Upfront STATE LAW
Labor board: Palo Alto violated law in firefighters’ negotiations Ruling could affect voters’ 2011 repeal of binding arbitration by Gennady Sheyner
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n a stunning victory for Palo Alto’s firefighters union, the state Public Employment Relations Board has determined that the city violated state labor laws in 2011 when it put on that November’s election ballot a repeal of the binding-arbitration provision in its contract with public-safety workers — without first consulting with the union. Responding to a 2011 complaint filed by the International Association of Firefighters, Local 1319, and AFL-CIO, the labor board issued a 53-page ruling last week in which it found the city breached its duty to negotiate in good faith, in violation of a state law called the Meyers-MillsBrown Act. Though the Aug. 6 ruling doesn’t restore binding arbitration as a means to resolve impasses between the union and city management, it opens the door for the union to challenge its repeal in court and potentially overturn voters’ November 2011 decision. The firefighters’ complaint centered on the City Council’s vote, which was 5-4, to place on the ballot the measure to repeal binding arbitration, a long-standing and deeply controversial provision that critics said hampered the city’s ability to make meaningful reforms to employee benefits. Adopted in 1978, the provision empowered a three-member arbitration panel to
settle labor disputes between the city and its public-safety unions. The union alleged in its complaint that the city according to its contract was required to “meet and confer” with the union about the potential repeal, which the city declined to do. In its ruling, the board concluded that “the city was obliged to meet with the representatives of Local 1319 either to discuss and exchange proposals regarding the city’s proposed changes to the (binding) interest arbitration procedures or to clarify the city’s position that the proposed changes to its interest arbitration procedures were a permissive subject of meeting and conferring.” Measure D, as it was known, easily passed that November, with about two thirds of the voters approving. The new ruling represents a reversal of fortunes for the firefighters union, which had seen its prior challenges to the bindingarbitration repeal rebuffed by the labor board. In arguing for the repeal in 2011, council members Pat Burt, Karen Holman, Greg Schmid and Greg Scharff all argued that the clause is inequitable because it prevents the city from making the types of meaningful reforms to employee compensation that other labor groups have been forced to adopt
choosing and denied Local 1319 the right to represent employees in their employment relations with a public agency.” City Attorney Molly Stump disputed the labor board’s finding and told the Weekly that her office believes it is “wrong.” The council will consider on Monday night her request that the city appeal the labor boards decision. “It’s unfortunate that a procedural issue is being used to try to block the overwhelming will of the voters to repeal interest arbitration,” Stump said in an email. The new ruling from the board runs counter to that of the board’s Chief Administrative Law Judge Shawn P. Cloughesy, who just after the November 2011 vote, dismissed the firefighters’ “unfair labor practices” charge against the city, finding that the firefighters union waited too long before requesting a consultation with the city. Cloughesy argued in his 2011 finding that the demand by former union President Tony Spitaleri at a July public hearing that the council “adhere to government codes” in pursuing the repeal did not constitute an actual “meet and confer” request. Even if it did, the demand was “untimely,” Cloughesy wrote. He also concluded that the city provided the union with reasonable notice of its intention to alter the rules.
