NEVADA LOCAL GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEE-

MANAGEMENT RELATIONS BOARD

THIS IS AN IMPORTANT NOTICE CONCERNING

INVESTIGATORY INTERVIEWS OF SUPPORT-STAFF EMPLOYEES

OF THE CLARK COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT

This notice is provided pursuant to a recent decision of the Nevada Local Government Employee-Management Relations Board (EMRB).

In 1975, in National Labor Relations Board v. Weingarten, Inc., the United States Supreme Court held that an employee has a right to assistance from a union representative during an “investigatory interview” by the employer.  The rights recognized in that case and developed in later court cases are called “Weingarten rights.”

The EMRB has held that Clark County School District employees have Weingarten rights.  For education support employees, these rights include the right, upon request, to have a representative present at any investigatory interview that the employee reasonably believes may lead to discipline or at which the employer seeks information to enable it to impose discipline.  An employee who desires representation at an investigatory interview must request it.

If an employee requests representation and representation is not present, the District may not require the employee to answer any questions.

The Education Support Employees Association (“ESEA”) has a duty to its members to make its UniServ Directors or other representatives reasonably available for any investigatory interview for which a member requests representation.  If there are no ESEA representatives available at the time of an investigatory interview, the District must make all reasonable efforts to accommodate the scheduling conflict.  An employee is not entitled to insist upon a particular representative if that representative is not available.

A representative who is present at an investigatory interview is entitled to take an active role in assisting the employee, such as suggesting possible sources of information, asking clarifying questions, or providing explanations justifying conduct.

No District employee may be disciplined for the good faith exercise of his or her Weingarten rights.