Article 3: Work Schedule, Overtime & Penalties
3.1
Work Week and Work Day: A regular work week is defined as consisting of any five (5) regular work days not exceeding a total of forty (40) hours, and as beginning at 12:01 A.M. Sunday and continuing to the end of the tour of duty commenced on the following Saturday.
3.1.1
The Company and Union may jointly agree that a four (4) day workweek would be beneficial for certain assignments.
The four (4) day workweek shall consist of four (4) consecutive ten (10) hour days, followed by three (3) consecutive days off. In this case, overtime (Article 3.8.1) shall be paid after ten (10) hours in any regular workday; Fifth (5th) days shall be paid at time-and-one-half and Sixth (6th) and Seventh (7th) days shall be paid at double-time, both in accordance with Article 3.8.3. An Employee shall be eligible for a second meal period (Article 3.6.1) following eleven (11) hours of duty. All other contract provisions apply to Employees who work such a workweek.
The mutual agreement may be dissolved by either party with a thirty (30) day written notice.
3.1.2
A regular work day is defined as consisting of eight (8) consecutive hours of work in any work day, which shall be computed by totaling the number of hours between the time an Employee reports for work and the time of completion of his duties for such a work day, less any meal period where applicable.
3.1.3
A tour of duty starting any day and continuing into the following day shall be considered as one tour of duty and attributed to the first day. The minimum tour of duty shall be eight (8) hours for full-time Employees and four (4) hours for part-time Employees.
3.1.4
Part-time and Temporary Employees (other than Vacation Relief as defined in Article 2.5) shall not be employed for a cumulative total of more than 6% of the regular, full-time NABET-CWA workforce hours during any calendar month.
If the Company regularly engages in locally produced overnight programming, the cumulative total part-time/temporary hours during any such calendar months shall be increased by 1% of the regular, full-time NABET-CWA workforce.
If the Company regularly engages in weekend daytime production, the cumulative total part-time/temporary hours during any such calendar months shall be increased by 4% of the regular, full-time NABET-CWA workforce for such work.
If the Company regularly engages in the operation of a secondary channel, the cumulative total part-time/temporary hours during any such calendar months shall be increased by 3% of the regular, full-time NABET-CWA workforce.
3.2
Schedules shall be posted on the Bulletin Board ten (10) days in advance of the calendar work week.
3.2.1
After a work schedule is posted, an Employee shall be notified of any schedule change.
3.3
Days Off: Each Employee shall be granted two (2) consecutive days off following five (5) consecutive work days. If a schedule change causes a full-time Employee to not receive two consecutive days off as required, then that Employee shall receive a penalty of one and one-half days pay at their regular rate of pay. The Company shall make every effort to schedule days off by seniority and preference.
3.3.1
Employees shall be notified of any change in scheduled days off by an advance notice of ten (10) days prior to the change, and said notice shall be posted on the Bulletin Board.
3.3.2
In the event any Employee’s days off are changed by the Company after twelve noon Wednesday of the preceding work week, unless such changed schedule is by mutual consent of the Company and the Employee affected, such Employee shall be paid at one and one-half (1-1/2) times the regular hourly rate of pay for such days.
3.4
Employees shall be notified of any changes in scheduled working hours in a work day not less than forty-eight (48) hours prior to said working hours.
3.4.1
In the event any Employee’s working hours are changed without forty-eight (48) hours’ notice, such Employee shall be paid an additional thirty-five dollars ($35) unless the change results from a unit Employee’s unanticipated absence.
3.4.2
In the event of an Emergency which may result in unavoidable changes in the Company’s schedules, NABET-CWA will, upon request by the Company, waive the notice and penalty above described.
3.4.3
In the event the Company notifies an Employee to report to work on his scheduled day or days off, then cancels such tour of duty with less than twenty-four (24) hours’ notice prior to the scheduled starting time of work on such day or days off, the Employee shall be paid a penalty of Twenty Dollars ($20).
The preceding paragraph shall not apply when an Employee is called to fill in for another Employee because of illness. However, if the Company notifies an Employee to report for work because of the illness or compassionate leave of another Employee and then cancels such tour within twelve (12) hours of the beginning of such tour, that Employee called for work and then cancelled shall be paid for such a tour of duty at his premium rate of pay, unless the ill Employee has agreed to report for work.
If, as a result of illness or unanticipated emergency, an Employee must absent himself from work, every effort will be made as soon as possible to notify his immediate supervisor or designee of his intended absence so that another Employee may be contacted to report to work.
3.4.4
The Company recognizes the desirability for the Employees working the night shift to rotate to the day shift or vice versa.
If any member of the bargaining unit desires rotation after eight (8) months’ tour on a given shift he shall make written request for such rotation thirty (30) days in advance.
The Company agrees to grant such request, if in the Company’s opinion there is a qualified member of the bargaining unit available to replace the Employee seeking rotation and if the Employee making the request is qualified for the position he seeks.
When granted, it is the intention of the Company, all conditions being equal, that such rotation shall be a minimum of eight (8) months.
3.4.5
An Employee’s work schedule shall not be changed while said Employee is on vacation unless he is personally notified of such change by the Company.
3.5
Turnaround: There shall be a minimum of twelve (12) consecutive hours between the end of any Employee’s original work schedule or any extension thereof between any regular work day and the start of the next.
3.5.1
A day off shall consist of thirty-six (36) hours consecutively. Two days off shall consist of sixty (60) hours consecutively. Vacation period is not to be construed as rest period when computing the time between the end of one workday and the beginning of the next workday.
