notified of the termination, and the deadline to submit the Grievance Form would be March 1, which is twenty (20) Business Days after the Employee was initially notified of the termination).
b. If the date of the initial event is not able to be determined, the Employee must submit a Grievance Form within twenty (20) Business Days of the date upon which the Employee reasonably should have known of the facts giving rise to the Grievance.
2. The time that it takes to attempt to Informally Discuss the complaint does not extend the deadline for filing the Grievance Form.
C. Dismissal of Grievance
1. If a Grievance Form is not timely submitted, the Grievance is considered waived, unless the Grievant can show extenuating circumstances that justify considering the request beyond the deadline, such as a medical emergency.
2. Upon receipt, the CCFPO or designee will review the Grievance Form to determine if it was timely and whether the subject matter contained in the Grievance Form is grievable.
3. The CCFPO or designee will then make a decision as to whether the Grievance can proceed or will be dismissed.
a. If the Grievance is not dismissed, the CCFPO or designee will serve as the Decision Maker for Step 1, as defined in the Section titled Step 1 – Investigation and Decision below.
b. If the Grievance is dismissed, the CCFPO or designee will notify the Grievant in writing, stating the reason(s) for the dismissal.
i. The CCFPO or designee may, in the CCFPO’s or designee’s discretion, give the Grievant an opportunity to amend the Grievance Form in order to articulate grievable subject matter.
ii. If the Grievance is granted an opportunity to amend, the CCFPO or designee will provide a deadline that does not exceed five (5) Business Days for the amended Grievance Form to be submitted.
c. The CCFPO’s or designee’s decision regarding dismissal is final and is neither grievable nor appealable.
D. HR may be contacted at any time for additional information, guidance, or assistance in interpreting any part of this Procedure.
VII. Formal Grievance Process
A. An Employee will follow the Steps in the order described below, as needed to resolve the Grievance, subject to any breaks in the process if a Party requests Mediation in accordance with the Mediation of Employee Grievances Procedure.
B. Each Decision Maker responsible for considering a Grievance must give the Grievance fair, impartial, and prompt consideration consistent with this Procedure.
C. The scope of the review of the Grievance by the Decision Maker is limited to the issues raised in the Grievance Form.
D. If a Grievance is pending and the Respondent is the Grievant’s direct supervisor, then either Party may request that a representative of HR attend any performance evaluation that is due and scheduled while the Grievance is pending and the first performance evaluation after resolution of the Grievance.
E. Step 1 – Investigation and Decision
1. Decision Maker
a. The CCFPO or designee will serve as the Decision Maker for Step 1, unless an exception applies.
b. Exceptions
i. If the Respondent is the CCFPO, the Executive Director of HR or designee will serve as the Decision Maker at Step 1;
ii. If the Respondent [or one of multiple Respondents] is the President, the Chair of the Board of Trustees will serve as the Decision Maker at Step 1, unless the Chair designates a third party who is not employed by the College to serve as the Decision Maker at Step 1;
iii. If the CCFPO is a witness to the Prohibited Action or believes they cannot serve as the Decision Maker due to bias or inability to be impartial, then, the President will designate another individual to serve as the Decision Maker at Step 1.
2. Investigation
a. The Decision Maker will investigate the allegations in the Grievance Form.
b. The purpose of an investigation is to determine the basic facts, such as what happened, who is alleged to have participated in the Prohibited Action, where and when the Prohibited Action took place, whether anyone witnessed the Prohibited Action, whether the Prohibited Action was isolated or part of a continuing practice, what the reaction of the Grievant was to the Prohibited Action, how the Grievant and the Grievant’s work has been affected by the Prohibited Action, what the Respondent’s response is to the allegations, whether the Grievant or the Respondent has talked to anyone else about the Prohibited Action, whether there is any documentation or other information related to the Prohibited Action, and any other information that the Decision Maker determines is relevant to the allegations in the Grievance.
c. The Decision Maker may request a written response to the Grievance Form from the Respondent.
d. At a minimum, during the investigation, the Decision Maker must meet separately with the Grievant and the Respondent in person, by telephone, or by other electronic means, and must review information provided by the Parties.
e. The Decision Maker may gather evidence that the Decision Maker believes may be relevant to the allegations in the Grievance, including but not limited to: documents, data, information generated by computing resources, education records, communications (e.g. emails, text messages, letters, etc.), and/or physical evidence (e.g. photographs, screen shots, etc.).
f. The Decision Maker, in the Decision Maker’s sole discretion, may request information from any individual, including the Parties, individuals identified by the Parties, and/or any other individuals whom the Decision Maker believes may have information or evidence related to the Grievance.
g. If a Party fails to respond to a request to meet or a request for information from the Decision Maker by a given deadline, the investigation will continue without the Party’s participation, unless the Decision maker determines the Party has shown an extenuating circumstance.
h. Investigations will typically be completed within fifteen (15) Business Days of the Decision Maker’s receipt of the Grievance Form but the time to complete an investigation may be extended by the Decision Maker for good cause, upon notice to the Parties, stating the reason for the delay and the date the Decision Maker anticipates the investigation will be completed.
