NATIONAL COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTCollective Bargaining Agreement |
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Search Collective Bargaining Agreement by:
Exhibit 10(c)
NATIONAL COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT
By and Between:
LIZ CLAIBORNE, INC. AND
UNITE
Effective: June 1, 2003
Expires: May 31, 2006
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ARTICLE 1: UNION RESPONSIBILITY.........................................- 2 -
ARTICLE 2: BARGAINING UNIT AND UNION RECOGNITION........................- 3 -
ARTICLE 3: UNION MEMBERSHIP.............................................- 4 -
ARTICLE 4: EMPLOYER'S OBLIGATIONS.......................................- 6 -
ARTICLE 5: AFTER ACQUIRED AND NEW FACILITIES............................- 6 -
ARTICLE 6: TRIAL PERIOD.................................................- 7 -
ARTICLE 7: HIRING RATES AND MINIMUM WAGE SCALES.........................- 8 -
ARTICLE 8: CHANGE IN LEGAL MINIMUMS.....................................- 9 -
ARTICLE 9: COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT....................................- 9 -
ARTICLE 10: JOB SECURITY/HANDLING AND DISTRIBUTION OF PRODUCT............- 10 -
ARTICLE 11: CHANGE IN PAY SYSTEMS........................................- 11 -
ARTICLE 12: WAGE INCREASES...............................................- 11 -
ARTICLE 13: CHECK-OFF....................................................- 12 -
ARTICLE 14: NO DISCRIMINATION............................................- 13 -
ARTICLE 15: EMPLOYMENT STANDARDS.........................................- 13 -
ARTICLE 16: HEALTH AND SAFETY............................................- 14 -
ARTICLE 17: HOURS OF WORK AND OVERTIME...................................- 15 -
ARTICLE 18: TEMPORARY EMPLOYEES..........................................- 16 -
ARTICLE 19: HOLIDAYS, PERSONAL DAYS/PAID TIME OFF AND SICK DAYS..........- 17 -
ARTICLE 20: BEREAVEMENT LEAVE ...........................................- 18 -
ARTICLE 21: SHOP STEWARD.................................................- 18 -
ARTICLE 22: SENIORITY/LAYOFF.............................................- 19 -
ARTICLE 23: WORK ASSIGNMENTS.............................................- 19 -
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ARTICLE 24: DISCHARGES...................................................- 19 -
ARTICLE 25: LEAVES OF ABSENCE............................................- 20 -
ARTICLE 26: TIME CLOCK...................................................- 22 -
ARTICLE 27: RIGHT TO VISIT SHOP..........................................- 22 -
ARTICLE 28: EMPLOYEE BENEFIT FUNDS.......................................- 23 -
ARTICLE 30: GRIEVANCES AND ARBITRATION...................................- 31 -
ARTICLE 31: NO STRIKE/NO LOCKOUT PLEDGES.................................- 35 -
ARTICLE 32: NO REDUCTION OF WAGES OR OTHER BENEFITS......................- 35 -
ARTICLE 33: STRUCK WORK-LABOR DISPUTE CROSSING PICKET LINES..............- 35 -
ARTICLE 34: TEMPORARY APPOINTMENT TO UNION STAFF.........................- 36 -
ARTICLE 35: CONFORMITY TO LAW............................................- 36 -
ARTICLE 36: JURY DUTY....................................................- 37 -
ARTICLE 37: UNION ACTIVITIES.............................................- 37 -
ARTICLE 38: JOINT LABOR-MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE.............................- 38 -
ARTICLE 39: VACATIONS....................................................- 38 -
ARTICLE 40: CUTTING......................................................- 38 -
ARTICLE 41: REPORTING PAY................................................- 38 -
ARTICLE 42: NO WAIVER....................................................- 39 -
ARTICLE 43: MANAGEMENT RIGHTS............................................- 39 -
ARTICLE 44: DURATION OF AGREEMENT........................................- 39 -
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THIS AGREEMENT is made and entered into as of June 1, 2003 by and between
LIZ CLAIBORNE INC., (hereinafter designated as the "Company") and
UNITE(hereinafter designated as the "Union" or "UNITE").
