CELLPHONE CONTRACT

At Riverside, a safety-first focus paramount for our employees, the public and the environment.

Cell Phone Policy

Cell phones are an integral part of everyday life and a necessary tool for conducting business, but they are also a distraction and have the potential to cause serious injury or death. The purpose of this policy is to promote a SAFE, team-oriented work environment by governing use of cell phones in the workplace. Cell phone use includes verbal conversations, texting, emailing, social media, web browsing, gaming, streaming music, etcetera. This policy applies to every employee of Riverside Contracting, Inc. (“Riverside”) and will be strictly enforced.

It is the policy of Riverside that:

Employees that are issued company phones are allowed to use cell phones at work.
Authorized employees may use cell phones at work as required to complete their job duties. This includes drivers carrying out mobilization or other long-haul operations with limited radio contact, and drivers hauling materials such as oil or lime.
Employees authorized to use cell phones must remain hands-free when operating vehicles or equipment.
Personal cell phones shall not be on the employee’s body nor within reach while at work.
Employees are required to download and use applications on personal cell phones for electronic timecards, driver-vehicle inspection reports (DVIRs), and electronic logging devices (ELDs). When not managing one of these applications, cell phones must be in a secure location off the employee’s body.
In exchange for use of personal cell phones to carry out work-related activities, Riverside will reimburse employees $1.00 per workday. Reimbursement will be nontaxable and issued weekly through payroll.

Riverside understands that special circumstances may require phone contact. Proper protocol must be followed:

Notify your supervisor of your situation to get permission to use your cell phone.
Make your next-of-kin aware of your supervisor’s phone number. In the event they need to contact you, they may contact your supervisor.
Your supervisor’s phone is available to you if you need to make a call.

CMV Drivers: The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) restricts the use of all hand-held mobile devices by drivers of commercial vehicles (CMVs). Any vehicle used for company purposes with a GVWR over 10,000 pounds (F250+) is a CMV. CMV drivers who use a mobile phone while driving must use a hands-free device. Simply, the rules are: NO REACHING, NO HOLDING, NO DIALING, NO TEXTING, NO READING. It is not only safe practice, it is the LAW, and your job as a CMV driver depends on it.

CELL PHONE POLICY DISCIPLINARY ACTION PLAN

The purpose of this Disciplinary Action Plan is to enforce the terms of the Cell Phone Policy previously agreed to by every employee of Riverside Contracting, Inc. When warranted under the circumstances, Riverside will seek to use progressive discipline to correct, improve upon, and prevent future violations of its Cell Phone Policy. At Riverside’s discretion, and depending on the severity of the violation, progressive discipline may proceed as follows:

First Offense: A meeting will be held with the employee, in-person or by phone, to explain that the behavior demonstrated by the employee is prohibited by the Cell Phone Policy. A written warning will be issued and recorded in the employee’s permanent file. The employee will be required to report to their supervisor and successfully complete a one-hour, Level 1 training course before returning to duty.
Second Offense: A meeting will be held with the employee in-person to explain that the behavior demonstrated by the employee is prohibited by the Cell Phone Policy. A written warning will be issued and recorded in the employee’s permanent file. The employee will be required to report to the Missoula or Billings office to successfully complete a two-hour, Level 2 training course before returning to duty.

An employee that qualifies for the Seniority Incentive Program will forfeit 50% of the bonus they would otherwise receive. An employee that does not yet qualify for the Seniority Incentive Program may be subject to additional discipline as determined by their supervisor and the Safety Compliance Officer including, but not limited to, a two-day suspension without pay.

Third Offense: A meeting will be held with the employee in-person to explain that the behavior demonstrated by the employee is prohibited by the Cell Phone Policy. A written warning will be issued and recorded in the employee’s permanent file. The employee will be required to report to the Missoula or Billings office to successfully complete a two-hour, Level 3 training course before returning to duty.

An employee that qualifies for the Seniority Incentive Program will forfeit the remaining 50% of the bonus they would otherwise receive. An employee that does not yet qualify for the Seniority Incentive Program may be subject to additional discipline as determined by their supervisor and the Safety Compliance Officer including, but not limited to, a three-day suspension without pay.

Riverside reserves the right to combine, skip, or reorder any steps in the process depending upon the nature of the offenses and the circumstances. Note—this means that Riverside has the right to immediately terminate an employee without warning or the use of progressive discipline should the circumstances call for such action.

When determining the appropriate discipline for a given instance, Riverside may consider, at its discretion, any of the following factors without limitation: the employee’s prior history of poor conduct with Riverside or prior employers, the employee’s work record and level of commitment to Riverside goals, the number of repeated instances of the particular offense, the amount of training received in order to prevent such offenses, the impact the offense has on Company’s performance or perception in the marketplace, and the level of egregiousness and purposeful intention to violate Riverside policy.

Supervisors and others who fail to report violations or who withhold relevant information concerning a policy violation will be disciplined as is warranted under the circumstances.

Next: Company Training Policy

Training Policy