during the financial downturn (then-Vice Mayor Yiaway Yeh added the fifth vote that sent the repeal to the ballot). Opponents of the measure emphasized that unlike other employees, publicsafety workers cannot legally strike and argued that the binding arbitration provision is a way to protect their interests. The labor board last week stopped short of restoring binding arbitration in Palo Alto, noting that its authority does not extend to ordering election results to be overturned. But its determination that Palo Alto officials violated the law could pave the way for a fresh legal challenge from the union. The labor board noted that the only way to overturn an adopted charter amendment is through a “quo warranto writ,” a notice that challenges governmental authority for the action. Based on the board’s ruling against the city and its direction that the council rescind its vote to place the item on the ballot, “other persons, including the charging party here, may choose to seek such quo warranto relief.” The labor board has also ordered the city to publicly post notices alerting employees of the violation. The city’s conduct, the notice states, “interfered with the right of the unit employees to participate in the activities of an employee organization of their own
After years of deliberations, the labor board reached a different conclusion. While Palo Alto officials had consistently maintained that binding arbitration is not a subject that by law requires its negotiators to meet and confer with unions, the board flatly rejected this argument. In its ruling, the board asserted that “by refusing to meet with Local 1319’s representatives, the city failed and refused to consult in good faith.” While Cloughesy had determined that the firefighters’ failure to request a consultation with the city earlier in the process constituted “a waiver by inaction to consult in good faith,” the board disagreed with this assessment. Board member A. Eugene Huguenin wrote in the opinion that the city was “aware that Local 1319 still wished to discuss with city representatives the changes proposed by the city to the interest arbitration procedures.” Nevertheless, the city has “consistently refused to meet with Local 1319, either for clarification or to discuss the subject of the interest arbitration procedures.” Two other members of the fourmember board, Priscilla Winslow and Eric Banks, joined in the decision. Kevin McNally, current president of the firefighters union, could not be reached for comment Thursday. Q
COMMUNITY
Atherton community rebuilds plane-crash victim’s home
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our years after a Tesla employee’s plane plummeted into an East Palo Alto neighborhood, destroying Lisa Jones’ home and child care center, residents of Atherton and dozens of community volunteers have stepped forward to rebuild Jones’ home — and life. Jones’ family members barely escaped when the twin-engine Cessna slammed into their bedrooms on the morning of Feb. 17, 2010. Since then, Jones has struggled while others in her Beech Street neighborhood have been able to recover. When a lawsuit that settled in July 2013 did not give Jones enough money to rebuild, Maryan Ackley, a longtime friend and Atherton resident, started to raise funds to rebuild Jones’ home. Now the project, which began in November, is nearly completed. This past Monday, Ebcon Corporation construction workers were putting the finishing touches on
by Sue Dremann the neat, beige-and-white home. “I’ve known Lisa since our kids were in kindergarten together 12 years ago,” Ackley said. “Our kids were friends, and we were friends. When the accident first happened, I stayed close to Lisa. When it became apparent that the settlement wouldn’t be enough, I reached out to the Sacred Heart Schools community” for help. Pacific Peninsula Group, a realestate development firm cofounded by Ackley’s husband, Stephen, became a corporate sponsor for the effort, which tapped into subcontractors who supplied in-kind donations. Dollinger Properties executive David Dollinger put up a $125,000 matching grant, which gave impetus to the community fundraising, according to Ackley. The nonprofit Rebuilding Together Peninsula, with whom Ackley has been active for many years, agreed to get involved. Scads of local businesses and contractors also
donated money, materials and time. “It really was a labor of love for a lot of people,” Ackley said. Chalk messages on the pavement in front of Jones’ home this week attest to that affection. “Lisa, You are loved!” student volunteers wrote. The students added words of encouragement at the driveway: “Audacity; Safety; Joy; Peace; Strength; Courage; Hope; Grace; Happiness: Community; Security; Care” — words that could describe Jones. Ackley said she first understood Jones’ impact on her community when she visited Jones’ day care center years ago. “She did such amazing work. She really provided very highquality early education. She provided such a needed service in her neighborhood,” Ackley said. But it all changed when the plane struck. Three Tesla employees — Brian Finn, Andrew Ingram and pilot Douglas Bourn — died in the accident, which was caused
Veronica Weber
Volunteer efforts, donations will get an East Palo Alto woman back into her house
A chalk message reads “LISA YOU ARE LOVED” on the sidewalk in front of Lisa Jones’ newly rebuilt home in East Palo Alto. The home was uninhabitable since a plane crashed into it four years ago. by pilot error, National Transportation Safety Board investigators determined. When Jones’ family fled the burning home, they left everything behind. The home was boarded up and red tagged. Ackley said students helped the family clean out their belongings last November before demolition. Construction began in April. The project went far beyond the usual scope of Rebuilding Together’s work, said Cari Chen, associate director of the Redwood City-based nonprofit. Workers replaced exterior walls, reframed the home and redid the entire roof. They replaced windows and doors and added new
drywall, new electrical wiring and plumbing and fire sprinklers. Volunteers showed up from trade unions; Menlo Park Presbyterian Church; Young Neighbors in Action Youth Ministry in Gig Harbor, Washington; the Atherton Sacred Heart Community; and Joan of Arc Parish in San Ramon. When the volunteers first came, project Superintendent Clark Schoening of Ebcon Construction said he wasn’t sure how the project could be coordinated. “But the kids really gave it their all. They gave up their summer (continued on page 12)
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