Section 16

Every employee is obligated to report for work as scheduled.
Except for the employees described in subsection c below, there shall be a grace period of five minutes at the beginning of the work shift. When an employee's lateness extends beyond the five-minute grace period, the full period of time between the scheduled reporting time and the actual reporting time shall be charged against such employee (e.g. an employee whose starting time is 9:00 a.m. who reports to work at 9:05 a.m. would not be "late," but such an employee with such a starting time who reports to work at 9:06 a.m. would be charged with six (6) minutes of lateness).
The following employees shall not be entitled to the five-minute grace period described in subsection b above:
1. Emergency personnel, including, but not limited to, Fire Alarm Dispatchers, Police Communication Technicians, Emergency Medical Services Specialists. The City shall furnish the Union with a full list of such positions.
2. Employees whose positions require, in the event of late reporting for work, that another be held over from a previous shift or be called in to substitute for the late employee, at premium rates of pay.
3. Employees subject to flexible work schedules.
Lateness beyond the five-minute grace period shall be classified as "excused" or "not excused" and excused lateness shall not be charged against the employee. Lateness found by the agency head or the individual designated by the agency head to have been caused by unforeseen public transportation delays or other circumstances which arise after an employee leaves for work which cannot be anticipated (e.g. elevator breakdowns or private transportation breakdowns) which are beyond the ability of the tardy employee to control shall be excused. Such findings shall be reasonably made; and the tardy employee may be required to furnish proof satisfactory to the agency head of the cause of the lateness. A request for excusal shall not be unreasonably denied. A refusal to excuse a lateness may be appealed to the Commissioner of Labor Relations whose decision shall be final.
Deduction for unexcused lateness shall be made on a minute for minute basis from any compensatory time standing to an employee's credit and then, if there is no such credited time, from the employee's annual leave balances.
The City reserves the right and power appropriately and for just cause to discipline or to discharge an employee for excessive lateness.
Contractual provisions or agency policies regarding lateness, grace or excusal periods or lateness penalties inconsistent with the uniform lateness policy set forth in this Section shall be superseded by this Section 16.
Lateness caused by a verified major failure of public transportation, such as a widespread or total power failure of significant duration or other catastrophe of similar severity, shall be excused.
Each agency will prepare contingency plans for operation during a major failure of public transportation which would cause disabled employees, as defined in the Americans with Disabilities Act, great difficulty in reaching their regular work location. Such plans will include, where practicable and productive, provisions assigning disabled employees to report to agency locations closer to their homes. Such plans shall also include provisions for excusal by the agency head of absences on an individual basis for disabled employees. Decisions of the agency head with respect to absences under such plans shall not be subject to the grievance procedure.