Collective Bargaining Agreement

COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENT


BETWEEN


RETAIL EMPLOYEES UNION
LOCAL 340, AMALGAMATED CLOTHING
AND TEXTILE WORKERS UNION, AFL-CIO


and


JOS. A. BANK CLOTHIERS, INC.


February 1, 1995


to


April 30, 1997


THIS AGREEMENT made as of the 1st day of February by and between the Retail Employees Union, Local 340, Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union of America, AFL-CIO, hereinafter referred to as the "UNION" for and in behalf of the employees covered by this Agreement and Jos. A. Bank Clothiers, Inc., hereinafter referred to as the "EMPLOYER".


ARTICLE I: RECOGNITION


(A) The Employer recognizes the Union as the sole and exclusive bargaining agent for all of its employees in the following appropriate unit:


Included: All salespeople, non-selling employees, tailors, fitter-tailors, and pressers employed by the Employer at its store located at Madison Avenue and 46th Street in New York City, and any and all other heretofore included selling and non-selling employees employed by the Employer in any store which shall be hereafter operated or controlled by the Employer in New York City, Nassau, Suffolk, Rockland and Westchester Counties, excluding any factory outlet stores operated or controlled by the Employer.


Excluded: Office clerical employees, professional employees, guards and supervisors as defined in the Act, including Store Manager, Assistant Store Manager, Department Managers, Operations Managers, Tailor Shop Manager.


(B) The Union agrees that its members who are employees of the Employer will work upon the terms and conditions set forth in this Agreement.


(C) The Employer shall recognize and deal with such representatives of the employees as the Union may elect or appoint and shall permit such representatives elected or appointed by the Union to visit the premises of the Employer at reasonable times during working hours. Such Union representatives shall, where practicable, notify the Employer in advance of their arrival at the Employer's premises and such visits shall not unduly interfere with the Employer's operations.


(D) In the event of a dispute over the compensation of any bargaining unit member, the Employer will make available such bargaining unit payroll data as the Union may reasonably require as the collective bargaining agent for such unit employees.


(E) The Union shall have the right to post notices concerning the internal administration of the Union on a bulletin board or boards to be located on the premises of the Employer at mutually agreeable places.


ARTICLE II: UNION SECURITY


(A) In the manner and to the extent permitted by law, membership in the Union on or after the 30th day following the date this contract is executed, or the 30th day following the date of employment of each employee, whichever is later, shall be required as a condition of employment; all employees who are now members or thereafter become members of the Union, shall as a condition of continued employment, remain members in good standing during the term of this contract.


For the purposes of this Article, employees shall be considered members in good standing if they tender to the Union uniformly required periodic dues and assessments.


ARTICLE III - CHECK-OFF


The Employer shall deduct from the wages of members of the bargaining unit upon voluntary written authorization of said members, union dues, initiation fees and assessments. The amounts deducted pursuant to such authorization shall be transmitted promptly each month to the properly-designated official of the Union, together with a list of names of the employees from whom the deductions were made. The Union agrees to indemnify and hold the Employer harmless for any and all liabilities that may be incurred by the Employer by reason of any deduction provided for herein. The voluntary written authorization of any member of the bargaining unit shall be provided on the standard Union checkoff authorization form attached hereto and made a part hereof as Appendix A.


ARTICLE IV: MANAGEMENT RIGHTS


The Employer retains and shall continue to retain the right to operate and manage its business and to exercise all of the customary rights and powers of management, except as such rights and powers are expressly limited by the terms of this Agreement. Without limitation of the foregoing this shall include the Employer's right to establish or modify job requirements, work rules and procedures, and performance standards, provided that the exercise of this right shall not be unreasonable.


ARTICLE V: SENIORITY


(A) For benefit accrual, vacation and personal day selection purposes, seniority shall be defined as the length of time an employee has been in continuous employment in a bargaining unit position with the Employer since the employee's most recent date of hire. Seniority shall be applicable or relevant only in those provisions' which expressly so state.


(B) All newly hired non-selling employees will be regarded as probationary employees for the first ninety (90) calendar days from the date of their hire. Newly hired salespersons shall be regarded as probationary employees for the first 120 calendar days from the date of their hire.


