The following conditions apply to all staff affected by a reduction-in-force.

Written notice

• 60 consecutive calendar days prior to position elimination.
• Although this is meant to be a period of transition, staff may stop working on the day they receive notice or at any time during the 60-day notice period.
• Upon the end of the 60-day notice period, declining an interview/offer or stopping work, which ever occurs first, the staff member's pay will stop.

Transition Coordinator Support

• Each affected staff member will be provided coaching and support from a transition coordinator to assist him/her in formulating career options.
• The affected staff member is expected to decide whether or not to accept an interview/offer or voluntarily resign.

 Staff members not meeting the standard of a Qualified Referral will not be assigned a Transition Coordinator.

 Qualified Referral

• Meets the minimum qualifications for the vacant position.
• Successful (university) or Fully Achieves (health system) on current/most recent performance evaluation.
• No current corrective actions in the Disciplinary Action track.

Right to Appeal Reduction-in-force Decision
(Hourly-Paid and Monthly-salaried staff included)

The right to question, through the Duke Dispute Resolution Process, the specific provisions of the reduction-in-force process and how they were applied to the staff member. However, the assessment and evaluation of economic and operational factors leading to a decision to effect a reduction-in-force will not be the direct or indirect subject of a grievance.

• Any staff member affected by a reduction-in-force decision may appeal on the basis outlined in this policy.
• The staff member will follow the provisions and timeline outlined in the Duke Dispute Resolution Process.
• Failure to comply with this requirement will be deemed a waiver of the right to appeal.
• The burden will be on the appealing staff member to show that the reason for the reduction action was not reasonably related to a legitimate reduction-in-force factor, but rather due to a reason impermissible under federal or state statutes or organizational policies.
• If the appeal process is not completed by the staff member's last scheduled day of work, the staff member will be released on the effective date of the reduction-in-force and the appeal process will continue through completion.

Reassignment
(Hourly-Paid and Monthly-salaried staff included)

When a comparable position is vacant within the entity affected by the reduction-in-force, an affected staff member who is qualified for the vacancy will be offered the opportunity for reassignment based on the following criteria: (1) current/latest performance evaluation is a Successful (university) or Fully Achieves (health system) and no current corrective actions in the Disciplinary Action track; (2) meets minimum qualifications for the position; (3) is the most senior staff member qualified for the position; and (4) currently works in the same entity.

• If a staff member has reassignment rights, it is the responsibility of the department/entity HR director to counsel the staff member about that fact, and to inform the staff member on how to exercise those rights.
• Once the affected staff member has been informed of his or her opportunity for reassignment, he or she has 3 consecutive workdays (Monday to Friday) to decide whether or not to accept.
• If the affected staff member declines the reassignment offer he or she will have resigned (at the end of that workday) without eligibility for severance, recall or priority interview/selection consideration status.
• If the affected staff member accepts the reassignment offer, he or she will meet with the new supervisor to identify a transition plan.

Bumping Rights
(Hourly-Paid staff only)

A regular, full-time staff member with an established and acceptable performance record, who is hourly-paid and who is affected by a reduction-in-force, will have the right to assume another position in an equal or lower classification within the same unit if:

• The position is of the same type. Regular full-time hourly-paid staff may only bump into regular full-time hourly-paid positions. Regular staff on an abbreviated schedule (20 hours but less than 40 hours) may only bump other regular staff on the same abbreviated schedule. Similarly, regular part-time hourly-paid staff may only bump into regular part-time hourly-paid positions.
• If a staff member bumps into a lower classification, that staff member will receive the lower of his or her current rate of pay or the maximum base pay of the classification into which he or she is bumping.
• If a staff member has bumping rights, it is the responsibility of the entity HR director to counsel the staff member about that fact and to inform the staff member on how to exercise those rights.
• The staff member has 3 consecutive workdays (Monday to Friday) to decide whether or not to exercise bumping rights.
• Staff who choose not to exercise bumping rights will be placed on layoff status.
• NOTE: Bumping rights are not applicable to monthly-salaried staff

Declining an Interview or Offer for a Comparable Position

During 60-Day Notification Period: During the 60-day notification period, if the staff member is offered an interview which results in a position of comparable pay, and he or she declines that offer (or declines an interview), the staff member will have resigned (at the end of the work day) without eligibility for severance, recall or priority interview/selection consideration status.