3. The Decision Maker must issue a written decision using the applicable Grievance Decision Form within ten (10) Business Days of the conclusion of the investigation as set forth in the Decision Section below.
a. The Decision Maker must consult with HR prior to issuing a decision.
b. The Decision Maker must submit the decision to the General Counsel’s office for a legal sufficiency review prior to issuing the decision.
F. Step 2 – Appeal to Vice President
1. Either Party may appeal the Step 1 decision by submitting the Grievance Form, selecting Step 2 – Appeal to Vice President, to the CCFPO or designee via email, stating the reason(s) the Party believes the Step 1 decision should be overturned or modified.
2. The Grievance Form must be submitted within five (5) Business Days from issuance of the Step 1 decision.
3. Dismissal
a. If a Grievance Form is not timely submitted to the CCFPO or designee, the appeal is considered waived, unless the Party can show that extenuating circumstances justify considering the appeal beyond the deadline, such as a medical emergency.
b. Upon receipt, the CCFPO or designee will review the Grievance Form to determine if it was timely submitted and make a decision as to whether the appeal can proceed or will be dismissed as untimely.
i. If the appeal is not dismissed, the CCFPO or designee will forward the Grievance Form to the other Party.
ii. If the appeal is dismissed, the CCFPO or designee will notify the Party who submitted the appeal in writing, stating the reason(s) for the dismissal.
c. The CCFPO’s or designee’s decision regarding dismissal is final and is neither grievable nor appealable.
4. Appeal Decision Maker
a. The CCFPO or designee will appoint a neutral Vice President who is not in the line of supervision for either Party to serve as the Decision Maker for Step 2, unless an exception applies:
i. To the extent possible, the CCFPO or designee will not select any Vice President who was involved in or witnessed the alleged Prohibited Action.
ii. If there are multiple Grievants and/or Respondents, and a neutral Vice President is not available, the CCPFO may designate another appropriate administrator who does not supervise any of the Respondents.
b. Exceptions
i. If the Respondent is a VP or General Counsel, the CCFPO or designee will appoint the President to serve as the Decision-Maker;
ii. If the Respondent is the President, the CCFPO or designee will appoint the full Board of Trustees to serve as the Decision-Maker. At least a quorum of the Board of Trustees must participate in the Decision-Making.
iii. If the Respondent is the CCFPO, the Executive Director of HR or designee will appoint a VP as decision-maker.
c. At the time of appointment, the CCFPO or designee will notify the Decision-Maker in writing of their appointment, the names of the Parties, and a general statement of the subject matter of the Grievance.
i. Within two (2) Business Days of the CCFPO or designee sending notification, the Decision-Maker will respond in writing to the CCFPO or designee and confirm that they do not have a personal relationship with either Party, do not have any personal involvement in the matter to be heard by them, and are not aware of any other conflict of interest or reason that they may not be able to be impartial in deciding the Grievance or provide a reason(s) that they believe they cannot serve as a Decision-Maker for the grievance.
ii. If the Decision-Maker provides a reason(s) they believe they cannot serve, the CCFPO or designee will determine whether there is sufficient information to show bias or an inability to be impartial in considering the Grievance and if so, the CCFPO or designee will appoint another VP to serve as Decision-Maker.
d. Once the CCFPO or designee has confirmed the Decision-Maker, the CCFPO or designee will send notice of the appointment to the Parties.
i. If either Party objects to a Decision-Maker for any of the reasons stated above, the Party may submit an objection in writing to the CCFPO or designee, including the reason(s) the Party believes the Decision-Maker cannot be impartial in deciding the Grievance, within two (2) Business Days of receipt of the notice.
ii. The CCFPO or designee will evaluate the objection and determine whether there is sufficient information to show bias or an inability to be impartial in considering the Grievance and if so, will replace the member and provide written notice to the member and the Parties.
iii. The decision regarding the objection is final and cannot be appealed or grieved.
e. Once any objections are determined or the deadline to object has expired, the CCFPO or designee will forward the Step 1 Grievance File to the Decision-Maker.
5. Consideration of Grievance by Decision-Maker
a. The Decision-Maker must issue a written decision using the applicable Grievance Decision Form within fifteen (15) Business Days of receipt of the Grievance Forms referenced in Section 5(e).
b. The Decision-Maker will determine whether the Grievant has proven that a Prohibited Action occurred by a Preponderance of the Evidence and if so, what remedy is appropriate.
c. The Decision-Maker must consult with HR prior to issuing a decision.
d. The Decision-Maker must submit the decision to the General Counsel’s office for a legal sufficiency review prior to issuing the decision.