Work assignments which shorten the above time periods shall be compensated for as follows:
In addition to the applicable rate of pay, Ten Dollars ($10.00) per hour for that portion of such assignment that encroaches on such turnaround period.
Fifteen Dollars ($15.00) per hour in addition to the applicable rate of pay for that portion of such assignments that encroaches on the six (6) hour period immediately following the end of the Employee’s original schedule or any extension thereof.
Examples under which “turnaround” penalty pay would be made:
1. Less than twelve (12) consecutive hours between the end of one work day and the start of shift on the next, during the Employee’s work week.
2. Less than twelve (12) consecutive hours between the end of one work day and the start of shift on a scheduled day off.
3. Less than thirty-six (36) consecutive hours between the end of one work day and start of shift after one scheduled day off.
4. Less than sixty (60) consecutive hours between the end of one work day and the start of shift after two (2) consecutive days off.
5. Less than twelve (12) consecutive hours between the end of one work day and the start of shift on a sixth (6th) or seventh (7th) work day.
3.5.2
The schedule for Employee’s days off shall provide for such days off to begin twelve (12) hours after the completion of assignment for the preceding day.
3.6
Meal Periods: The first meal period, which shall be unpaid, shall be at least thirty (30) minutes duration. This meal period may not be scheduled earlier than the Employee’s third (3rd) hour of work, and must be completed by the end of the sixth (6th) hour after reporting for duty.
If the Employee affected agrees to remain at work, he shall receive a premium in addition to all other wages and compensation equal to two (2) times his regular hourly rate for each hour, or fraction thereof after the end of the sixth (6th) hour, until such meal period is started. The meal period will be paid at the applicable rate.
However, if an Employee elects to take a meal period outside the designated time, he shall not receive the penalty payment.
3.6.1
In the event an Employee remains on duty for a period in excess of ten (10) hours a second meal period of thirty (30) minutes shall be scheduled not later than the beginning of his twelfth (12th) hour of duty, and the Company shall pay such Employee the sum of Eight Dollars and Fifty Cents ($8.50) for eating expenses, unless the Company caters the meal.
If the Employee affected agrees to remain at work he shall receive a premium in addition to all other wages and compensation equal to two (2) times his regular rate for each hour, or fraction thereof after the beginning of the twelfth (12th) hour until such meal period is started. The meal period will be paid at the applicable rate.
However, if an Employee elects to take a meal period outside the designated time, he shall not receive the penalty payment.
3.6.2
An additional period of thirty (30) minutes shall be scheduled after each four (4) hours of work beyond the tenth (10th) hour and shall be paid at the rate described above.
3.6.3
The meal period shall be considered as part of the normal work day for those Employees who are on duty at the TV transmitter.
3.7
Night Shift Differential: Those Employees who perform work of two (2) hours or more between midnight and 7 a.m. shall receive an additional fifteen percent (15%) of their regular hourly rate of pay for all hours worked during that time period in addition to any other compensation that may accrue to them. The differential shall be paid for a minimum of four hours. An employee who works all hours between midnight and 7 a.m. shall be paid the differential for the entire tour of duty.
3.8
Overtime: Employees shall receive overtime for work performed as follows:
3.8.1
All work in excess of forty (40) hours in any regular work week or eight (8) hours in any regular work day at the rate of one and one-half (1-1/2) times the regular hourly rate of pay.
3.8.2
All work in excess of twelve (12) hours in any regular work day at the rate of two (2) times the regular hourly rate of pay.
3.8.3
Unless a scheduling change is made to accommodate an Employee who requested a change of schedule, any regular or temporary Employee who works in excess of five (5) consecutive days shall receive overtime at the following rates:
Sixth (6th) consecutive day worked: Time and one-half (1-1/2) his regular hourly rate of pay for the first eight (8) hours worked. Double time (2) his regular hourly rate of pay for work after eight (8) hours until the end of shift.
Seventh (7th) consecutive day worked: Double time (2) his regular hourly rate of pay for the first eight (8) hours worked, two and one-half (2-1/2) times his regular hourly rate of pay for work after eight (8) hours until the end of shift.
Thereafter the Employee will revert to his regular hourly rate of pay until such time as he has exceeded another five (5) consecutive days’ work.
3.8.4
Any Employee may elect not to work on his scheduled day off by notifying the Department Head in writing within forty-eight (48) hours after the assignment is posted. Employees can be required to work during major events that require significant staffing levels. The Company and Union will jointly determine what constitutes a major event.
3.9
If an Employee is called back to work on a day on which the tour of duty has been completed, or called in three or more hours early on a scheduled workday, a premium of three (3) hours at the applicable rate will be credited to the Employee in addition to time actually worked.
3.10
Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as authorizing or permitting the pyramiding of overtime.
3.11
For time spent flying in the helicopter, an employee shall receive, in addition to the applicable rate of pay, a premium equal to the regular hourly rate of pay. Any Employee can, by giving prior written notice to the Director of Operations & Engineering, exclude themselves from flying in the helicopter.
3.12
Whenever reference is made in this Agreement to “Regular Hourly Rate,” the same shall be computed on an hourly basis by dividing the applicable weekly salary, as ascertained under paragraph 9.2, by forty (40).
3.13
Employees who receive pay upgrades in the twelve-month period prior to taking a vacation, shall be paid for the vacation at the average hourly base rate paid during that preceding twelve-month period.
