• A procedure for an informal hearing to be completed within 60 days of the filing of the grievance or complaint.
• A process allowing an individual alleging a labor standards violation to submit the grievance to binding arbitration, if a collective bargaining agreement covering the parties provides for one.
• An appeal opportunity to the State.

State procedures must provide the following:

• A method for resolving a local area appeal
• A process for remanding grievances back to the local area
• An opportunity for an informal resolution and a hearing within 60 of the filing of a complaint or grievance

Direct recipients must provide the following:

• An opportunity for an informal resolution and a hearing within 60 days of the filing of a grievance or complaint

The procedures described above do not apply to discrimination complaints.

The Secretary of Labor will review a State or local grievance when:

• A decision has not been reached within 60 days
• A complainant is dissatisfied with the decision reached in the State grievance process

The Secretary has 120 days within which to make a decision on the complaint or grievance. When the appeal to the Secretary is based on the State’s failure to take up the complaint within 60 days, the complainant has 120 days from the date of the filing of the State appeal within which to bring the appeal to the Secretary.

Other complaint procedures exist for the following:

• State’s failure to designate a local workforce investment area upon request
• Denial or termination of eligibility as a training provider
• Testing and sanctioning of use for controlled substances

Sanctions:

The primary sanction that the State can impose on local area is to withhold funds. Similarly, the key sanction the Secretary can impose on a State is to withhold funds. The Secretary may also revoke or reorganize a local plan.

(20 CFR 667.600, 20 CFR 667.610, and 20 CFR 667.640)

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