BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 686
Page 1
SENATE THIRD READING
SB
686 (Pan)
As Amended April 6, 2015
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE: 23-13
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|Committee |Votes|Ayes |Noes |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------|
|Higher |11-2 |Medina, Bloom, |Baker, Harper |
|Education | |Chávez, Irwin, | |
| | |Jones-Sawyer, Levine, | |
| | |Linder, Low, | |
| | |Santiago, Weber, | |
| | |Williams | |
| | | | |
|----------------+-----+----------------------+--------------------|
|Appropriations |12-5 |Gomez, Bloom, Bonta, |Bigelow, Chang, |
| | |Calderon, Nazarian, |Gallagher, Jones, |
| | |Eggman, Eduardo |Wagner |
| | |Garcia, Holden, | |
| | |Quirk, Rendon, Weber, | |
| | |Wood | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
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SB 686
Page 2
SUMMARY: Provides full collective bargaining rights pursuant to
the Higher Education Employer-Employee Relations Act (HEERA) to
supervisory employees employed as sworn peace officers by the
University of California (UC) or the Hastings College of the Law
(Hastings). Specifically, this bill:
1)Makes HEERA provisions that limit the collective bargaining
rights of supervisory employees inapplicable to supervisory
sworn peace officers employed by UC and Hastings so that such
employees would receive full collective bargaining rights
pursuant to HEERA.
2)Provides that HEERA provisions to prohibit supervisory
employees from participating on behalf of nonsupervisory
employees in the handling of grievances, in meet and confer
sessions, or in voting on questions of ratification or
rejection of memoranda of understanding governing
nonsupervisory employees shall still apply.
3)Prohibits supervisory sworn peace officers employed by UC and
Hastings from being placed in the same collective bargaining
unit as nonsupervisory employees.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Establishes HEERA which provides a statutory framework to
regulate labor relations between the UC, the California State
University (CSU), and Hastings and their respective employees
(Government Code (GOV) Section 3560).
2)Authorizes recognized employee organizations to represent
SB 686
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employees covered under HEERA in collective bargaining with
their employers over matters within the scope of
representation, as defined, including grievances, labor
disputes, wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of
employment (GOV Section 3562).
3)Defines "supervisory employee" for purposes of HEERA, as any
individual having authority, in the interest of the employer,
to hire, transfer, suspend, lay off, recall, promote,
discharge, assign, reward, or discipline other employees, or
responsibility to direct them, or to adjust their grievances,
or effectively to recommend such action if exercising such
authority requires the use of independent judgment rather than
is of a routine or clerical nature; and, provides that
academic or faculty employees, department chairs or heads of
similar academic units or programs, or other employees who
perform similar duties primarily in the interest of or on
behalf of members of the academic department, unit, or program
shall not be deemed a supervisory employee solely because of
such duties. To note, HEERA also creates a rebuttable
presumption for UC and Hastings employees wherein such
employees appointed by the employer to an indefinite term
shall be deemed to be supervisory employees; and, specifies
that employees whose duties are substantially similar to those
of their subordinates shall not be considered to be
supervisory employees (GOV Section 3580.3).
4)Prohibits supervisory employees from participating on behalf
of nonsupervisory employees in the handling of grievances, in
meet and confer sessions, or in voting on questions of
ratification or rejection of memoranda of understanding
governing nonsupervisory employees (GOV Section 3580.5).
FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee:
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1)The UC estimates initial costs of about $500,000 (General
Fund) associated with collective bargaining, to include
holding bargaining sessions, planning, researching, drafting
language, responding to union formation requests, and travel
expenses associated with negotiators/assistant negotiators,
faculty representatives and campus labor relations
representatives. Each of the UC's 10 campuses has a police
department that employs fully sworn law enforcement officers
with full arrest powers and primary jurisdiction for law
enforcement on their campus.
There are approximately 60-70 employees throughout UC, with
the classification of Sergeant, who could be affected by the
provisions in this bill. The systemwide salaries for these
individuals are currently $7.1 million. To the extent
collective bargaining negotiations result in larger salary
increases for these employees, the additional costs would be
$71,000 for each additional percentage increase.
5)Hastings indicates its security function is staffed by peace
officers represented by the Hastings Public Safety Officers
Association, but they are not "sworn" peace officers and thus
may not be affected by this bill. If this collective
bargaining right were to be extended to the two positions
supervising nine full-time public safety officers, collective
bargaining costs would be around $100,000. The cost impact of
higher salaries resulting from collective bargaining would be
minor.
COMMENTS: Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) and HEERA.
California's PERB acts as an appellate body to hear challenges
to proposed decisions that are issued by PERB staff.
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Additionally, PERB has the overall responsibility for
administering the Educational Employment Relations Act (EERA),
Ralph C. Dills Act, HEERA, Meyers-Milias-Brown Act, Transit
Employer-Employee Relations Act, In-Home Supportive Services
Employer-Employee Relations Act, Trial Court Act, and Court
Interpreter Act. To note, decisions of the Board itself may be
appealed under certain circumstances, and then only to the state
appellate courts.
Under HEERA, UC and CSU police sergeants currently do not
possesses the same rights as each other, though they perform
identical duties. The CSU sergeants are not designated as
supervisors; and, per a former PERB decision, police sergeants
who are employed by the UC Police Department are classified as
"supervisory employees" and are granted only limited collective
bargaining rights.
Need for the measure. Collect bargaining rights allow employers
and employees to collectively negotiate the terms and conditions
of employment; including, but not limited to benefits, weekly
hours, leave benefits, and health and safety policies.
According to the author, "UC police officers heavily contribute
to the safety of UC campuses. They protect our UC students and
deserve the right to have their voices fairly and honestly
considered when discussing the terms and conditions of their
employment."
The author contends that by allowing UC police sergeants who are
supervisory employees, the ability to adequately represent
themselves and negotiate the term of their employment, will
allow them to have a right that is already afforded to their
counterparts within the CSU system.
Supervisory employees are granted collective bargaining rights
under both the HEERA and Meyers-Milias-Brown Act. This measure
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provides that the supervisory UC or Hastings police sergeants
would be required to be in separate bargaining units in order to
ensure that there are no conflicts of interest.
Analysis Prepared by:
Jeanice Warden / HIGHER ED. / (916) 319-3960 FN: 0001651