Bargaining Update

SUBJECT	DESCRIPTION	STATUS	CASE NAME
Contracts With Union Members	Employer required new hires to sign contract agreeing to repay up to $10,000 in training costs if they left employment within 24 months after the conclusion of their probationary periods. Since agreement concerned mandatory subject of bargaining, employer not allowed to enter into one-on-one agreement with new hires concerning the issue.	Mandatory. Employer required to rescind practice.	Washington County Police Officers Association, No. UP-12-02 (Or. ERB 2003).
Off-Duty Employment	City assumed responsibility for administration of off-duty work program, and instituted requirement for prior approval of any off-duty work. Decision to regulate off-duty work held to be management right.	Not Mandatory. Employer not required to proceed to arbitration.	City of Paterson and Paterson PBA, PERC No. 2004-6 (N.J. PERC 2003).
Retention Of Benefits	Proposal for retention of benefits clause. Held to be mandatory so long as it did not seek to regulate working conditions outside of bargaining unit.	Mandatory. Employer required to bargain over proposal.	City of Camden, PERC No. 2004-7 (N.J. PERC 2003).
Wages	Employer unilaterally imposed freeze on merit pay increase after expiration of contract.	Mandatory. Employer required to rescind action.	Winter Springs Professional Firefighters Association, 29 FPER P 167 (Fla. PERC 2003).

There are three categories of bargaining topics.

Mandatory. Mandatory subjects must be negotiated if either side raises them during the negotiations process. If a past practice concerns a mandatory subject of bargaining, an employer may not make a change in the practice without first bargaining with the labor organization unless the labor organization has waived its right to negotiate over the subject.

Permissive. Permissive subjects need not be negotiated by either party, but can be negotiated if both sides voluntarily choose to do so. An employer is free to make changes in past practices affecting permissive subjects of bargaining without first bargaining with a labor organization.

Prohibited. Prohibited subjects are excluded from bargaining. A subject is often prohibited if it is “preempted” by another law covering the subject (e.g., a state law might preempt bargaining over the entire subject of pension benefits).