Contract grievance arbitration to go forward notwithstanding pending disciplinary action taken against the employee
Cattaraugus Central Schools v. Cattaraugus Teacher’s Association, 84 A.D.2d 685
A teacher filed a grievance claiming a violation of the Taylor Law contract. After losing the grievance at Step 3, the teacher sought arbitration. The school district, however, obtained a stay of arbitration of the grievance in the light of a pending disciplinary action involving the teacher.
On appeal the stay issued by Supreme Court was vacated.
The Appellate Division held that there was no bar to simultaneously pursuing remedies under the agreement and the Education Law, even if there might be different decisions as a result.
According to the decision, the only two questions to be considered by the court in connection with an attempt to stay arbitration are
1. whether arbitration of the subject matter of the dispute is permissible under the Taylor Law ... and allowable as a matter of public policy (i.e., denial of tenure is not subject to arbitration; alleged procedural violations in connection with consideration for tenure is subject to arbitration is provided for in the agreement) and
2. whether the parties agreed by the terms of their arbitration clause to submit the dispute to arbitration.