Category: PERB News

The last day for the Legislature to pass bills this year is September 13.  So it's going to be a busy week.  Here's an update on bills affecting public sector labor relations: AB 537:  Makes various changes to the MMBA, including: a) prohibiting ground rules that limit the ability of union negotiators to communicate directly with the employer’s governing body; b) requiring tentative agreement to be approved by the governing body within 30 days of presentation; and c) makes contractual arbitration subject to the California Arbitration Act.  Still in the Senate. AB 616:  Amends MMBA to require PERB to certify that an impasse exists…

AB 537 was placed on the Appropriations Committee's suspense file on August 19, 2013.  However, on the last day to pass Appropriations, AB 537 made it out of committee with amendments designed to eliminate its fiscal impact.  Specifically, the following provisions were removed from AB 537: The requirement for mandatory mediation; The requirement that local rules be adopted only after “meeting and conferring” as opposed to “consultation.” However, the following significant changes to the MMBA remain in AB 537: Employers are prohibited from proposing a negotiating ground rule that limits the ability of union negotiators to communicate directly with the employer’s…

On June 13, 2013, the Board held a public hearing on the proposed regulations regarding: 1) State Mediation and Conciliation Service (SMCS) conducted representation and agency shop elections; and 2) MMBA factfinding sufficiency determination appeals.  The proposed regulations were previously published in the April 26, 2013 California Regulatory Notice Register.  My understanding is that the Board voted to proceed with the regulations as published. According to the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) website, PERB has submitted its “Final Statement of Reasons” for the two regulatory packages and now OAL has 30 days to review the proposed regulations.  The OAL review…