Labor Relations: The Meet and Confer Process

4. Refusal to Use Impasse Resolution Procedures

 Under the MMBA, the refusal to agree to accept the assistance of a mediator to resolve a negotiating impasse is not bad faith. 88  Failure to follow the impasse resolution procedures set forth in the local rules was not good faith conduct. 89

5. Bypassing Designated Representatives

 Unless negotiated “ground rules” prohibit it, factual communications directed to employees do not violate the good faith requirement as long as the communications are not designed to undermine the exclusive representative’s authority. 90  Where the union bypasses the school board’s designated representatives by making negotiating proposals directly to board members, it violates the union’s obligation to bargain in good faith. 91  Direct dealing with employees whom employer did not agree were in the bargaining unit is not bad faith. 92  A public agency cannot circumvent its meet and confer obligation by using the public initiative process to submit a proposal to the voters that might otherwise have been rejected by the union. 93 Similarly, if a public agency places a public (or voter) sponsored initiative (as opposed to an agency- sponsored initiative) on its ballot, it must still meet and confer prior to any public officer’s official sponsorship of the initiative. 94 According to the California Supreme Court, “Allowing public officials to purposefully evade the meet-and confer requirements of the MMBA by officially sponsoring a citizens’ initiative would seriously undermine the policies served by the statute: fostering full communication between public employers and employees, as well as improving personnel management and employer- employee relations.” 95  Surface bargaining occurs when one party goes through the motions without any real intent to reach an agreement. 96  Insistence on a firm position is not necessarily evidence of bad faith because the law merely requires the parties to maintain a sincere interest in reaching agreement, even if the reasons for a particular position are questionable. The duty to bargain in good faith requires the parties to explain the reasons for their positions with sufficient detail to allow for mutual understanding. 97

6. Surface Bargaining

7. Failure to Provide Requested Information

 An agency must provide the exclusive representative with requested information (provided that information is available to the agency)

Labor Relations: The Meet and Confer Process ©2019 (s) Liebert Cassidy Whitmore 16