Letter of Agreement on Investigative Procedures

SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY

Office of the Vice-President, Academic
To: Policies and Procedures Manual Holders
From: Judith Osborne, Sharon Cochrane
Re: Letter of Agreement

Date: January 29,1996

The recently negotiated Letter of Agreement on Investigative Procedures (below) is not, intended to replace existing investigative procedures in other University policies (e.g., R. 60-01 Integrity in Research and Misconduct in Research, GP 18 Harassment Policy, T 20.01 Grading Practices and Grade Appeals), nor is it intended to replace informal problem-solving mechanisms. Rather the investigative procedures are intended to fill a void where an existing formal or informal process does not exist. If you receive a written complaint against a member of the Faculty Association of Simon Fraser University and are unsure of the appropriate mechanism for resolving the complaint or unsure of the applicability of the Letter of Agreement, the Vice-President Academic’s office will assist you.

cc. The Faculty Association of Simon Fraser University

 

LETTER OF AGREEMENT BETWEEN

SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY

AND

THE FACULTY ASSOCIATION OF SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY

 

Pending the conclusion of the negotiation of procedures for an investigation process for members of the Faculty Association bargaining unit on matters not covered by existing policies, and without prejudice to the outcome of those negotiations, the University agrees that, if there is a complaint against a bargaining unit member(s) that requires an investigation, it will observe procedural fairness and the following practices:
The investigation and any follow-up will be coordinated by the Director of Academic Relations or the Associate Vice-President Academic.

A preliminary review will be undertaken and completed forthwith to determine the need for a formal investigation. The parties will be informed that a preliminary review is being conducted. In order to minimize groundless complaints, it will be the responsibility of the complainant to provide written reasons for the University to proceed with an investigation. The respondent(s) will be given an opportunity to respond to the complaint.

If a formal investigation is deemed necessary, the process will be as follows:
The coordinator will provide the designated investigator with terms of reference for conducting the investigation, including a time frame for completion;

There will be full disclosure of the case to the member(s) at the outset of the investigation and a full opportunity for both sides to be heard by an impartial investigator;

Any party may speak through a representative; and

The investigator will provide written recommendation(s) with reasons to the coordinator and to the parties.

The co-ordinator shall ensure that any action taken as a result of the investigator’s findings or recommendations shall be done in a timely way and communicated to the parties in writing. Alternatively, the coordinator shall ensure that the parties will be provided with a written rationale for any decision not to implement the investigator’s recommendations. The investigator will also be informed of the outcome of the process.

Any disciplinary action exceeding a letter of reprimand resulting from .the investigation may be appealed to a single, external arbitrator. The costs of the arbitrator will be shared equally by the mernber(s) and the University.

Original signed on behalf of:

Simon Fraser University	The Faculty Association of Simon Fraser University
by Judith Osborne & Sharon Cochran	by Malgorzata Dubiel & Susan Taylor

on November 15,1995