ARTICLE 16

167. Discipline must be corrective in nature, rather than punitive.

168. Discussions with employees are not discipline and are not grievable.

169. An official discussion may be maintained in a carriers file for 2 years.

170. There is an established time for supervisors to retain personal notes concerning carriers.

171. Supervisor's notes are destroyed when the supervisor/employee relationship ceases.

172. A letter carrier has a right to have a Steward present during discussions between the employee and the supervisor regarding the employee's use of sick leave.

173. Supervisors may exchange written notes regarding discussions with an employee with other supervisors.

174. Official discussions may be notated in an employee's Official Personnel File.

175. Discussions which involve fact-finding and which may lead to discipline entitle the employee to representation, if requested.

176. Linear daily volume estimates cannot be utilized to constitute the sole basis for disciplinary action.

177. Linear measurement evaluations can be the basis for discussions concerning the letter carrier's efficiency and a discussion may be held pursuant to Article 16, Section 2.

178. A one-day count and inspection may not be used as the sole basis to establish a standard against which the carrier's performance may be measured for disciplinary purposes.

179. Management may discipline for failure to meet the 18 and 8 casing standards.

180. Discipline must be effected within 14 days of the date it occurred.

181. An individual who has been disciplined during the waiting period for a step increase shall automatically have their step increase deferred.

182. Insubordination in and of itself is grounds for an emergency suspension.

183. The Postal Service may not initially issue disciplinary suspensions of less than five working days.

184. If a suspension begins as five days or more and is unilaterally reduced by the Service to less than four days, the Darrell Brown Memorandum does not apply.

185. Emergency suspensions are subject to review and concurrence the same as regular suspensions.

186. An employee can be removed at any time for a disability,

187. When a grievant is a veteran who falls under the Veterans Preference Act, and is issued a proposed removal as well as a letter of decision based on the same charges, it is unnecessary to grieve the proposed removal, but only the letter of decision.

188. A Veteran's preference eligible who has been disciplined may withdraw a concurrent MSPB appeal at any time prior to the actual hearing date of an arbitration and maintain the Union's right to arbitration.