W I T N E S S E T H:
WHEREAS, the Company is engaged in an integrated process of production,
handling and distribution of garments; and
WHEREAS, the Employer owns or leases and operates several distribution
centers and samplerooms in which the Union represents the majority of the
employees employed by the Employer, and the Employer recognizes the Union as the
exclusive bargaining representative of its warehouse and sampleroom employees;
and
WHEREAS, the various distribution centers and samplerooms have been
governed by separate collective bargaining agreements covering individual
facilities; and
WHEREAS, to provide uniformity of conditions and ease of administration,
the parties choose to consolidate the separate bargaining units and collective
bargaining agreements into a national multi-plant agreement, to be supplemented
by local agreements covering specific facilities; and
WHEREAS, the parties desire to cooperate in establishing conditions which
will tend to secure a living wage, fair conditions and standards of employment
and to provide for a fair and peaceful adjustment of all disputes so as to
secure uninterrupted operation of work.
NOW, THEREFORE, the parties hereto agree as follows:
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ARTICLE 1: UNION RESPONSIBILITY
-------------------------------
The Union shall have the sole responsibility for administering and
enforcing this Agreement and for obtaining compliance with its terms. The sole
persons authorized or having the power to act as agents of the Union, or to bind
the Union legally with respect to matters arising out of this Agreement or
arising out of the relations between the Employer and the Union, or to subject
the Union to any liability whatever by reason of any acts or omissions is the
President of the Union and the managers of the signatory Locals thereof or such
substitute or additional persons as the Union may hereafter formally designate
by written notice to the Employer. The Union shall not be responsible for the
acts or omissions of any other person, including members and employees of the
Union.
ARTICLE 2: BARGAINING UNIT AND UNION
------------------------------------
RECOGNITION
-----------
2.1 The scope of the bargaining unit covers the following distribution
centers and samplerooms presently located at:
HQ1 - 1 Claiborne Avenue, North Bergen, NJ
Liz 1 - 4 Emerson Lane, Secaucus, New Jersey
1441 Broadway and 240 West 40th Street, New York, New York
Mt. Pocono 1 and 2 - 1 Liz Way, Mt. Pocono, Pennsylvania,
Accessories - 15 Thatcher Road, Dayton, New Jersey
Cosmetics - 120 Herrod Boulevard, Dayton, New Jersey
Jewelry - 1 Powder Hill Road, Lincoln RI
2.2 The bargaining unit consists of all distribution center and sampleroom
employees, including cutters and related crafts, employed by the Employer at the
covered facilities. Local supplemental agreements may further define the
bargaining unit at specific facilities. It is agreed
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that the Union represents a majority of said employees and that during the term
of this Agreement the Union shall be the sole and exclusive bargaining
representative of all employees in the bargaining unit as hereinabove described.
Office, clerical, supervisory and executive employees, as well as any employees
who may be employed at the retail facility at any location, are excluded from
the provisions hereof.
2.3 "Workers" or "employees" as used in this Agreement means those
employees covered by the bargaining unit as well as those who may be hereinafter
included.
2.4 This Agreement shall be the National Agreement. There shall be
Supplemental Agreements which govern certain terms and conditions of employment
at individual facilities. In case of conflict between this National Agreement
and a Supplemental Agreement, the Supplemental Agreement shall govern. Any
dispute unresolved as to whether a conflict exists between the National and a
Supplemental Agreement or whether a particular dispute is subject to resolution
under the provisions of the National or a Supplemental Agreement shall be
subject to arbitration pursuant to Article 30 of this National Agreement.
ARTICLE 3: UNION MEMBERSHIP
---------------------------
3.1 Good standing membership in the Union shall be a condition of
employment with the Employer for all bargaining unit employees who have such
membership on the date of execution of this Agreement; it shall also be a
condition of employment with the Employer for all other bargaining unit
employees on and after the thirtieth (30th) day following the execution or
effective date of this Agreement, or on or after the thirtieth (30th) day
following the beginning of their employment, whichever is the later. If the
foregoing is prohibited by law, then at the corresponding time all employees
shall be required as a condition of employment (unless
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prohibited by law) to pay to the Union a service charge to reimburse it for the
cost of negotiating and administering this agreement.
3.2 Good standing membership in the Union for purposes of this Article
means such membership in the Union through membership in any affiliate of UNITE.
