You have professionally moved on from the high-end restaurant, and you are now the newly hired HR Manager of a local municipality (the public sector). The municipality's top administrator insists you terminate a union employee for stealing local government property (not receiving permission to take a piece of equipment (a high-voltage electric meter) off of the municipality's property). The meter was taken home to work on a personal home project.

She, the top administrator, wants to set an example for other employees to not take equipment home without permission. When she was a supervisor at the municipality, she approved of two employees taking home equipment to work on a home project.

Here is additional information to help you answer the questions below:

-The employee in question has 5 years of seniority.

-Current CBA wording: Article I- Administration/Management Rights: The Administration retains all reasonable rights to operate the municipality's operations including the right to discipline/terminate an employee for just cause.

-There is no reference in the Employee Rules Handbook warning employees about taking tools/meters/etc. home.

-There is a rule against stealing indicating guilty employees will be terminated.

-The employee brought the high-voltage electric meter back to the company on his/her own volition. The employee's supervisor indicates the meter has a cracked glass but the meter still works. The supervisor does not know how the glass was damaged.

-The employee used the the meter over the weekend to install a ham radio tower.

-The meter originally cost the company $2,100. It is two month's old.

-When questioned by you and the employee's supervisor, he/she admitted to taking the meter and not getting management's permission to do so. The union's grievance chairperson was present during the interview protecting the employee's Weingarten Rights.

-The employee received a tardinessdisciplinary suspension 6 month's ago and a poor work performancedisciplinary written warning 12 months ago. The employee did not file a grievance over either disciplinary action.

-Another union employee admitted taking and returning tools from work without permission to work on a home project. The incident occurred two years ago. No one in management knew about it until this situation developed. The two employees ride-share to work.

-One year ago, an employee with 20 years of seniority was terminated for stealing money from the cafeteria's vending machines. The union lost the termination case in arbitration.

-The employee's sister is the Local Union's Recording Secretary.

-The top administrator does not want to pay attorney fees to outside counsel. She wants you, the HR Manager, to present the arbitration case.

-At the third step grievance meeting you learned the employee believes he/she is totally innocent since the high-voltage electric meter was returned. The union committee believes there was no violation of any company rule since no such rule exists.

-The union points out that in the past the administrator gave permission to two employees to take equipment home to work on a home project.

-At the end of the third step grievance meeting, you advised the union the employee is terminated for just cause.

-The arbitrator will come from a FMCS' roster. A case like this one will probably cost the employer and the union about $4,000 each in arbitrator fees.

For this question, please carefully review Step #8 of the section in Chapter 12entitled: Case Preparation.Thereafter, please fully describe how you, the HR Manager, will handle the two following union arguments/positions when raised in arbitration. (12 Points)

Union Argument/Position #1. There is no rule in the Employee Handbook against borrowing equipment for a home project. (6 Points)

Union Argument/Position #2. The municipality's top administrator previously approved two employees to take equipment home for a home project. She sent the message to all employees that it is okay to do so. (6 Points)