PEP Oct. 2002: Board backs union on merit pay

Public Employee Press

City must negotiate on procedures:
Board backs union on merit pay

Responding to the union's improper practice charges, the Board of Collective Bargaining has barred the city from implementing merit pay increases without negotiating procedures and criteria with the union.

In two recent cases filed by District Council 37, Social Service Employees Union Local 371 and Clerical-Administrative Employees Local 1549, BCB ordered the Human Resources Administration and the Administration for Children's Services to suspend merit plans that had been initiated without bargaining.
BCB stated unequivocally its policy on merit pay under the city Collective Bargaining Law:

The decision to grant merit pay and the total amount of money to be offered are "management rights".
The procedures and criteria for determining eligibility for merit increases are mandatory subjects of bargaining.

"The city went beyond what our contract allowed, and BCB slapped them down. This is an important victory for the union," said Senior Assistant General Counsel Mary O'Connell, who handled the case for DC 37.

The rulings vindicated a decision of the DC 37 Negotiating Committee on the 2000-2002 economic agreement.

Former Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani had pressed for merit pay language as a precondition to a settlement, recalled DC 37 Research and Negotiations Director Dennis Sullivan. In a move that paved the way to substantial pay increases, the union negotiated contract language that restated management's right to institute merit pay plans and required advance notice to the union.

But when the administration tried to put the merit increases into effect, the union charged the city with failing to negotiate.

In the ACS case, Local 371 filed the charges on behalf of more than 600 child welfare workers. "If management thought our fight against merit pay ended with the contract, this victory shows they were dead wrong," said Local President Charles Ensley, a bitter opponent of merit pay concessions. Vice President Faye Moore and Attorney Joel Spivak pressed the union's case.

Local 371, Clerical-Administrative Employees Local 1549 and DC 37 initiated the HRA case on behalf of more than 1,200 employees in the Job Opportunity Specialist series of positions.In that case, the board ruled that implementing merit pay also violated regulations against changing the terms of employment during a representation proceeding. The two DC 37 locals and the Communications Workers all seek to represent JOS employees.

"It was outrageous of the city to start offering extra pay to some workers during important representation proceedings," said Local 1549 President Eddie Rodriguez.