After 60-Day Notification Period and within One Year of Termination: If a staff member declines a comparable position (or interview for a comparable position) after the 60-day notification period but within one year of termination, he or she will be considered to have resigned and will forfeit any remaining severance payments and priority interview/selection consideration status.

Trial Period

• As a newly transferred staff member, the 90-day orientation and evaluation period is considered a trial period.
• A newly transferred staff member may use accrued and unused PTO time during the first 90 days in a position with the approval of the supervisor.

Training Opportunities

• Training/re-training requirements (including funding) will be a joint determination among the senior administration of affected entity, entity HR director, Learning & Organization Development, and Recruitment & Talent Management.

Rights of Laid Off Staff

The organization, entity, etc. may determine that the layoff process is preferred. For those affected staff, the following provisions apply. These provisions also apply to redeployment candidates who do not find positions within the 60-day notification period.

Staff Member's Rights

See previous chart "Rights of Staff Members Affected by a Reduction-in-force".

Severance Pay

If a comparable position cannot be found within the 60-day notification period, the following provisions will apply:

• Only regular full-time or abbreviated schedule (working at least 20 hours per week) staff who are not paid 100 percent from grant funds are eligible for severance pay.
• Eligible staff will receive 1 week's base pay for each completed year of credited service.
• Severance pay will be calculated based on the staff member's:
  • normal work schedule in effect when he/she received reduction-in-force notification
  • base rate of pay in effect when layoff status begins
• See chart "Compensation for Laid Off Staff " for severance pay calculation.
• Severance pay will be a minimum of 2 week's pay and a maximum of 26 week's pay.
• Severance pay will be mailed to laid-off staff or, for those with direct deposit, credited to their bank account on their regularly scheduled payday.
• Severance pay will not be provided in a lump sum payment.
• Severance pay will cease in the event that the laid-off staff member returns to work at Duke.
• Any layoff candidate who rejects an offer of placement into a comparable position will forfeit all rights to severance pay.

Payment of PTO Accruals

• 100 percent of any accrued and unused time in the Short Term Bank.
• 50 percent of any accrued and unused time in the Long Term Bank.
• Accrued time off pay will not be provided in a lump sum payment.
• Reinstatement of prior accrued and unused time in the Carry Over Bank will occur if the affected staff member returns to employment at Duke within one year of the layoff date.

Payment of Vacation and Holiday Accruals

• 100 percent of any accrued and unused vacation and discretionary holiday time.
• Accrued time off pay will not be provided in a lump sum payment.
• Reinstatement of prior accrued and unused sick leave time will occur if the affected staff member returns to employment at Duke within one year of the layoff date.

Continuous Service Credit

Reinstatement of prior Continuous Service credit will occur if the affected staff member returns to employment at Duke within one year of the layoff date.

Children's Tuition Grant Eligibility

• For laid-off staff who were eligible for the Duke Children's Tuition Grant Program as of their layoff date, the grant will be paid for a maximum of 12 months from the date of termination for a total of two semesters per child or the equivalent, as long as the children are continuing students and remain consecutively enrolled.
• The overall benefit maximum limit of eight semesters per child and 16 semesters per family will continue to apply.

Health and Basic Life Insurance Coverage

Health and Basic Life insurance coverage for the balance of the month in which the layoff occurs, and for as many as six (6) additional months thereafter, as long as the staff member pays his or her share of the premiums. An additional 12 months of health insurance may be elected; however, the staff member will be responsible for the entire COBRA premium.

Recall

Recall to funded positions of equal or lower classification for which the laid off staff member is qualified that become available within a year in the department from which they were laid off.

• Staff previously laid off from the department will be returned in seniority order. That is, the last staff member laid off will be recalled first.
• Within 48 hours following receipt of notification, staff receiving notification of recall must indicate their intent to return and report for work no later than 7 calendar days after receipt of this notification.
• Notification will be made by certified mail. Refusal to accept recall will be considered a waiver of all recall rights.
• For purposes of Carry Over Bank/Sick Leave accumulation, laid-off staff who are recalled into another Duke position within a year of termination will have their prior balance of unused Carry Over Bank/Sick Leave reinstated.
• For purposes of Continuous Service reinstatement, laid-off staff who are recalled into another Duke position within a year of termination will have their prior service credit reinstated.

Compensation for Laid Off Staff

For regular full-time or abbreviated schedule staff member working at least 20 hours per week and is not paid 100 percent from grant funds.

Neither Severance Pay nor PTO bank/vacation and holiday accruals will be provided in lump sum payments.