The Baseball Club Of Chatham, N.J., Inc. Grievance Policy
A grievance must: (i) be submitted to the President or the Grievance Officer of The Baseball Club of Chatham, N.J., Inc. (the “Club”) by a person who is not acting in violation of the Club Code of Conduct; (ii) allege a violation of a specific provision of the Club Code of Conduct, a specific rule governing league play, or a local, state or federal law; (iii) be preceded by the grievant bringing the incident to the attention of a coach or a Club committee person or officer; (iv) be presented in writing using the Club Notice of Grievance form (attached) and signed by the grievant, explaining the nature of the grievance and the circumstances attendant to it, identifying all witnesses to the incident giving rise to the grievance, and indicating the specific provision of the Club Code of Conduct, the specific rule governing league play, or the specific local, state or federal law that was allegedly violated; (v) be submitted no earlier than twenty-four (24) hours after the grievant’s communications, with a coach or a Club committee person or officer concerning the incident, prove unsatisfactory; and (vi) be submitted no later than two (2) weeks after the occurrence of the incident that gives rise to the grievance.
A grievance shall not challenge a coaching decision. A coaching decision means all discretionary decisions not mandated by a specific rule governing league play, including, but not limited to, any decision concerning position assignments, starting assignments and baseball strategy and tactics.
The person subject of the grievance will have an opportunity to respond to the grievant’s allegations in writing using the Club Notice of Grievance form. The Grievance Officer may also require witnesses to complete and submit the Club Notice of Grievance form.
The Grievance Officer shall oversee the grievance-review process and shall resolve and rule on all grievances. If the Grievance Officer is a party or witness to the grievance, then the President of the Club will resolve and rule on said grievance.
The Grievance Officer shall: (i) provide the party subject to the grievance with a copy of it and provide that party with an opportunity to respond to the grievant’s allegations; (ii) speak to all parties and identified witnesses concerning the incident giving rise to the grievance; (iii) notify the Club Board of Trustees of the grievance; and (iv) endeavor to resolve and rule on the grievance within twenty (20) days of its submission. If the grievance raises a question concerning the physical safety of participants, the Grievance Officer may initiate a more expedient process for resolving the grievance, including, but not limited to, a special meeting of the Club Board of Trustees to address it.
The Grievance Officer shall keep grievances, and documents submitted in connection with them, confidential to the Club, the parties, and the witnesses.
The decision of the Grievance Officer (or the President of the Club, as the case may be) resolving and ruling upon a grievance shall be final and shall be communicated in writing to the parties.
The Grievance Officer shall have the authority to take appropriate disciplinary action if he rules, at the completion of the grievance-review process, that a violation of the Club Code of Conduct has occurred, including, but not limited to the following action in any order or combination: (i) verbal warning; (ii) written warning; (iii) suspension or immediate ejection from a game or other baseball-related event or activity; (iv) suspension from multiple games or other baseball-related events and activities; (v) season or multiple-season suspension from participation in games or other baseball-related events or activities; and (vi) permanent expulsion from participation in games or other baseball-related events or activities.