The aforesaid probationary periods may be extended by the Employer upon notice to the Union for an additional sixty (60) calendar days. The Employer must give counseling concerning any performance issue to any employee whose probationary period has been extended at the end of 90 and 120 days of employment in the case of non-selling employees and at the end of 120 and 150 days in the case of sales employees.


During the probationary period, employees will not have seniority status and may be laid off, terminated, transferred or demoted entirely at the discretion of the Employer. The grievance and arbitration procedures of this contract shall not be applicable to these actions. At the completion of the probationary period, employees shall have seniority from the most recent date of hire.


(C) The Employer shall furnish the Union with a current seniority list on or about January 30th of each year.


(D) Seniority rights shall be lost for all purposes, including layoff and recall, in the event of termination of employment.


(E) The Employer shall have the right to transfer selling personnel on a temporary basis from one floor to another and non-selling personnel from one department to any other department in the store at any time, provided that the Employer shall not transfer an employee for disciplinary reasons (other than job performance-related reasons), and further provided that there shall be no involuntary transfers of selling employees to non-selling positions. However, selling personnel may be temporarily assigned for purposes of coverage on an equitable rotating basis among all store selling personnel. Temporary assignments shall not exceed seven (7) consecutive working days.


ARTICLE V: LAYOFFS


(A) For purposes of this Article there shall be such department groups as specified in Appendix B attached hereto and made a part hereof. A department group shall be defined as that department or grouping of departments within which seniority rights may be exercised in the event of layoff or recall.


(B) Seniority shall be defined for purposes of this Article as the total length of bargaining unit seniority with the Employer, whether or not interrupted by employment with the Employer in a non-bargaining unit position, since the last date of hire.


(C) All layoffs shall be in reverse order of seniority from the appropriate seniority list, i.e., the last person hired shall be the first person laid off.


(D) Within each department group, seasonal and probationary employees shall be laid off before regular employees, but without regard to seniority among and between such seasonal and probationary employees. The Shop Steward shall be accorded the most senior position of the appropriate seniority list, for layoff and recall only.


(E) A laid off employee with one (1) or more years continuous service with the Employer shall retain recall rights for twelve (12) months from the date of layoff. Laid off employees with less than one years continuous service with the Employer shall retain recall rights for six (6) months from the date of lay off. Recalls shall be in reverse order of layoff.


ARTICLE VII: WAGES (A) Non-Selling Employees The minimum hourly wage rates for non-selling employees shall be as follows:


Job Classification February 1, 1995 4/1/96
------------------ ---------------- ------
Cashier ................ $ 7.50 $ 8.00
Shipping/Receiving Clerk $ 7.50 $ 8.00
Porter ................. $ 7.00 $ 7.50
Tailor ................. $11.00 $11.50
Fitter/Tailor .......... $14.43 $14.93
Presser ................ $11.00 $11.50


(B) Selling Employees The base hourly wage rates for selling employees shall be as follows:


Regular Assignment February 1, 1995 4/1/96
------------------ ---------------- ------
First Floor $ 7.70 $ 8.20
Second Floor $ 9.62 $ 9.62


(C) Commission on net personal sales shall be calculated on a fiscal month basis using a graduated commission percentage. Net sales is defined as individual merchandise sales reduced by identified returns and the employee's share of unidentified returns plus the employee's share of any unidentified or management sales.


(D) Base commission percentage for selling employees is 4% of net sales. If net sales during a fiscal month exceed the predetermined sales levels set forth below, additional commission is paid, as shown.


Monthly Pre-determined Sales Levels


- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MEN'S CLOTHING Commission % February March April May - -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (2ND FLOOR) % - -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ALL SALES BELOW 1ST LEVEL 4.0 - -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ALL SALES IN FIRST LEVEL 5.0 $15,000 $30,000 $28,000 $26,000 - -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ALL SALES IN SECOND LEVEL 6.0 $21,000 $41,000 $38,000 $36,000 - -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ALL SALES IN THIRD LEVEL 7.0 $27,000 $53,000 $50,000 $47,000 - --------------------------------------------------------------------------------


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