Employees’ Obligation for Proper Attendance. Regular, on-time and reliable employee attendance is crucial to the effective operation of New Jersey Transit’s bus transportation system. Without reliable, on -time attendance by employees, dependable service to the public cannot be provided. To that end, this Attendance Policy (and Procedures) is hereby established to ensure that all employees know what is expected of them in the enforcement of an effective attendance system so that employees attend work as required. It is the responsibility of all employees to make themselves aware of this policy and be available for regular assignments, arrive on time and complete all their work assignments. This policy is an administrative, attendance system designed to address attendance at work; payroll issues are not covered by this policy and will be covered by labor agreements between the Union and NJ TRANSIT. The grievance process outlined in the labor agreement will remain in place. Nothing in this attendance policy will change the existing practice of ordering employees to work. [Effective January 1, 2016. The current policy will remain in effect until December 31,2015] This Attendance Policy is a No-Fault attendance policy. This Attendance Policy is designed to provide employees with an initial number of Attendance Occurrences that they may use on a no- fault basis and incur without receiving attendance discipline. In addition, the Attendance Policy also provides a set of "Exceptions" to be used to avoid or reduce Attendance Occurrences in certain situations. As such, notwithstanding any other section or provision of the Agreement, it is reemphasized, understood and agreed that there are no "excused absences" in this Attendance Policy and that the only Exceptions to the Attendance Policy are only those expressly set forth in the Attendance Policy. No arbitrator interpreting this Policy shall thus have any jurisdiction to interpret this Policy in a way that alters these Exceptions or adds new Exceptions. However, an Arbitrator may determine whether a particular Occurrence that was charged to an employee should have been subject to one of the Exceptions that are expressly set forth in this Policy.