3.3 In the event that paragraph 3.1 may not be lawfully applied, all
employees shall be informed by the Employer of the existence of this Agreement
and the terms thereof and shall be advised by the Employer that, in its opinion,
good labor-management relations are and will be best served and promoted if such
employees become and remain members of the Union. The Employer agrees to
implement and promote this provision by posting copies of the following notice
near all time clocks and in other prominent places such as bulletin boards in
its facilities:
"NOTICE TO ALL EMPLOYEES"
This plant is being operated under the terms of an agreement with the
Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees, AFL-CIO. All wages,
hours and other conditions of employment are regulated by the terms of this
agreement.
Good labor management relations will be best served and promoted, in our
opinion, if all our employees covered by this agreement become and remain
members of this Union.
Signed:
---------------------------------------------------------
Name of Employer:
-----------------------------------------
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ARTICLE 4: EMPLOYER'S OBLIGATIONS
---------------------------------
All of the terms and provisions of this Agreement shall be binding upon the
Employer and upon its subsidiaries, successors and assigns. In the event the
Employer sells or transfers its business to another, it shall nevertheless
continue to be liable for the complete performance of the terms and provisions
of this Agreement by the purchaser or transferee until the purchaser or
transferee expressly, in writing, assumes such performance and agrees to be
fully bound by the terms and provisions of this Agreement.
ARTICLE 5: AFTER ACQUIRED AND NEW FACILITIES
--------------------------------------------
5.1 This National Agreement shall be binding on those presently existing
facilities described in Article 2.1 above as well as all future facilities
operated by and either owned or leased by the Employer, but not including retail
stores. Local conditions for any future or after-acquired facility shall be
negotiated between the Employer and the Union.
5.2 When the Employer acquires a new facility by merger, acquisition or
consolidation, it shall advise the Union within one (1) year after such merger,
acquisition or consolidation whether the facility will be maintained by the
Employer or disposed of in some fashion. If the Employer advises the Union that
the facility will not be maintained by the Employer, then the Employer either
must dispose of the facility within six (6) months from the date of such notice
(unless the parties mutually agree to an extension) or Article 5 will apply. If
the facility is maintained by the Employer, this Agreement shall become binding
on that facility no later than eighteen (18) months from the date that the
facility was initially acquired.
5.3 If the facility is a manufacturing facility, the time periods set forth
in Article 5 above will apply, but the employees of said manufacturing facility
will be treated as a separate bargaining unit, and a separate
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collective bargaining agreement will be negotiated by the parties for that
facility.
ARTICLE 6: TRIAL PERIOD
-----------------------
The first thirty (30) calendar days of employment for newly- hired
employees shall be deemed their trial period during which time they may be
discharged without regard to cause. The trial period may be extended for another
fourteen (14) calendar days with the written consent of the Union. Upon the
expiration of the trial period, the newly-hired employee will be deemed a
regular employee. The trial period shall not be abused by the Employer and any
claim of abuse shall be the subject of arbitration hereunder.
ARTICLE 7: HIRING RATES AND MINIMUM WAGE SCALES
-----------------------------------------------
7.1 The hiring rates in effect in the various facilities and job
classifications, if any shall be set forth in the local Supplemental Agreements.
7.2 All hiring rates at all facilities covered by this agreement shall
increase $0.25 per hour effective June 1, 2003, $0.25 per hour effective June 6,
2004, and an additional $0.25 per hour effective June 5, 2005. The hiring rates
may not be decreased. They may increase only upon mutual agreement of the
parties.
7.3 Upon satisfactory completion of the trial period, an employee shall
receive an additional $0.50 per hour.
7.4 All employees who have completed their trial period as of June 1, 2003
shall receive at least $0.25 an hour above the newly-established minimum wage
rate in Paragraph 7.3. Employees who are in their trial period on June 1, 2003
shall receive the greater of the wage increase effective on June 2, 2003 or
$0.50 above the June 2, 2003 hiring minimum, but not both.
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ARTICLE 8: CHANGE IN LEGAL MINIMUMS
-----------------------------------
If, during the term of this Agreement, a new applicable federal or state
minimum wage law is enacted or becomes effective which increases the applicable
minimum wage hereunder, then the minimum wage set forth herein shall be
automatically increased so that such minimum wage shall be no less than 15%
above any newly-established state or federally mandated legal minimum
ARTICLE 9: COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT
------------------------------------
Should the cost of living, as reflected in the U.S. Consumer Price Index for the
period of June 2003 through November 2004 increase ten (10%) percent over the
Consumer Price Index for May 2003, as published in June 2003, then the regular
hourly wages of all employees shall be increased ten cents ($0.10) per hour.
