Faculty Rights Tip: Reprimands

Article 18 of our Collective Bargaining Agreement covers reprimands. Here are some important things to know about reprimands: 

• A written reprimand has to be identified clearly as a “letter of reprimand.” Administrators are not permitted to issue anything else (such as a “memo of concern,” a “letter of expectation,” etc.) to be placed in a faculty member’s file.
• You must be provided with a copy of a written reprimand at least five days before it is placed in your Personnel Action File (PAF).

• You have 14 days after the receipt of the reprimand to request a conference with the administrator who issued the reprimand, and your request for a meeting “shall not unreasonably be denied.”

• You cannot grieve or challenge a reprimand the way you can other contract violations, but consult with your CFA advocates if you are unsure.You have a right to attach a rebuttal to a written reprimand in your PAF and/or request correction of the record based upon article 11 of our contract.

• After three years, if there are no further references to that reprimand in additional discipline, upon request, the reprimand and all related materials will be permanently removed from your PAF.

There are other provisions about reprimands you can find in Article 18. If you or a colleague receives a written or oral reprimand you should contact your CFA Faculty Rights representative right away.

proposing changes to Article 18 that will reduce the likelihood that reprimands will be removed from faculty PAFs after 3 years. You can follow what’s happening at the bargaining table here: https://www.cfabargaining.org and specifically read both CFA’s and the CSU’s proposals here.

Want to learn more? Become active with your local CFA chapter Faculty Rights team. Find your representative here.

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