VIII. Decisions
A. At Steps 1 and 2, the Grievant, as the complaining party, shall have the burden of proof to establish that the Prohibited Action occurred and a remedy is necessary by a Preponderance of the Evidence.
1. At Step 1, the decision will be based solely on the information collected by the Decision Maker during the investigation, and the decision must include a list of the documents and evidence reviewed and individuals who were interviewed with a summary of the relevant information that was provided.
2. At Step 2, the decision will be based solely on a de novo review of the Step 1 Grievance File, and no hearing will be held. New evidence will be considered at this stage only if it was not available at the time of the Step 1 Investigation.
3. The Decision Maker at Step 2 will consider but is not bound by the decision made at Step 1.
B. All decisions rendered at any Step of this Procedure must be in writing and sent to the CCFPO or designee and the Parties, after the legal sufficiency review is completed.
1. The decision must include whether the Decision Maker found that a Prohibited Action occurred by a Preponderance of the Evidence, any action that will be taken in response to the Grievance, and the basis for the decision.
a. If the Decision Maker at any Step determines that the action complained of is not a Prohibited Action, the Decision Maker must find the Respondent not responsible but may recommend optional educational resources or training to prevent future conflicts.
b. If the Decision Maker determines that the action complained of is a Prohibited Action, the Decision Maker must find the Respondent responsible and may impose appropriate remedies, if any, in light of the facts and circumstances.
i. The Decision Maker will consider, but is not bound, by the remedy or resolution proposed by the Grievant when determining the remedy or resolution, nor is the Step 2 Decision-Maker bound by the remedy or resolution reached in Step 1.
ii. Remedies may include but are not limited to the following:
1) An apology letter that is submitted to the Grievant and maintained in the Respondent’s personnel record;
2) A conversation between the Respondent and the Respondent’s Next Line Supervisor regarding ways to avoid future Prohibited Action(s);
3) Training regarding conflict resolution, interpersonal skills, or other relevant topics;
4) Disciplinary action against the Respondent;
5) Removal or modification of disciplinary action against the Grievant; or
6) Any other remedy or solution designed to address the underlying issues raised in the Grievance.
2. The decision will not disclose any specific disciplinary action to be imposed against the Respondent to the Grievant; however, the Decision Maker will notify the CCFPO or designee of any disciplinary action to be imposed.
C. The CCFPO or designee may distribute the decision to HR and/or the Grievant’s and/or Respondent’s supervisor(s), as needed to implement any remedies or solutions included in the decision or for the supervisor to take the disciplinary action imposed or appropriately manage the subject matter of the Grievance.
IX. Service and Deadlines
A. Whenever this Procedure provides for transmittal of a document or evidence, transmittal will be deemed given on the date it was sent to the Employee’s College-issued email address.
B. If an individual involved in a Grievance is no longer an Employee of the College at the time a Grievance decision is issued, the College may transmit the document or evidence via a personal email address provided to the College by the individual, via personal delivery, via U.S. Mail, or overnight carrier and addressed to the last known address in the records of the College and will be deemed to have been given within three (3) days of being sent.
C. All documents required to be transmitted to the CCFPO or designee should be sent via email at complianceofficer@aacc.edu.
D. If the CCFPO is the Respondent to any Grievance, all actions under this Procedure that are to be performed by the CCFPO or designee will be performed by the Executive Director of HR or designee, and in such a case, all documents or evidence required to be transmitted to the CCFPO or designee should be submitted to the Executive Director of HR via email to humanresources@aacc.edu.
E. Every effort will be made to issue responses within the deadlines set forth in this Procedure, but deadlines may be extended by the CCFPO or designee for good cause and upon notice to the Parties.
X. Record
A. This Procedure is administrative in nature and is not considered a legal proceeding.
B. At the conclusion of the Formal Grievance Process, the CCFPO or designee will submit a copy of the Record to HR to maintain in the personnel file for both the Grievant and the Respondent and will also maintain in the CCFPO’s files the Grievance Record in accordance with the College’s document retention schedules.
Procedure Title: Interim Employee Grievance Procedure
Policy Category: Human Resources
Policy Owner: President
Policy Administrator: Executive Director of Human Resources
Contact Information: Suzanne Boyer, slboyer1@aacc.edu, 410-777-2045
Approval Date: March 24, 2025
Effective Date: March 27, 2025
History: Approved, October 25, 2023; Previously contained in the College Manual
Applies to: All College employees
Related Policies: Employee Grievance Policy
Related Procedures: Mediation of Employee Grievances Procedure
Forms/Guidelines:
Relevant Laws: Middle States Accreditation Standard II (Ethics and Integrity)