Case: Labor Arbitration/Funeral Leave (Arb.)

Arbitrator Gregory P. Szuter ruled that the City of Bedford, Ohio didn’t violate its collective bargaining agreement with the local AFSCME union when it only granted one day of funeral leave to the grievant, who was attending his grandfather’s funeral, when he had originally requested three days of such leave. The union argued that the contract language’s meaning was that an employee could request anywhere between one and three days of funeral leave without being denied as long as the proper documentation was submitted. However, Arbitrator Szuter found that the city’s interpretation of the language – that the city had ...