Additionally, hourly increases of five cents ($0.05) per hour shall be paid for
each additional increase in the cost of living of one-half of one percent (.5%).
Cost of living increases payable under this provision shall not exceed
twenty-five cents ($0.25) per hour. Rises in the Consumer Price Index shall be
measured over an eighteen (18) month period, as set forth above, by utilizing
the consumer Price Indices for the Urban Wage Earners and Clerical workers, U.S.
Cities, Average, printed and released in the months of July 2003 through
December 2004. Wage increases due hereunder shall be effective January 4, 2005.
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ARTICLE 10: JOB SECURITY/HANDLING AND DISTRIBUTION OF PRODUCT
-------------------------------------------------------------
10.1 No employee shall be involuntarily permanently laid off as a direct
result of the Employer's use of a third party contractor to distribute its
product.
10.2 To protect the job security of the employees of the Employer and to
preserve labor standards among workers who are employed in the integrated
process of production of the Employer's garments, the parties agree to the
following:
In the event the Employer engages a third party contractor to operate
a distribution facility entirely dedicated to the distribution of the Employer's
garments for a period in excess of two (2) years, or if the Employer engages a
third party contractor where the Employer's garments will take over 50% of the
square footage of the third party's facility for more than three (3) months,
such third party contractor must have a collective bargaining relationship with
UNITE or an affiliate thereof.
10.3 Subject to the protections set forth above, nothing contained herein
or in any Local Supplement shall be deemed to restrain the Employer in its
determination as to the methods or means by which its products are handled and
distributed, including, but not limited to, the allocation of products and
functions among the Employer's facilities or the use of facilities not owned,
leased or operated by the Employer.
ARTICLE 11: CHANGE IN PAY SYSTEMS
---------------------------------
The Employer reserves the right to change the method of payment for some of
the general distribution or quality assurance employees to an incentive system.
Employees on the incentive system shall not be paid less than their current
hourly rate. The Union may assert reasonable challenges to the fairness of the
proposed incentive system. Any disputes regarding the implementation of such
systems may be submitted to the arbitrator for resolution.
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ARTICLE 12: WAGE INCREASES
12.1 The wage increases for employees shall be as follows:
Effective June 1, 2003, employees shall receive a wage increase of $0.60
per hour.
Effective June 6, 2004, employees shall receive a wage increase of $0.50
per hour.
Effective June 5, 2005, employees shall receive a wage increase of $0.50
per hour.
12.2
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ARTICLE 13: CHECK-OFF
---------------------
13.1 Subject to the requirements of law concerning authorization and
assignment by the employees individually, the Employer shall deduct membership
dues (which shall be deemed to include periodic fixed dues, initiation fees and
assessments) or, to the extent permitted by law, service charges, from the
earnings of its employees monthly and transmit the same to the Union promptly in
accordance with past practice thereafter.
13.2 The Employer agrees to honor check-off authorizations for political
contributions to the UNITE Campaign Committee and AFL-CIO COPE from employees
who are members of the Union.
13.3 Sums deducted by the Employer under the provisions of Paragraphs 13.1
and 13.2 this Article shall be kept separate and apart from general funds of the
Employer and shall be held in trust by the Employer for the benefit of the
Union, the UNITE Campaign Committee, and AFL-CIO COPE, as the case may be.
ARTICLE 14: NO DISCRIMINATION
-----------------------------
The Employer shall not discriminate against any employee on the basis of
race, creed, religion, color, national origin, sex, age, sexual orientation,
citizenship status, disability, veteran's status or membership in or activities
on behalf of the Union, unless required by this Agreement. The Employer,
however, shall not employ children or adolescents where such employment is
prohibited by an applicable federal or state law or regulation.
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ARTICLE 15: EMPLOYMENT STANDARDS
--------------------------------
15.1 All wages, earnings, overtime and holiday pay shall be paid on the day
they were customarily paid, but no later than the Friday following the week in
which they were earned.
15.2 The Employer shall not charge an employee for any damage to materials
unless caused willfully.
15.3 The Employer shall supply necessary machines and too
