Labor Relations

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#1. The last chance agreement was signed between Mr. Danny Webb, the company, and the union. The last chance agreement is an agreement among the three parties, usually initiated by the union where they feel that the worker's reinstatement through arbitration is very difficult. This is an agreement that gives the worker who has been accused of misconduct and discharged one last chance of keeping her job.
#2. The last chance agreements limit the arbitrator's authority severely. In the last chance agreements the arbitrator's jurisdiction is usually limited to determining whether or not the Webb breached the last chance agreement. if the arbitrator finds that Webb has breached the last chance agreement, the arbitrator will not be able to stop Webb's discharge. In this sense the arbitrator's role is severely limited.
#3. The length of the probationary period in the last chance agreement is normally 30 - 60 days. In this case, however, the agreement is for eighteen months. The point is that the probation period should be for a reasonable period of time, however, in this case Webb has agreed to a period of eighteen months. He should have objected to the long probationary period before he signed the last chance agreement. By signing the agreement of his own volition, Webb has agreed to the period of probation and so the period is not unreasonable. The arbitrator will not decide on issue to which Webb has agreed.
#4. The company has adequate proof that Webb did what he is accused of. Eyewitness testimony from a fellow employee Donnie Ossie supports the companies' contention that he saw Webb tip over the two crates of glass. In addition, another employee James Staples has testified that he heard a loud noise where Webb was working and enquired of Ossie if Webb has turned over some glass. That apart, Webb has confirmed that he heard a loud noise when he attempted to lift two cranes of glass from the third tier.
#5. The mitigating factors are that the chance that the glass fell over on its own as Webb bumped the front of the stack. In addition, there is an outside chance that two crates were ...